distraint
noun
Distraint — the formal legal procedure of seizing property to enforce payment
Definition
The seizure and holding of property as security for payment of a debt or satisfaction of a claim; "Originally distress was a landlord's remedy against a tenant for unpaid rents or property damage but now the landlord is given a landlord's lien"
In depth
Distraint, closely related to distress, names the seizure and holding of property as security for the payment of a debt or satisfaction of some other legal obligation. The word is the more formal, technical legal term, particularly common in property and landlord-tenant law describing this traditional remedy for unpaid obligations.
Origin
The word descends from Anglo-Norman destreindre, to constrain, sharing its ultimate root with 'distress' in Latin distringere, to draw tight or constrain. Its survival as precise legal terminology, even as the related word 'distress' shifted almost entirely toward describing emotional suffering, illustrates how legal vocabulary often preserves older, more technical senses long after everyday usage has moved in a different direction.
Usage examples
"The landlord's distraint of the tenant's furniture followed established legal procedure to the letter."
"Distraint as a remedy has been significantly restricted by modern statute in most jurisdictions."
"Legal historians traced the gradual decline of distraint as courts increasingly favored more formalized collection procedures."
How to use it
Distraint is precise, somewhat archaic legal vocabulary, primarily encountered in property law, legal history, and landlord-tenant statutory writing, generally more formal and technical than the related 'distress.'
Related concepts
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