Deadlines for CAFRA Civil Asset Forfeitures

CAFRA imposes several statutory deadlines in forfeiture cases, including:

• a 60 day deadline to issue a notice of seizure to all interested parties; and
• a 90 day deadline to file a complaint for forfeiture after the demand for court action is filed;
• the statute of limitations that might bar the government from initiating a forfeiture; and
• the statute of limitations that might bar the claimant from moving to set aside a default judgment.

This article discusses how the 60 and 90 day deadline might result in the court dismissing the government’s complaint for forfeiture after it missed a deadline.

Goverment’s 60 Day Deadline

The 60-day deadline to issue the notice of seizure is explained in Title 9 of the Department of Justice Manual in 9-112.210 as follows:

Section 983(a)(1) requires that written notice of an administrative forfeiture action be sent to interested parties as soon as practicable but no later than 60 days after the date of the seizure.

For interested parties determined after seizure, the written notice shall occur within 60 days after reasonably determining ownership or interest. See section 983(a)(1)(A)(v)….

If a seizing agency discovers that it has inadvertently failed to comply with a deadline for sending notice of the administrative forfeiture of property in a case where such deadlines apply, and the person from whom the property was seized has not waived the 60-day deadline, no further action may be taken to forfeit the property administratively based on the offense giving rise to the original seizure, and the property must be returned to the person from whom it was seized in accordance with section 983(a)(1)(F), unless the return of the property would be unlawful, or unless the Government, as soon as may be practicable, commences a judicial forfeiture proceeding by[:]

(1) naming the property in a criminal indictment or information and obtaining a judicial order pursuant to section 853(e) or (f) allowing it to hold the property; or

(2) filing a civil judicial forfeiture action and retaining lawful possession of the property pursuant to an arrest warrant in rem.

See Chapter 2 of the Asset Forfeiture Policy Manual (“Sixty-Day Notice Period in All Administrative Forfeiture Cases”).

Goverment’s 90 Day Deadline

The 90-day deadline comes into play after a demand for court action is filed with the agency that seized the property. Under CAFRA, a complaint for forfeiture must be filed no later than 90 days after a claim has been filed.

If a complaint for forfeiture is not filed within that 90 days time period that begins after the claim is filed, the seized property must be returned. No further action regarding the civil forfeiture of the property in connection with the underlying offense can be initiated.

Instead of filing a civil forfeiture complaint within 90 days, the government has the option of including a forfeiture count or allegation in a criminal indictment. Contact us to learn about the statute of limitations in criminal cases in Florida.

Motion to Dismiss – 18 U.S.C. § 983(a)(3)(A)

If the AUSA files a complaint for civil asset forfeiture under CAFRA outside the 90-day deadline from when the claim was served on the seizing agency, then your attorney can file a motion to dismiss, which might allege:

Motion to Dismiss

The Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act of 2000 (“CAFRA”) expressly commands:

“Not later than 90 days after a claim has been filed, the Government shall [1] file a complaint for forfeiture in the manner set forth in the Supplemental Rules for Certain Admiralty and Maritime Claims or [2] return the property pending the filing of a complaint, except that a court in the district in which the complaint will be filed may [3] extend the period for filing a complaint for good cause shown or upon agreement of the parties.”

18 U.S.C. § 983(a)(3)(A) (emphasis added).

Under the statute, the Government has 90 days to initiate one of three possible options:

1. file a complaint (civil or criminal) alleging the property is subject to forfeiture;
2. return the property; or
3. seek an extension of the deadline.

Id. Further, if by the end of the 90-day deadline, the Government has not initiated one of these options, its choice becomes limited to the prompt return of the property. See 18 U.S.C. § 983(a)(3)(B) (“if the Government does not [perform one of the actions listed above], the Government shall promptly release the property.”) (emphasis added).

If the court granted the AUSA’s request for an extension, the request and order must have been within the 90 day statutory deadline. The courts have “consistently held that an extension must be requested before the complaint deadline has elapsed and that retroactive extensions are not permitted.” United States v. 2014 Mercedes-Benz GL350BLT, VIN: 4JGDF2EE1EA411100, 162 F. Supp. 3d 1205, 1210 (M.D. Ala. 2016).

Memorandum of Law

I. INTRODUCTION

Claimant _____ moves to dismiss this action because the complaint was filed beyond the expiration of the statutory deadline for filing a complaint, which was 90 days after the government received ______’s administrative claim on _____.

Thus, the defendant currency must be returned without forfeiture pursuant to 18 U.S.C. §983(a)(3)(A) & (B). Because the statutory deadline expired, the complaint fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted and should be dismissed pursuant to F.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6).

II. STATEMENT OF FACTS

After the defendant currency was seized by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) on ______, the DEA mailed notice of the seizure to the claimant _____ on or about ______.

The notice letter stated that to contest the forfeiture in U.S. District Court, _____ was required to file a claim of ownership “with the Forfeiture Counsel of the DEA by _______” at the following address: Forfeiture Counsel, Asset Forfeiture Section, Office of Domestic Operations, Drug Enforcement Administration, HQs Forfeiture Response, P.O. Box 1475, Quantico, VA 22134-1475. See Exhibit A, Notice Letter, filed concurrently hereto and attached to Declaration of Attorney ______.

The notice further provided in relevant part that “[[quote what it says about date it is deemed filed]]….

This article was last updated on Friday, February 8, 2025.