Legal Dictionary
Main Entry:
sure·tyPronunciation:
'shur-&-tEFunction:
nounInflected Form:
plural -tiesEtymology: Anglo-French
seurté, literally, guarantee, security, from Old French, from Latin
securitat- securitas, from
securus secure
1 : a formal engagement (as a pledge) given for the fulfillment of an undertaking
2 : one (as an accommodation party) who promises to answer for the debt or default of another
NOTE: At common law a surety is distinguished from a guarantor by being immediately liable as opposed to becoming liable only upon default of the principal. Under the Uniform Commercial Code, however, a surety includes a guarantor, and the two terms are generally interchangeable.