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Simple English definitions for legal terms
distress
Read a random definition: duty of good faith
A quick definition of distress:
Distress is when someone takes another person's things to pay for something they owe. This can happen if someone doesn't pay their rent, taxes, or bills for things they bought. In the past, people could take things without asking, but now there are rules about how it can be done. In some places, it's called distraint. It's important to follow the rules and not take things that don't belong to you.
A more thorough explanation:
Distress is a legal term that means taking someone's personal property to pay off a debt they owe. This can happen if someone owes rent, taxes, fines, or money for goods or services. In the past, people could take property without going through a legal process, but now most states have laws that regulate how distress can be carried out.
For example, in Kentucky, distress means taking someone's property to satisfy a past due rent claim. In New Jersey, it is a common law right of a landlord to seize a tenant's goods and chattels in a nonjudicial proceeding to satisfy an arrears of rent.
These examples show that distress is a way for landlords to get the money they are owed by taking a tenant's property. However, there are laws that regulate how this can be done to protect tenants from unfair treatment.
Another example of distress could be if someone owes money for a car loan and the lender takes the car as collateral. This is a legal way to get the money owed, but there are rules that must be followed to ensure the process is fair.