Short answer. You do — the obligor. Article 2121 of the Civil Code provides that for pledges created by operation of law, after payment of the debt and expenses, the remainder of the price of the sale must be delivered to the obligor. The creditor keeps only what covers the debt and costs; the surplus returns to you.
What the law says
after payment of the debt and expenses, the remainder of the price of the sale shall be delivered to the obligor.
Civil Code, Article 2121 — Pledges by Operation of Law. Read the full provision →
Pledges created by law and their sale
Some pledges arise not from a contract but by operation of law — for example, the right of a person who has done work on a movable to retain it until paid, or a possessor's right to retain a thing until reimbursed for necessary expenses. Article 2121 says these are governed by the foregoing articles on the possession, care and sale of the thing as well as on the termination of the pledge. So the general pledge rules on how the thing may be sold apply to them.
The surplus goes back to the obligor
The article then settles the question of leftover money directly: after payment of the debt and expenses, the remainder of the price of the sale shall be delivered to the obligor. The creditor's claim is satisfied out of the sale, together with the expenses of realising it, and no more. Whatever is left over is not the creditor's to keep — it belongs to the obligor, the person who owed the debt, and must be handed over.
What this protects
The rule guards against a creditor being enriched beyond the debt. A legal pledge exists to secure payment, not to transfer the full value of the thing to the creditor. Once the debt and the legitimate expenses are covered, the balance is yours. The provision does not, however, excuse the debt itself or address a shortfall if the sale brings less than what is owed. If your property was sold under a pledge imposed by law, ask for an accounting of the price, the debt and the expenses, because the article entitles you to the surplus that remains.
Two limits to keep in view
Two limits are worth keeping in view. The rule hands you the surplus, but it does not wipe out the debt if the sale brings in less than what is owed together with the expenses — a shortfall can leave you answering for the balance in the ordinary way. And the expenses that may be deducted are the legitimate costs of keeping and selling the thing, not charges the creditor invents to swallow the surplus. Because a legal pledge arises to secure a specific debt and no more, an honest accounting of the price, the debt and the expenses is what tells you whether anything is coming back to you.
Related provisions
- Civil Code, Article 2121 — Pledges by Operation of Law
- Civil Code, Article 546 — Necessary and Useful Expenses
- Civil Code, Article 1731 — Retention Of Repaired Movable