At the commencement of and during the course of an action, all remedies providing for seizure of person or property for the purpose of securing satisfaction of the judgment ultimately to be entered in the action are available under the circumstances and in the manner provided by the law existing at the time the remedy is sought. The remedies thus available include arrest, attachment, garnishment, replevin, sequestration, and other corresponding or equivalent remedies, however designated and regardless of whether the remedy is ancillary to an action or must be obtained by an independent action.
Rule 64.Seizure of person or property
Group 8: Provisional and Final Remedies · Last amended July 1, 1967 · Last verified July 13, 2026
In one sentenceRule 64 preserves Washington's existing seizure remedies — arrest, attachment, garnishment, replevin, sequestration, and similar tools — as ways to secure a future judgment, leaving the actual requirements for each remedy to whatever statute or law authorizes it.
Full Text of Rule 64
Amendment History
Adopted May 5, 1967, effective July 1, 1967.
Plain-English Summary
Some lawsuits need more than a promise that the losing side will pay up later. A defendant might be moving assets out of reach, or the property at the center of a dispute might be at risk of disappearing before judgment. Rule 64 keeps open the traditional set of remedies that let a party seize a person or property early, so that whatever judgment eventually comes down still means something.
The rule doesn't invent these remedies. It defers entirely to the law in force at the time the remedy is sought, which is why the text lists arrest, attachment, garnishment, replevin, sequestration, and other corresponding or equivalent remedies without spelling out how each one works. Those details live in statutes and other rules governing each specific remedy.
Rule 64 applies both at the start of a case and while it's pending, and it covers a remedy whether the remedy rides along with the main lawsuit or has to be pursued through its own separate action. The rule's job is to confirm these tools remain available under civil procedure, not to referee how any one of them is obtained.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Rule 64 create these seizure remedies itself?
No. It preserves remedies that already exist under the law in force when the remedy is sought — it doesn't set out separate standards for arrest, attachment, garnishment, replevin, or sequestration.
What remedies does Rule 64 mention by name?
Arrest, attachment, garnishment, replevin, sequestration, and other corresponding or equivalent remedies, however they're designated.
Can these remedies be used before a lawsuit is even filed?
Rule 64 covers remedies sought at the commencement of an action and during its course, and it applies regardless of whether the remedy is ancillary to the pending action or must be obtained through an independent action.
How does Rule 64 relate to Rule 65 injunctions?
Both preserve a plaintiff's position before final judgment, but they target different things: Rule 64 covers seizing a person or property, while Rule 65 covers restraining conduct through a temporary restraining order or injunction.
Does Rule 64 set a bond requirement for these remedies?
No. Rule 64 leaves security requirements to the statute or law governing whichever remedy is sought. Contrast that with Rule 65(c), which sets out its own security requirement for restraining orders and injunctions.
Source & verification. Rule text and amendment history are
reproduced verbatim from the Washington Superior Court Civil Rules, adopted by the
Supreme Court of Washington. Last verified July 13, 2026. ·
Official source
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