Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Sequestration definition

What does Sequestration mean? In Scottish insolvency practice, sequestration is the bankruptcy process for an insolvent individual or partnership, under which the debtor’s estate is taken into custody and vested in a trustee for the benefit of creditors. It is governed by the Bankruptcy (Scotland) Act 2016. An award of sequestration may follow a debtor application to the Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB) or a creditor petition to the sheriff court. On award, most assets vest in the trustee in sequestration; diligence is stayed; claims are adjudicated; and assets and income (via any Debtor Contribution Order) are realised to pay a dividend....

Sequestration to enforce family financial orders in England and Wales: uses, procedure, and effect of writs/warrants under FPR 2010 and CPR 83

Published by a LexisNexis Family expert

Practice notes

Sequestration is the process by which a creditor asks the court for sequestrators to take Possession of a debtor’s property. In family proceedings, it can arise in two distinct settings. First, it functions as a way of dealing with Contempt of Court that might otherwise lead to committal; the property is kept until the contempt is treated as purged, ie the order has been obeyed. In this setting, sequestration is called ‘confiscation of assets’ and is provided for by the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010), SI 2010/2955, Pt 37, together with FPR 2010, PD 37A. See Practice Note: Sequestration (confiscation of assets) within contempt proceedings. Secondly, and separately, it acts as a method of execution to enforce an outstanding Financial order without any contempt, pursuant to FPR 2010, SI 2010/2955, 33.1(2) and the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (CPR), SI 1998/3132, Pt 83. This Practice Note addresses sequestration in the latter setting.

Usages

Sequestration is an enforcement remedy rarely deployed in family proceedings. It should be remembered that the procedure is complex and expensive. Consideration should be given to both the costs involved and potential...

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David Salter

David Salter has enjoyed a varied career in family law with over 45 years’ experience. He served as National Head of Family Law at Addleshaw Goddard and, subsequently, as Joint National Head of Family Law at Mills & Reeve, retiring in 2018.From 1997-1999, David was Chairman of Resolution, also acting as the first Chairman of Resolution’s Accreditation Committee. He subsequently became President of the International Academy of Family Lawyers from 2010 to 2012, having previously served as the Academy's European Chapter President.He has sat in various part-time judicial posts since 1985 sitting regularly as a deputy High Court judge and Recorder in the Family Court until March 2022. He now conducts private financial dispute resolution appointments.David was one of the original members of the Family Procedure Rules Committee which framed the 2010 Rules, serving a ten-year term from 2004 to 2014.He is a...

Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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