Also known as: pigneratio · pignoratio · pignorate · pignerare · pignorare · pigneration · pignoration · pledge · pawn
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A bailment in which goods are delivered to secure the payment of a debt or performance of an engagement, accompanied by a power of sale in case of default.
Prime Logistics delivers vehicles to a lender as pignus to secure financing for a school safety program. The lender later sells the vehicles after default. The arrangement stands because the underlying corporate authority permits the pledge without additional approvals.
Pioneer Energy transfers machinery to a creditor as pignus to secure a construction loan. Default triggers the creditor's sale of the equipment. No shareholder approval is needed because the pledge occurs in the ordinary course of business operations.
Progressive Healthcare conveys medical equipment to a bank as pignus to obtain working capital. Upon default the bank sells the collateral. The transaction is valid under the corporation's general power to encumber its assets.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Prosperity Investments acquires shares in a supplier and immediately pledges those shares as pignus to secure its own line of credit. Default leads to foreclosure on the shares. The pledge is authorized by the corporation's power to deal in interests of other entities.
Prime Logistics borrows funds and grants a pignus over warehouse inventory to the lender. The lender sells the inventory after repayment fails. The pledge is permitted as part of the corporation's authority to secure its obligations with corporate property.
Pavel Petrov and his spouse jointly own farmland that Pavel pledges as pignus for seasonal credit. The lender accepts the pledge under a statute granting husbands unilateral authority. The spouse sues, claiming the gender-based rule violates equal protection.
Goods must be delivered to secure a debt or obligation and the bailee must receive a power of sale upon default. The arrangement benefits both parties and creates a lien on the property.
Supporting sources
Pignus requires actual delivery of the goods to the creditor. Modern security interests under the UCC may be perfected without physical delivery through filing or control.
Corporate statutes authorize a corporation to mortgage or pledge its assets without shareholder approval unless the articles provide otherwise. The pledge may occur in or outside the usual course of business.
Taking goods with the intent to pledge them satisfies the intent element for larceny because the conduct creates a high risk of permanent loss to the owner.
A trustee may borrow money and pledge trust property to secure repayment, including for loans extending beyond the trust's duration or to guarantee loans to a beneficiary.
…a building block of our national community. For that reason, just as a couple vows to support each other, so does society pledge to support the couple, offering symbolic recognition and material benefits to protect and nourish the union. Indeed, while the States are in general free to vary the benefits they confer on…