Execution,

Execution, in Law, is the act of completion or carrying into effect. Thus a writ is executed by obeying the instructions contained in it; a Deed (q.v.) is executed when it is signed, sealed, and delivered; a power is executed when it is exercised; a judgment of a court is executed when it is enforced. Judgments are usually enforced by writs of execution, which direct the officers of the law to do what is necessary, or to compel a defendant to perform some act. The term 'execution' is used now technically to denote execution to recover a debt—the kind that occurs most usually in practice. In Scotland, the term execution is also applied to the written attestation under the hand of the executive officer that he has carried his warrant into effect, as by serving a summons or giving a citation. It corresponds to the affidavit of service of writ in England.