If the buyer of the forfeited property is unable to procure a title insurance policy with a special warranty deed and indemnification agreement, then the United States Marshal may be authorized to execute a general warranty deed. Any determination to transfer property by a general warranty deed must be approved by the United States Marshals Service Asset Forfeiture Office.

It is the policy of the Department that the Attorney General's discretion to warrant clear title, through the use of a general warranty deed, will be exercised only in compelling circumstances where the financial advantage of offering a general warranty deed in the particular case, compared to the available alternatives, far outweighs both the potential cost of honoring the warranty in that case and the potential effect of increased purchaser demand for general warranty deeds in future sales of other forfeited properties. The United States Marshals Service Asset Forfeiture Office, in the exercise of sound business judgment, shall also consider the cumulative potential liability which will accrue over time as a result of each successive use of a general warranty deed. See Chapter 5 of the Asset Forfeiture Policy Manual ("Use of a General Warranty Deed").

[updated May 2010]