Cognovit Judgment Law and Legal Definition
Cognovit judgment refers to a judgment entered after a written confession by the defendant without the expense of ordinary legal proceedings.
In bankruptcy cases, a cognovit judgment is a contract signed by a debt holder that allows a creditor to summarily take a bankruptcy judgment upon filing a complaint of nonpayment.
The following is an example of a case law on cognovit judgment:
A cognovit judgment was a judgment in name only, having none of the minimums of judicial process usually associated with that term. For that reason alone, the cognovit judgment was not entitled to full faith and credit. [Fiore v. Oakwood Plaza Shopping Center, Inc., 78 N.Y.2d 572, 578 (N.Y. 1991)].
