SUBROGATION (AIL. subrogatio, from Lat. slIbrogare, surrogare. to substitute, from sub, under rogare, to ask). The treatment of one who has paid the debt of another, which as be tween himself and that other should have been paid by the latter, as though he were the as signee of the creditor's claim. The payer is then said to be subrogated to all the rights and remedies of the creditor against the primary debtor. The doctrine upon which this subroga tion is based was originally applied by courts of equity, but is now generally applied by courts of law to all cases where one pays a debt on which 110 is secondarily liable, although the debt may he legally discharged by the payment. Equity. for the purpose of working out justice between the parties by repaying the ad vances made, deals with the case as though the debt were still in existence, and gives to the person paying the debt precisely the same rights and remedies as belonged to the original creditor, but in no case does one lie subrogation acquire any higher or different rights. It will thus be seen that the analogy between subrogation and assignment is complete, one who is entitled to be subrogated to a claim Or demand being treated as though he were an assignee of the claim or demand. The only difference between them is the source and not the character of the right, the right to subrogation arising by operation of law and the right of an assignee arising by voluntary act of the parties.
Some of the more important cases in which the doctrine is applied are: ( 1) Where a junior mortgagor pays off a mortgage prior to hi, own, when equity will compel an'actual assignment of the mortgage by the prior mortgagee. (2) When one pays a debt to the payment of which he is entitled to contribution by others, or for which others are primarily liable and he only second arily, as in the ease of a surety. In these cases, since the sole relief sought is payment of money, courts of law apply the doctrine, and give a com plete remedy. (See CONTRIBUTION; SURETY SHIP; QUASI CONTRACT.) (3) In some illriSdie t ions, particularly in England, when one paying money to a corporation under an ultra tires contract cannot recover in quasi contract, although it is used by a corporation in paying its corporate indebted ness, in which case the person so advancing money is subrogated to the rights of the original creditor. (4) In the case of insurance contracts and contracts of indemnity generally whenever the insure• or indemnitor pays the indemnity due under his contract, when he is entitled to be sub rogated to the rights of the person indemnified against third parties which may in any manner reduce the loss or obligation indemnified against. See INSURANCE; INDEMNITY; also CHANCERY; EQUITY.