Filing# 140635015 E-Filed 12/18/2021 04:32:48 PM

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE 15TH mDICIAL CIRCUIT

IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA

FIRST AMERICAN BANK, as successor CIRCUIT CIVIL DIVISION: AH

by merger to Bank of Coral Gables, LLC, CASE NO: 50-2016-CA-9292-XXXX-MB

vs.
Plaintiff,

LAURENCE S. SCHNEIDER,

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STEPHANIE L. SCHNEIDER, et. al.,

Defendants,

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and

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THE NORTHERN TRUST COMPANY,

Garnishee,

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REAL ESTATE & FINANCE, Inc., a
Florida Corporation,
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Proposed Intervenor.
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EMERGENCY MOTION TO INTERVENE

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Real Estate & Finance, Inc., a Florida Corporation (Hereinafter "Real Estate & Finance"),

through undersigned counsel and pursuantto Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.230 and Florida Statute Section
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77.07 respectfully requests leave to intervenein the above captioned action on the following
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grounds:
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1. On September 22, 2021, this Court entered a Final Judgment in the amount of
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$1,547,391.54 against Defendants Laurence L. Schneider ("Laurence Schneider") and

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Stephanie L. Schneider ("Stephanie Schneider"), (collectively "the Defendants").

2. To enforce the Judgment, on October 13, 2021, Plaintiff filed Motions requesting

the entry of Writs of Garnishment ("the Writs") against Northern Trust Company ("Northern

Trust"). In the Motions, Plaintiff requested the issuance of Writs directed at whatever tangible

and intangible personal property belonging to the Defendants that Northern Trust had in its
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FILED: PALM BEACH COUNTY, FL, JOSEPH ABRUZZO, CLERK, 12/18/2021 04:32:48 PM
possession or control.

3. On October 25, 2021, the Clerk of this Court issued the Writs, one directed at

whatever personal property of Laurence Schneider that Northern Trust had in its possession or

control, and the other at whatever personal property of Stephanie Schneider that Northern Trust had in

its possession or control.

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4. Plaintiff served the Writs on Northern Trust on October 29, 2021. Despite the

very narrow focus of the Writs, which were only directed to personal property owned by the

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Defendants which was under Northern Trust's control, Northern Trust froze and retained Real

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Estate & Finance's business checking account at Northern Trust (hereinafter the "Account")

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with an approximate balance of $38,619.54.

5. On November 18, 2021, Northern Trust filed its Answer confirming that the
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Account was in fact "titled in the name of Real Estate & Finance, Inc." and that it was retaining
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the funds therein on the ground that Defendant Laurence Schneider is an "authorized signer" on
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theAccount.

6. Real Estate and Finance has suffered and continues to suffer irreparable harm
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because of having its business checking account being by frozen by Northern Trust, which,
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arguably, has exceeded its statutory mandate in retaining funds belonging to Real Estate &

Finance on the nominal alleged ground that one of the Defendants is an authorized signer on
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the Business Checking Account maintained by Real Estate and Finance at Northern Trust.
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7. To ensure that Real Estate & Finance's interest in its Business Checking

Account at Northern Trust is protected, Real Estate and Finance requests leave of this

Honorable Court to intervene in the proceeding sub Judice.

8. Together with this filing, Proposed Intervenor, Real Estate and Finance, will

also be filing an Emergency Motion to Dissolve the Writs to secure the immediate release of

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the funds in Real Estate and Finance's Business Checking Account held by Northern Trust.

