The defendant by contradictory motion may obtain the dissolution of a writ of attachment or of sequestration, unless the plaintiff proves the grounds upon which the writ was issued. If the writ of attachment or of sequestration is dissolved, the action shall then proceed as if no writ had been issued. The court may allow damages for the wrongful issuance of a writ of attachment or of sequestration on a motion to dissolve, or on a reconventional demand. Attorney's fees for the services rendered in connection with the dissolution of the writ may be included as an element of damages whether the writ is dissolved on motion or after trial on the merits.
Art. 3506.Dissolution of Writ; Damages
Book VII. Special Proceedings · Title I. Provisional Remedies · Chapter 1. Attachment and Sequestration · Amendment history unavailable · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 3506 lets a defendant move by contradictory motion to dissolve a writ of attachment or sequestration unless the plaintiff proves the grounds for it, restores the case to its pre-writ posture if dissolution succeeds, and allows damages, including attorney's fees, for a wrongful writ.
Full Text of Art. 3506
Plain-English Summary
Article 3506 supplies the main tool for challenging whether a writ of attachment or sequestration should have issued at all. The defendant moves, by contradictory motion, to dissolve the writ, and the burden then falls on the plaintiff to prove the grounds relied on for obtaining it. If the plaintiff cannot, the writ falls.
Dissolution has a clean effect: the action proceeds as though no writ had ever issued. The underlying lawsuit does not disappear, only the provisional seizure that accompanied it, and the property returns to the position it would have occupied without the writ.
A dissolved writ can also cost the plaintiff more than the seizure itself. Article 3506 lets the court award damages for the wrongful issuance of the writ, whether raised on the motion to dissolve or through a reconventional demand, and lets attorney's fees for the dissolution work count as an element of those damages, regardless of whether the writ falls on the motion or only after a full trial on the merits. Article 3608 gives injunctions the same kind of damages remedy for wrongful issuance.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does a defendant challenge a Louisiana writ of attachment or sequestration?
By a contradictory motion to dissolve the writ. Article 3506 puts the burden on the plaintiff to prove the grounds the writ was issued on.
What happens to the case if the writ is dissolved?
The action proceeds as if no writ had ever issued; dissolution ends the provisional seizure but does not end the underlying lawsuit.
Can a defendant recover damages for a wrongfully issued writ?
Yes. Article 3506 allows damages for wrongful issuance, awarded on the motion to dissolve or through a reconventional demand.
Are attorney's fees available if the writ is dissolved?
Yes, as an element of damages, whether the writ is dissolved on the motion itself or only after a trial on the merits.
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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