# Justice Manual § 9-112.120: Interplay of Administrative Forfeiture and Criminal Forfeiture

> Federal · Agency guidance · In force

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.120

## Section

- **Citation:** Justice Manual § 9-112.120
- **Heading:** Interplay of Administrative Forfeiture and Criminal Forfeiture
- **Jurisdiction:** Federal
- **Kind:** Agency guidance
- **Status:** In force
- **Text as of:** August 14, 2026
- **Source:** Compiled text
- **Location:** DOJ Justice Manual / Title 9: Criminal / 9-112.000 - Administrative And Judicial Forfeiture / Justice Manual § 9-112.120

## Text

The seizing agency should commence administrative forfeiture proceedings against seized property by sending notice to potential claimants. Simultaneously, the U.S. Attorney should ask the grand jury to include a forfeiture allegation against the same property in a criminal indictment. This is the proper procedure. If there is no claim in the administrative forfeiture proceeding, the property will automatically be forfeited. In cases where no claim is filed and the property is forfeited administratively, however, it is necessary to strike the forfeiture allegation from the indictment to avoid a situation in which the court, the defendant, or the jury is confused by the procedure and mistakenly believes that the Government abandoned the administrative forfeiture once the indictment was returned, and intended to proceed with the criminal forfeiture alone. Accordingly, in cases where administrative and criminal forfeiture proceedings are instituted simultaneously, and no one files a claim in the administrative proceeding, the agency should complete the administrative forfeiture, and the AUSA handling the criminal case should file a motion reporting the completed forfeiture and therefore striking the forfeiture from the indictment.
See
Chapter 2 of the Asset Forfeiture Policy Manual ("Interplay of Administrative Forfeiture and Criminal Forfeiture").

[updated May 2010]

## Nearby sections

- [Justice Manual § 9-112.110 Administrative Forfeiture Policy](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.110.md)
- [Justice Manual § 9-112.120 Interplay of Administrative Forfeiture and Criminal Forfeiture](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.120.md)
- [Justice Manual § 9-112.130 Requesting the Seizing Agency to Suspend the Administrative Forfeiture](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.130.md)
- [Justice Manual § 9-112.140 Conversion of Administrative Forfeitures Covered by the Customs Carve-Out in CAFRA to Judicial Forfeitures](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.140.md)
- [Justice Manual § 9-112.150 Seizure Pursuant to a Criminal Warrant: Availability of Administrative Forfeiture](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.150.md)
- [Justice Manual § 9-112.160 Motions for Reconsideration in Criminal Forfeiture Cases](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.160.md)
- [Justice Manual § 9-112.170 Preference for Federal Forfeiture](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.170.md)
- [Justice Manual § 9-112.210 Sixty-Day Notice Period in All Administrative Forfeiture Cases](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.210.md)
- [Justice Manual § 9-112.220 Policy on the Deadline for Filing a Civil Forfeiture Action in Cases that do not Begin as Administrative Forfeiture Proceedings](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.220.md)
- [Justice Manual § 9-112.230 Preservation Policy for Civil Forfeiture](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.230.md)
- [Justice Manual § 9-112.240 Prior Approval Requirements](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.240.md)

---

Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/JM_S9-112.120. Check the current official text before relying on it. Not legal advice.