In law, sequestration is the act of removing, separating, or seizing anything from the possession of its owner under process of law for the benefit of

creditor A creditor or lender is a party (e.g., person, organization, company, or government) that has a claim on the services of a second party. It is a person or institution to whom money is owed. The first party, in general, has provided some propert ...

s or the state.

Etymology

The

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

''sequestrare'', to set aside or surrender, a late use, is derived from sequester, a depositary or trustee, one in whose hands a thing in dispute was placed until the dispute was settled; this was a term of Roman

jurisprudence Jurisprudence, also known as theory of law or philosophy of law, is the examination in a general perspective of what law is and what it ought to be. It investigates issues such as the definition of law; legal validity; legal norms and values ...

(cf. ''Digest L.'' 16,110). By derivation it must be connected with ''sequi'', to follow; possibly the development in meaning may be follower, attendant, intermediary, hence trustee. In English "sequestered" means merely secluded, withdrawn.

England

In law, the term "sequestration" has many applications; thus it is applied to the act of a belligerent power which seizes the debts due from its own subject to the enemy power; to a

writ In common law, a writ is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court. Warrant (legal), Warrants, prerogative writs, subpoenas, and ''certiorari'' are commo ...

directed to persons, "sequestrators", to enter on the property of the defendant and seize the goods.

Church of England

There are also two specific and slightly different usages in term of the Church of England; to the action of taking profits of a benefice to satisfy the creditors of the incumbent; to the action of ensuring church and parsonage premises are in good order in readiness for a new incumbent and the legal paperwork to ensure this. As the goods of the Church cannot be touched by a lay hand, the writ is issued to the bishop, and the bishop issues the sequestration order to the church wardens who collect the profits and satisfy the demand. Similarly when a benefice is vacant the church wardens take out sequestration under the seal of the Ordinary and manage the profits for the next incumbent.

Scotland

Scots law Scots law () is the List of country legal systems, legal system of Scotland. It is a hybrid or mixed legal system containing Civil law (legal system), civil law and common law elements, that traces its roots to a number of different histori ...

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

is known as ''sequestration'' and sequestration allows a trustee-in-sequestration to take over a sequestrated individual's estate by order of the local

Sheriff Court A sheriff court () is the principal local civil and criminal court in Scotland, with exclusive jurisdiction over all civil cases with a monetary value up to , and with the jurisdiction to hear any criminal case except treason, murder, and ra ...

for the benefit of the creditors' unpaid debts.

Assets Recovery Agency

The Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) was established in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 to reduce crime by sequestering the proceeds of crime; its powers include civil recovery through the High Court. The ARA was later merged with the Serious Organised Crime Agency.

Notes

References

External links

What's A Sequestrian ''(sic)''? Article from www.ancestry.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sequestration (law) Legal terminology