About Henry Novak

In early 2015, Henry created the legal procedure that permits 401(k) plan participants to take in-service distributions without incurring the 10% early withdrawal penalty. The procedure was created specifically for a family that was financially strained by expenses incurred in providing special education and medical care for their special needs daughter. Using this new procedure, the family was able to withdraw the full amount of $2000,000 from the father’s 401(k) and 457 plans and transferred those monies to a Health Savings Account from which the family made tax–free withdrawals to pay for their daughter’s qualified medical expenses.

Thereafter, the penalty-free, in-service 401(k) distribution procedure was idle in Henry’s files until late 2016 when he began offering his legal services to members of a nationwide real estate education and mentoring organization based in Texas. When Henry saw the passive investment opportunities that were being offered to the members of this organization and the need many of the members had for additional investment capital, Henry began offering them the penalty-free, 401(K) in-service distribution procedure. Since early 2017, Henry’s real estate investor clients have tapped their 401(k), 457, and 403(b) accounts for over $100,000,000 without paying early withdrawal penalties.

Over 40 years of practice Henry has represented clients in a multitude of business matters, including the sale and purchase of multi-family and residential properties; the formation of legal entities; and the purchase and sale of small businesses. He has negotiated and drafted commercial contracts, leases, and franchise agreements; prepared Private Placement Memorandums for syndications of equity interests in LLC’s acquiring multi-family properties; counseled IRA owners in self-directing and managing their IRA accounts; represented institutional lenders in the preparation of mortgage and commercial loan documents, and represented clients in commercial litigation.

Henry served as an assistant U. S. attorney for seven years and was chief of the white-collar fraud prosecutions in the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney’s office in Houston. Following graduation from law school at Southern Methodist University Henry clerked on the U.S. District Court in Dallas, Texas, and on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Los Angeles, California. He’s a member of the State Bar of Texas and has been licensed to practice in multiple U. S. Courts of Appeal and federal district courts.

Learn more about how Henry can help you unlock your 401(k).