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Civil procedure

The summons: a multi-faceted legal tool 7 Apr
Challenging a lapsing decision: appeals and strategies 1 Apr
Avoid the pitfalls of compulsory domicile details in procedural documents 1 Apr

Service of the summons to pay in the event of seizure on the third party purchaser

You have bought a property and one of the previous owner's mortgage creditors has started a seizure against you: this is known as the "droit de suite", which means that the property is secured irrespective of who holds it. There are strict procedural rules for serving a summons to pay in the form of a seizure order on a third party purchaser, and you need to be aware of them to defend yourself.

Seizure of real estate and judicial liquidation

The opening of a judicial liquidation against your debtor does not wipe out your claim, but it does immediately freeze any ongoing enforcement proceedings, including a seizure of property. This freeze is temporary: depending on the progress of the collective proceedings, the attachment may resume or be resumed by the liquidator. Understanding the relationship between these two procedures is crucial to preserving your rights.

Methods of execution

What happens if the debtor dies?

Your debtor has died and you are wondering whether you should continue to collect the debt. It all depends on the inheritance option chosen by the heirs and the state of the estate. In principle, the writ of execution remains enforceable, subject to service on the heirs.

Methods of execution

Foreclosure does not cover the debt: analysis

The auction of your property did not cover the entire debt. The creditor can still sue you for the balance - but according to precise rules governing the determination of residual liabilities and the remedies available. Here's what the price distribution procedure allows, and what it no longer allows.

Seizure of property

The relative effect

To seize a property, the creditor must prove the chain of ownership up to the debtor. Relative effect means that each deed of disposal must mention the title by which the transferor was himself the owner, on pain of inadmissibility to the Land Registry.

Enforcement judge

Jurisdiction of the enforcement judge with regard to seizures of immovable property

Which court should I go to to contest a seizure of property, raise a problem with an enforcement order or apply for an enforcement order to be lifted? The enforcement judge has broad jurisdiction in these matters, the contours of which are precisely set out by law and delimit what you may or may not submit to his discretion.

Seizure of property

The writ of execution for seizure of property

Property seizure is the most cumbersome enforcement procedure: without a writ of execution evidencing a liquid and due debt, it cannot be initiated. The choice of title - judgement, notarial deed or other - determines both the time limits and the possibility for the debtor to seek an amicable sale rather than be subject to attachment.

Seizure of property

Penalties for failure to declare the identity of the winning bidder

At the auction hearing, your lawyer was unable to declare the identity of the winning bidder within the time limit - what happens? The 2006 reform abolished the automatic penalty imposed on lawyers under the former article 707 of the CPC, but it did not resolve all cases. This article looks at how case law, and in particular the Marseilles judicial court, has filled this gap.

Attachment

Attachment and assignment of debt

You have just received a levy of execution, not from your bank but from a securitisation fund you have never heard of: your debt has been assigned, often without your knowledge, as part of a securitisation transaction. This process is legal, but it opens up specific means of dispute that you should be aware of in order to defend your rights.

The lawyer's competence in property seizures

You are being sued for seizure of property and are wondering whether you can defend yourself alone. The rule is clear: representation by a lawyer is compulsory before the enforcement judge in property seizure cases, except for the sole request for authorisation of an out-of-court sale. Here's what the CPCE stipulates and how this obligation works in practice.

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