A. A seizure may be made under a writ of fieri facias issued by a city court in Orleans Parish, only within six months from the date of its issuance. B. At the expiration of that time the constable shall make a return on the writ unless a seizure has been made within the time. If a seizure has been made the constable shall proceed with the sale and thereupon make a return.
Art. 2294.1.Time For Seizure; Return; City Courts In Orleans Parish
Book IV. Execution of Judgments · Title II. Money Judgments · Chapter 1. Writ of Fieri Facias · Last amended 2011 · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 2294.1 shortens the one-year seizure deadline of Article 2294 to six months for writs of fieri facias issued by a city court in Orleans Parish, and assigns the corresponding seizure and return duties to the constable rather than the sheriff.
Full Text of Art. 2294.1
Amendment History
Added by Acts 1978, No. 366, §1; Acts 1991, No. 289, §1; Acts 2011, 1stEx. Sess., No. 29, §1.
Plain-English Summary
New Orleans city courts handle smaller civil claims within Orleans Parish, and execution in those courts runs through a constable rather than the parish sheriff who carries out writs from the district courts elsewhere. Article 2294.1 exists to fit that jurisdiction-specific arrangement into the general seizure-deadline rule Article 2294 sets for writs issued elsewhere.
The substance mirrors Article 2294 closely, with two changes: the deadline for making a seizure is six months rather than one year, and the duties Article 2294 assigns to the sheriff belong instead to the constable. If the constable makes no seizure within six months, the constable must return the writ. If a seizure was made in time, the constable proceeds with the sale and then makes a return describing it.
A creditor holding an Orleans Parish city court judgment needs to track this tighter, six-month window rather than assume the one-year period from Article 2294 applies. Missing it means the writ lapses sooner, though nothing stops the creditor from requesting an alias fi fa afterward, the same as under the general rule.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the one-year deadline for making a seizure apply to Orleans Parish city courts?
No. Article 2294.1 shortens that window to six months for writs of fieri facias issued by a city court in Orleans Parish.
Who executes a writ of fieri facias issued by an Orleans Parish city court?
The constable, not the sheriff. Article 2294.1 assigns the seizure, sale, and return duties that Article 2294 gives to the sheriff elsewhere to the constable instead.
What happens if the constable does not seize anything within six months?
The constable must make a return on the writ reporting that no seizure was made, the same consequence Article 2294 imposes for an expired one-year writ in other courts.
Can a creditor get a new writ after an Orleans Parish city court writ expires unused?
Yes. Nothing in Article 2294.1 prevents requesting another writ of fieri facias afterward, the same alias-writ option available under Article 2297 generally.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: Orleans Parish city court fi fa deadlineArticle 2294.1 Louisianasix month seizure deadline Louisianaconstable writ of fieri facias Orleans Parishcity court execution of judgments Louisiana