Petitioning a court to bar them from disbursing funds in a trust account?

Question

Filed Small Claims against defendents who since sold their home, profits from the sale are in trust account until a paternity case is settled between the two defendants. I want to ask the court not to disburse these funds until our small claims hav been settled, without having to hire an attorney to do so.

Answer 1

"Petitioning a court to bar them from disbursing funds in a trust account? Filed Small Claims against defendants who since sold their home, profits from the sale are in trust account until a paternity case is settled between the two defendants. I want to ask the court not to disburse these funds until our small claims have been settled, without having to hire an attorney to do so."

The quick answer to your question-- which appears to be, in short, "how do I do that?"-- is "You probably can't."

Small claims' courts have limited jurisdiction over certain issues and have limited procedural avenues. And most small claims cases are handled with a single hearing on the matter.

You could amend your small claims pleadings to include a request for relief in the form of a temporary injunction prohibiting the disbursement of those funds in trust, but it's unlikely-- and maybe even impossible given the authority granted the small claims' court-- that the issue of relief will be taken up by the Court until you have your hearing. Why too should you be able to prevent a party's access to an asset without first having proven that you deserve the relief sought before the court?

After you win a judgment in small claims' court, then you can seek to put a lien on the trust.

Answer 2

Sounds like a plan. What's the question?

You're asking the court to put a lien on the trust account, up to the amount of the claim you have pending....