The executor or administrator may transfer by a giving in payment any succession property in satisfaction of secured or unsecured debts. The property may be taken in indivision by the secured or unsecured creditors, or both.
Art. 3295.Giving In Payment of Succession Property
Book VI. Probate Procedure · Title III. Administration of Successions · Chapter 6. Alienation of Succession Property · Last amended 2003 · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 3295 lets an executor or administrator transfer succession property directly to creditors through a giving in payment -- Louisiana's civil-law mechanism for satisfying secured or unsecured debts with property instead of cash -- and lets multiple creditors take that property together in indivision.
Full Text of Art. 3295
Amendment History
Acts 1988, No. 564, §1; Acts 1997, No. 1421, §7, eff. 7/1/1999; Acts 2003, No. 545, §1.
Plain-English Summary
Selling succession property for cash and then paying creditors out of the proceeds is the usual path, but it is not the only one. Article 3295 authorizes giving in payment -- known in Louisiana's civil-law tradition as dation en paiement -- where the executor or administrator transfers property to a creditor directly, and the transfer itself satisfies the debt, rather than selling the property and handing over money.
Put plainly, it lets the succession pay a debt with property instead of cash. That can serve the estate better than a forced sale in circumstances where converting an asset to cash would be costly, slow, or would not fetch a fair price, while the creditor is willing to accept the property itself as satisfaction of what is owed.
The article covers both secured and unsecured debts, so a giving in payment is not limited to creditors holding a mortgage or other security on the property being transferred. And when more than one creditor is involved, the property can be taken in indivision -- held jointly, in undivided shares, by the secured or unsecured creditors together -- rather than requiring the property to be split or awarded to just one of them.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does giving in payment mean under Louisiana succession law?
It means transferring succession property directly to a creditor to satisfy a debt, instead of selling the property for cash and paying the creditor out of the proceeds. Louisiana's civil-law tradition calls this a dation en paiement.
Who can authorize a giving in payment of succession property?
The executor or administrator handling the succession, subject to the petition, publication, and hearing procedure the following articles set out.
Does giving in payment work for both secured and unsecured debts?
Yes. Article 3295 covers property transferred in satisfaction of either secured or unsecured debts.
Can more than one creditor receive the same piece of property in a giving in payment?
Yes. Article 3295 lets secured or unsecured creditors take the property in indivision, meaning they hold it together in undivided shares rather than splitting it or awarding it to only one creditor.
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
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