See Also: recognizance(dictionary)
recognizance(encyclopedia)
PERSONAL RECOGNIZANCE(law)

recognizance (iou)



recognizance noun. Also recognisance. ME.
[Old French reconnissance, reconissance (mod. reconnaissance), formed as RE- + COGNIZANCE.]
Law. A bond undertaken before a court or magistrate to perform some act or observe some condition, esp. to pay a debt, or appear when summoned; a sum pledged as surety for this. ME.
a. Recognition or acknowledgement of the existence or validity of a person or thing; recognition or appreciation of a service, achievement, etc. Now rare. LME.
b. Recognition or identification of a person or thing as previously known or perceived. Now rare. L15.
a. = COGNIZANCE 3. LME-E18.
b. Law (now Hist.). = RECOGNITION 2. E17.
A token, an emblem. Cf. COGNIZANCE 1. arch. L15.