Art. 2503.Distringas, Execution and Revocation

Article 2503 fills in what happens once a court grants a writ of distringas under Article 2502. The sheriff seizes the disobedient defendant's property, but does not turn it over to anyone or sell it in the ordinary way. Instead, the sheriff retains it, holding it subject to whatever further orders the court issues.

That seizure is not permanent. The court has to revoke the writ, and order the sheriff to release the property back to the defendant, once the defendant proves two things: that he has now complied with the judgment the distringas was meant to enforce, and that he has also satisfied any separate damages judgment the plaintiff obtained because of the earlier noncompliance. Both conditions have to be met; proving compliance with the original judgment alone does not release property held to cover an unpaid damages award.

Perishable property gets separate treatment, since holding it indefinitely would let it spoil or lose value before the underlying dispute resolves. Article 2503 allows perishable property seized under a writ of distringas to be sold the way Article 2333 provides for perishables seized in ordinary execution, and the proceeds of that sale replace the property itself, held by the sheriff subject to the court's orders until the case is resolved.