# SCOTUS Has a Chance to Rein in Civil Forfeiture 

The Supreme Court should grant review in *Young v. United States* and make clear that there is no “passthrough exception” to the categorical rule in *Honeycutt* against joint and several liability, the authors conclude.

February 24, 2025 • News Releases 

Cato Institute Director of the Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies [Thomas Berry](https://www.cato.org/people/thomas-berry) and Legal Associate Ethan Yang have [a new piece](https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/___https://zwly9k6z.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:%2F%2Fwww.cato.org*2Fblog*2Fscotus-has-chance-rein-civil-forfeiture/1/010001953893296c-1159b499-9267-4c50-8c60-89bddc41a941-000000/lpKZjsvCE8VIjZqjOZE-duHtGBw=414___.YXAzOmNhdG9pbnN0aXR1dGU6YTpvOmY5MGQ5ZmJmNjI3ZTE1ZGQzZjI2NjNjOTI4M2M3NWUzOjc6N2I5YzplYWNjYmMyODQ2YzMxZWVkYThiZjM0ZTY4MTkwZDIzODg5NzUzMzBiZDc1Y2M3Yjc0NTcxN2M1OWEzNDJkNDRkOmg6VDpO) titled “**SCOTUS Has a Chance to Rein in Civil Forfeiture.”**

In [*Honeycutt v. United States*](https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/16pdf/16-142_7l48.pdf) (2017), the Supreme Court took an important step toward limiting the abuse of civil forfeiture, ruling that only those who have personally profited from criminal activity can be liable in civil forfeiture proceedings. But now the Department of Justice argues that the Supreme Court left open a loophole in *Honeycutt*: that a co-conspirator acting as a “passthrough” to move money may be held liable for all the money that she handled. The Eleventh Circuit has accepted this argument.

The Cato Institute filed [an amicus brief](https://www.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/2025-02/Young%20v.%20US_Final.pdf) in the case arguing that the Eleventh Circuit’s reasoning undermines the constitutional principles of proportionality and due process. The Supreme Court’s decision in *Honeycutt* was unambiguous: Only those who have personally profited from criminal activity can be liable in civil forfeiture proceedings.

The Supreme Court should grant review in *Young v. United States* and make clear that there is no “passthrough exception” to the categorical rule in *Honeycutt* against joint and several liability, the authors conclude.

You can read the piece [here](https://www.cato.org/blog/scotus-has-chance-rein-civil-forfeiture). If you would like to speak with Berry, please contact me to set up an interview.

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