A writ of execution is a court order

Court order

A court order is an official proclamation by a judge that defines the legal relationships between the parties to a hearing, a trial, an appeal or other court proceedings. Such ruling requires or authorizes the carrying out of certain steps by one or more parties to a case...

 granted in an attempt to satisfy a monetary judgment obtained by a plaintiff

Plaintiff

A plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the term used in some jurisdictions for the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court...

. When issuing a writ of execution, a court typically will order a sheriff

Sheriff

A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....

 or other similar official to take possession of property owned by a judgment debtor

Judgment debtor

Judgment Debtor, in English or American law, a person against whom a judgment ordering him to pay a sum of money has been obtained and remains unsatisfied...

. Such property will often then be sold in a sheriff's sale and the proceeds remunerated to the plaintiff in partial or full satisfaction of the judgment. It is generally considered preferable for the sheriff simply to take possession of money from the defendant's bank account. If the judgment debtor owns real property

Real estate

In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...

, the judgment creditor can record the execution to "freeze" the title until the execution is satisfied.

Generally, execution is unnecessary for defendants who pay verdicts against themselves voluntarily. However, some defendants ignore judgments against them, and thereby force plaintiffs to employ writs of execution to actually enforce judgments.

In the United States, not all asset

Asset

In financial accounting, assets are economic resources. Anything tangible or intangible that is capable of being owned or controlled to produce value and that is held to have positive economic value is considered an asset...

s are subject to execution. For example, Social Security

Social Security (United States)

In the United States, Social Security refers to the federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program.The original Social Security Act and the current version of the Act, as amended encompass several social welfare and social insurance programs...

 income that resides in a bank account is exempt from a levy on a debtor's bank account. Many states also protect an Individual Retirement Account

Individual Retirement Account

An individual retirement arrangement is the blanket term for a form of retirement plan that provides tax advantages for retirement savings in the United States...

(IRA) from execution as well as unemployment income, but the amount that is exempt may be limited.