Creditor Protection IRA vs 401k

[CLE401kGuy]

Currently is there more protection for an individual to leave his / her account balance in a 401k plan than to move it to an IRA?

My thought had been that it used to be the case where leaving balance in the plan gives additional protection, but is that still the case today?

Anyone's points of view would be appreciated, Thanks

[jpod]

My understanding is that the protection in bankruptcy is the same, but short of that it may be possible in some states for a judgment creditor to attach an IRA, at least a custodial account IRA if not a trust IRA.

[jpdrews]

My understanding is amount of IRA protection varies by state. For instance I believe TX is unlimited...similar to 401k...but CA is an amount necessary to support the welfare of debtor and relatives in retirement. Don;t quote me on it, but I think that amount is generally considered to be somewhere around $1M if not a little more.

[Lou S.]

I could be wrong but I thought if you could show the money was rolled in from an ERISA plan it retained the ERISA protections even if over the state limits. But my understanding is similar to jpdrews. That is it varies by state and some states have limits on what is protected.