MORTGAGE AND CHARGE: A PRACTICAL OVERVIEW OF THE NEXUS BETWEEN THE TWO TERMINOLGIES
Downloads
Abstract
When we discuss a term like Charge generally, we refer to an interest or maybe a right that a creditor acquires in an asset. This asset can be movable property like a cupboard, cell phone, fast moving consumer goods, furniture, etc. or it can also refer to immovable property like land, tree that is in a position to receive sustenance from the soil, that what is attached to the earth etc. Similarly, in general parlance when we talk about mortgage what a layman would understand would be that it is generally a legal title, which one would give to another in exchange for a benefit. However, this might not be entirely accurate. Let us see how the law defines these two terms.
According to Practical Law, UK, a charge is a security over an asset which gives the lender the right to have the particular asset and its proceeds of sale appropriated to the discharge of the debt in question. A charge does not transfer ownership; it is merely an encumbrance on the asset. According to Black’s Law Dictionary, a mortgage is an applied lawful lien by the mortgagor in exchange for obligation discharge or debt repayment. Thus, we see how the legal definitions of Mortgage and Charge are very different from the terms used in general parlance. This is perhaps because with common usage in the English language, the words have been used with a wider interpretation then they actually contain. Having defined the terms in a legal sense let us now see what the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 describes about mortgage and charge under Indian Law.
Section 100 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882(henceforth referred as “the Act") defines a charge.
External References to this Article
Loading reference data...
License Terms
Ownership and Licensing:
Authors of research papers submitted to any journal published by The Law Brigade Publishers retain the copyright of their work while granting the journal specific rights. Authors maintain ownership of the copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication. Simultaneously, authors agree to license their research papers under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0) License.
License Permissions:
Under the CC BY-SA 4.0 License, others are permitted to share and adapt the work, even for commercial purposes, provided that appropriate attribution is given to the authors, and acknowledgment is made of the initial publication by The Law Brigade Publishers. This license encourages the broad dissemination and reuse of research papers while ensuring that the original work is properly credited.
Additional Distribution Arrangements:
Authors are free to enter into separate, non-exclusive contractual arrangements for distributing the published version of the work (e.g., posting it to institutional repositories or publishing it in books), provided that the original publication by The Law Brigade Publishers is acknowledged.
Online Posting:
Authors are encouraged to share their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on personal websites) both prior to submission and after publication. This practice can facilitate productive exchanges and increase the visibility and citation of the work.
Responsibility and Liability:
Authors are responsible for ensuring that their submitted research papers do not infringe on the copyright, privacy, or other rights of third parties. The Law Brigade Publishers disclaims any liability for any copyright infringement or violation of third-party rights within the submitted research papers.
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Copyright © 2026 by Varun Zeferino De Mascarenhas
The copyright and license terms mentioned on this page take precedence over any other license terms mentioned on the article full text PDF or any other material associated with the article.
