ATTACHMENT, in law, a taking of a person, goods or estate by virtue of a writ or precept. It is distinguished from an arrest by proceeding out of a higher court by pre cept or writ, whereas the latter proceeds out of an inferior court by precept only. An arrest lies only against the body of a person, whereas an lies often against the goods only, and sometimes against the body and goods. It differs from a distress in that an attachment does not extend to lands while I a distress cannot touch the body. In the United States attachment may be defined as the taking into the custody of the law the person or property of one already before the court, or whom it is sought to bring before the court; also a writ for this purpose. To some extent it is of the nature of a criminal process. In some States a plaintiff can at the beginning of an action to recover money attach the property of the defendant as a security for the payment of the judgment expected to be recovered; and in case of recovery the prop erty is applied in satisfaction of the judgment.
But the more usual rule is that there can be no seizure of property, except in specified cases, till the rights of the parties have been settled by judgment of the court. The exceptions are chiefly in cases where the defendant is a non resident or a fraudulent debtor, or is attempt ing to conceal or remove his property. In some States, attachments are distinguished as foreign and domestic — the former issued against a non-resident having property within the jurisdiction of the State, the latter against a resident in the Stated jurisdiction over the person or property being necessary for an attachment. An attachment issued under a State law not adopted by Congress, or by a rule of court, cannot be sustained in a United States court. Consult Drake, 'Treatise on the Law of Suits by Attachment in the United States) (Boston 1891). Consult also works referred to under EXECUTION.