Fieri Facias - Definition - Law Dictionary Home Dictionary Definition fieri-facias

Definition :

Fieri facias, usually abbreviated fi. fa. (that you cause to be made), a judicial writ of execution, the most commonly used that lies for him who has recovered any debt or damages in the King's Courts. It is a command to the sheriff, that of the goods and chattels of the party he 'cause to be made' the sum recovered by the judgment, with interest at 4l. per cent. from the time of entered-up judgment, to be rendered to the party who sued it out. If the sheriff return nulla bona, an alias fi. fa. may issue; and upon that being returned, a pluries or testatum fi. fa. may be issued into another county. The 12th s. of the Judgments Act,1838 (1 & 2 Vict. c. 110), authorizes the sheriff to seize money, bank notes, cheques, bills of exchange, etc., of the person against whose effects the writ is sued out; but he cannot seize money or bank notes after the death of the debtor, Johnson v. Pickering, (1908) 1 KB 1.

A writ of execution that directs a marshal or sheriff to seize and sell a defendants property to satisfy

a money judgment, Black's Law Dictionary, 7th Edn., p. 641.

The sheriff cannot sell before actual seizure [Ex parte Hall, (1880) 14 Ch D 132].

The sheriff cannot break open the outer door of a dwelling-house to seize [Semayne's case, (1603) 5 Rep 91; 1 Sm LC]; but he can break open that of a shop, Hodder v. Williams, (1895) 2 QB 663.

The capital distinction between distress (see that title) and execution by fi. fa. is that on a distress for rent any person's goods, unless expressly exempted, which are on the tenant's premises, can be seized, whereas on execution only the debtor's goods may be seized, but they may be seized wherever they can be found. As to the protection of the sheriff selling goods under an execution, see (English) Bankruptcy Act, 1914, s. 40 et seq, and as against the liquidator under a winding-up, see s. 268 et seq., (English) Companies Act, 1929.

The sheriff, however, must satisfy the landlord's claim for rent up to one year's arrears before removing the goods seized, (English) Landlord and Tenant Act, 1709 (8 Anne, c. 14 or 18), Chit. Stat. tit. 'Landlord and Tenant' and compare s. 160 of the (English) County Courts Act, 1888, now (English) County Courts Act, 1934 (24 & 25 Geo. 5, c. 53), s. 13; R.S.C., Ord. LXIII., r. 1.

If the claim for rent has not been served on the sheriff before the commencement of the debtor's bankruptcy, the landlord's right is reduced to six months. (English) (Bankruptcy act, 1914, s. 35)