Legal Definitions - non tenuit

Non tenuit is a Latin legal term that translates to "he did not hold." It is a specific defense used in legal actions where someone seeks to recover personal property that has been taken from them (known as an action of replevin).

When a person or entity takes another's property, they often do so by claiming a legal justification (this claim is called an "avowry"). For instance, a landlord might seize a tenant's belongings for unpaid rent, or a lender might repossess an item pledged as collateral for a defaulted loan. In such a situation, the person whose property was taken can use the defense of non tenuit.

By asserting non tenuit, the person denies the specific legal relationship or condition that the taker claims justified their action. They are essentially arguing that they did not hold the property in the manner alleged by the taker, thereby challenging the legal basis for the taking itself. It is not a denial of ownership of the property, but rather a denial of the specific right the other party claimed to have to take it.

Here are a few examples to illustrate:

• Scenario 1: Landlord-Tenant Dispute

  Imagine a landlord seizes furniture from a house, claiming it belongs to a tenant who owes several months of back rent. The landlord asserts they had a right to take the furniture because of the unpaid rent under the terms of a valid lease agreement.

  The person whose furniture was taken could raise the defense of non tenuit by arguing that they were never actually a tenant under a valid lease with that landlord, or that the furniture was not located on the leased premises as specified in the agreement. By doing so, they deny the specific landlord-tenant relationship and the associated right to seize property as alleged by the landlord, thereby challenging the legal justification for the taking.

• Scenario 2: Loan and Collateral

  Consider a finance company that repossesses a valuable piece of machinery, claiming it was pledged as collateral for a business loan that has gone into default. The finance company asserts its right to take the machinery based on a signed security agreement.

  The business owner could use non tenuit to argue that the specific machinery in question was never properly listed or included as collateral in the security agreement for that particular loan, or that the loan agreement itself was invalid, or that they were not the debtor in the manner alleged by the finance company. This defense denies that the machinery was held "in the manner and form alleged" (i.e., as valid collateral for that specific defaulted loan), thereby disputing the finance company's legal right to repossess it.