Legal Definitions - right of exoneration

Definition: The right of a person who is secondarily liable on a debt to make the primarily liable party discharge the debt or reimburse any payment that the secondarily liable person has made. This is also known as equity of exoneration.

Example: A surety has the right of exoneration to call on the principal for reimbursement after the surety has paid the debt. This means that if the borrower defaults on a loan, the surety (who has guaranteed the loan) can demand that the borrower repay the loan. If the borrower fails to do so, the surety can pay off the loan and then demand reimbursement from the borrower.

The equity of exoneration exists when parties are successively liable, meaning that one party is liable only if another party fails to fulfill their obligation. This right ensures that the secondarily liable party is not unfairly burdened with the debt and can seek reimbursement from the primarily liable party.