Remote origin of the proscription of the appropriation by the creditor of the property of the debtor, or taking it in warranty against their will

Authors

  • Jenny Barra Hurtado Sociedad Chilena de Historia del Derecho y Derecho Romano.

Abstract

The proscription of the illegitimate appropriation of the property of the debtor by the creditor, even if the latter could have a patrimonial interest, stems from ethical and religious principles that gave birth to legal rules that still exist today. This work aims to show that the rules contained in articles 2392 and 2397, second paragraph, of the Chilean Civil Code, have a remote origin lost in history, which was adopted in our Civil Code by Andrés Bello. These restrictions refer to three specific areas: a) The prohibition of appropriating the assets of the debtor to pay the debt, contained today in the second paragraph of article 2397 of the Chilean Civil Code; b) The prohibition of taking into warranty the assets of the debtor in order to ensure the payment of the debt, contained on the first paragraph of article 2392; and c) The prohibition for the creditor o retain assets of the debtor in order to ensure the payment of the debt, contained on the second paragraph of article 2392.

Keywords:

Creditor, Debtor, Appropriation, Warranty garment, Sequestration