The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) provides important financial and civil protections for members of our military. Although the law has been in place for many years (it was formerly known as the Soldiers and Sailors Civil relief Act or SSCRA), a number of financial institutions and other entities that do business with servicemembers are not in full compliance with its provisions. Also, attorneys that represent servicemembers, their families or co-obligors need to have working knowledge of the protections so that they can properly advise their clients and represent their interests.

This presentation will discuss which individuals are covered under the Act; when the protections begin and end; the purposes of the Act and Supreme Court decisions on how it is to be interpreted; the most often used financial provisions of the SCRA such as the interest rate caps, protections against foreclosure or repossession of servicemember property (personal or real); protections against default judgments; stay of proceedings when the servicemember is on active duty; private cause of action when rights under the Act have been violated, and; remedies available to servicemembers. With the ongoing deployments of our military men and women around the world, and the financial pressures faced by them and their families over the last decade, protections under the SCRA will continue to play an important role for servicemembers and the companies that do business with them.