When a surety is sued by the creditor on the suretyship obligation, and the right of discussion has been created by contract between the surety and the creditor, the surety may plead discussion to compel the creditor to obtain and execute a judgment against the principal before executing a judgment against the surety.
Art. 5152.Surety's Right to Plead
Book IX. Miscellaneous Provisions and Definitions · Title I. Miscellaneous Provisions · Chapter 4. Discussion · Enacted 2010 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 5152 lets a surety sued by the creditor on a suretyship obligation plead discussion to compel the creditor to obtain and execute a judgment against the principal obligor before executing a judgment against the surety, but only where that right was created by contract between the surety and the creditor.
Full Text of Art. 5152
Amendment History
Acts 2010, No. 185, §1.
Plain-English Summary
A surety who guarantees another person's debt does not necessarily have to pay the moment the creditor comes calling. If the surety's contract with the creditor created a right of discussion, Article 5152 lets the surety invoke it when sued: the creditor has to first obtain a judgment against the principal obligor, the person who owes the underlying debt, and execute that judgment before turning to the surety for payment.
The article is precise about the source of this right. Discussion under Article 5152 exists only where the surety and the creditor created it by contract. A surety who signed a bare guarantee, without any such agreement built in, cannot invoke Article 5152 to slow the creditor down. This is a contractual protection, not one that attaches automatically to every suretyship.
Once discussion is properly pleaded, the burden shifts to the creditor: obtain a judgment against the principal, and then execute on it, before the surety can be made to pay. Article 5156 spells out what happens procedurally once the plea succeeds, including how the case against the surety is handled while the creditor pursues the principal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can any surety demand that the creditor go after the principal debtor first?
Only if the right of discussion was created by contract between the surety and the creditor. Article 5152 does not give every surety this right automatically.
What does a surety have to show to plead discussion successfully?
That the suretyship contract created a right of discussion, and, under Article 5155, that the principal has identifiable, unencumbered property in the state worth more than the judgment, along with a deposit to cover the cost of pursuing it.
What happens after a surety successfully pleads discussion?
Under Article 5156, the court orders the creditor to execute the judgment against the principal's discussed property before the surety can be compelled to pay, though the court can render judgment against both principal and surety at once when the principal is joined.
Is discussion the same thing as a defense that the debt itself is not owed?
No. Discussion does not dispute that the surety owes the debt. It only delays the order of collection, requiring the creditor to pursue the principal's property before reaching the surety's.
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: surety's right to plead discussionArticle 5152 Louisianasuretyship discussion Louisianaprincipal obligor before suretycompel creditor to sue principal first