LEGAL ARGUMENT

Under Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.230 anyone claiming an interest in pending litigation may assert a

right by intervention at any time. The test to determine what interest entitles a party to intervene

is set forth in Morgareidge v. Howey, 75 Fla. 234, 238-39, 78 So. 14, 15 (1918): [T]he interests

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which will entitle a person to intervene ... must be in the matter in litigation, and of such a direct

and immediate character that the intervenor will either gain or lose by the direct legal operation

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and effect of the judgment. In other words, the interest must be that created by a claim to the

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demand in suit or some part thereof, or a claim to, or lien upon, the property or some part thereof,

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which is the subject of litigation.
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Once the trial court determines that the interest asserted is appropriate to support

intervention, it must exercise its sound discretion to determine whether to permit intervention.
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Florida Wildlife Federation, Inc. v. Board of Trustees ofInternal Imp., 707 So.2d 841 (Fla. App.
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1998). It appears to be undisputed that the Account is titled solely in the name of Real Estate & Finance.

This is confirmed by the November 18, 2021, Answer that Northern Trust has filed in this proceeding.
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For garnishment purposes, funds on deposit in a financial institution are presumed to belong to the person
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or entity named on the account. Green v. Dep't of Revenue ex rel. Williams, 78 So. 3d 555, 557 (Fla.
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5th DCA 2011).

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Real Estate & Finance has found itself embroiled in a civil dispute between Plaintiff and

Defendants which has no legal relationship to Real Estate & Finance, but for which Real Estate

& Finance is being forced to suffer severe financial consequences which threatens to disrupt its

business relationships with its principals, employees, customers, and creditors. This injustice

may only be avoided if this Court permits Real Estate & Finance to intervene in the Action sub

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Judice and this Honorable Court enters an immediate Order Dissolving the Writs, and dissolving

the improper freeze placed upon Real Estate and Finance's Account(s) enacted by Northern

Trust in response to the Writ(s) against the Defendants.

As further set forth in Real Estate and Finance's Motion to Dissolve Writs of

Garnishment, Fla. Stat. §77.07(2) provides a statutory remedy through which a person alleging

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an ownership interest in garnished property may move to dissolve the writ by alleging that any

allegation in the Plaintiffs Motion for Writ of Garnishment is untrue. As such, Real Estate &

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Finance has alleged in its Motion that, inasmuch as the Account is concerned, it is simply

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untrue that Northern Trust is indebted to or has tangible or intangible properly belonging to the

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Defendants, as the Account is owned solely by Real Estate & Finance. Other than by intervening

in this action and seeking the requested relief herein, Real Estate & Finance, Inc., a Florida
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Corporation has no other reasonable means of asserting and protecting its legal interests.
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Accordingly, this Court should grant the Motion to Intervene.

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CONCLUSION

The intervenor Real Estate & Finance has a direct and immediate interest in this
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litigation due to the fact that its Business Checking Bank Account(s) has been frozen by the
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Garnishee Northern Trust as a result of being served with the Writs. The Garnishee Northern
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Trust has confirmed in its Answer that the Account is owned solely by Real Estate & Finance,
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noting only that Defendant Laurence Schneider is only a signatory on the Business Checking
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Account of Real Estate & Finance. Accordingly, this Court should find that Real Estate &

Finance has a substantial interest in the outcome of the Post Judgment Litigation in the Case sub

Judice and should permit Real Estate & Finances' intervention to allow it to assert and claim its

interest in the Business Checking Bank Account which is the direct subject of this garnishment

proceeding sub Judice.

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 WHEREFORE, the Intervenor, Real Estate & Finance, Inc. requests that this Court

enter an Order granting it leave to intervene in this proceeding without limitation, and any

additional relief that this Court deems just and appropriate.

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I CERTIFY that a copy hereof has been furnished on December 18, 2021, via email service to all
parties designated to receive Service of Court documents via Florida's eFiling Portal pertaining to

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this case

Respectfully Submitted,

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NLLawLLC
Attorneys for the Proposed Intervenor

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5313 Collins A venue
Suite 408
Miami Beach, FL 33140

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Ph.: (786) 870-2738
By: /s/ Robert F. Bollinger
Robert F. Bollinger, Esq. Florida Bar No.: 972177
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Service Email: NLlawLLC@gmail.com
Secondary Email: macmgm4@gmail.com
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