Attached property is property that has been seized pursuant to a court order, either as a provisional pre-judgment remedy or for the enforcement of a final judgment. Property may be attached only after the commencement of a lawsuit. In a pre-judgment request that property be attached, the movant must generally demonstrate a substantial risk of a future potential judgment’s lack of enforceability. Any request for the pre-judgment attachment of property will be subject to procedural safeguards under the Due Process Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 64, in federal court, property may be attached to the extent allowable by the law of the state in which the court sits throughout the course of litigation. Attached property may also serve as the basis for In Rem jurisdiction.
[Last updated in June of 2021 by the Wex Definitions Team]