§ 52.001.Definition

One definition, and it names the thing the whole chapter regulates.

"Security" means a bond or deposit posted, as provided by the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, by a judgment debtor to suspend execution of the judgment during appeal of the judgment.

The definition contains the reason security exists. A judgment is enforceable when rendered, and an appeal does not by itself stop collection — so a debtor who wants enforcement suspended must secure the judgment meanwhile.

Without that arrangement one side or the other would be treated unfairly. Automatic suspension would let any losing party delay for the length of an appeal; no suspension at all would let a creditor collect a judgment that the appellate court later sets aside.

Security is the compromise: the debtor keeps the assets, the creditor holds protection, and the appeal proceeds.

Two forms are permitted — a bond or a deposit. A bond is a surety’s undertaking; a deposit is money or property placed with the court. The choice matters commercially, since a bond requires a surety willing to write it.

"As provided by the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure" points to where the mechanics live. The rules govern how security is posted, and this chapter governs how much.

That division explains the chapter’s conflict provision, under which this chapter controls where the two disagree — because the amount is what the Legislature legislated about.

The definition also fixes who posts it: the judgment debtor. Security under this chapter is the losing party’s, posted for the winner’s benefit.