Fieri facias
A fieri facias, usually abbreviated fi. fa. (
The term is used in
England and Wales
It is addressed to the sheriff or High Court enforcement officer, and commands him to make good the amount out of the goods of the person against whom judgment has been obtained.[4]
As of March 2008[update] fi. fa. can be sought in England and Wales on judgment debts in excess of £600. Whilst fi. fa. can be used to enforce judgments obtained in the county court and High Court. In April 2014 the writ was renamed a writ of control as part of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007.
This writ was once so common that fieri facias became a slang term for a sheriff, with a pun on the "fiery [ruddy] face" of habitual drunkenness, or for anyone with a ruddy complexion.
In England and Wales, the writ of fieri facias, except for writs of fieri facias de bonis ecclesiasticis, was renamed to "writ of control" by the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 on 6 April 2014.[5]
Ireland
In the
Hong Kong
Hong Kong statute (High Court Ordinance (Cap 4) s 21D(1)) provides that money and banknotes, government stock, bonds and other securities for money are amenable to attachment and sale though fieri facias. But with reference to the English case Alleyne v Darcy (1855) 5 I Ch R 56, securities for money do not include life insurance policies.
United States
Under U.S. law a judgment creditor could file a fi. fa. with the land records of the locality in which the debtor is believed to own
References
- ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 10 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 328.
- ^ Henry C. Black, Black's Law Dictionary, rev. 4th ed. 1968.
- ^ E.g., Va. Code § 8.01-466, Va. Code § 8.01-478
- ^ E.g., Henry C. Black, Black's Law Dictionary, rev. 4th ed. 1968.
- UK Statute Law Database. The National Archives. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ "Enforcement of debt judgments". www.citizensinformation.ie.
- ^ McMahon, Paul. "Sheriff Execution III – McMahon Legal Guide".
- ^ "Superior Court Forms | The Courts Service of Ireland". www.courts.ie.
External links