Short answer. You must produce and serve a certified copy of the judgment you're relying on, or for a mortgage or other lien, a certified memorandum of record or a copy of the assignment establishing your claim, plus an affidavit showing the amount actually due on your lien.
What the law says
A redemptioner must produce to the officer, or person from whom he seeks to redeem, and serve with his notice to the officer a copy of the judgment or final order under which he claims the right to redeem, certified by the clerk of the court wherein the judgment or final order is entered; or, if he redeems upon a mortgage or other lien, a memorandum of the record thereof, certified by the registrar of deeds; or an original or certified copy of any assignment necessary to establish his claim; and an affidavit executed by him or his agent, showing the amount then actually due on the lien.
Rule 39, Section 30 — Proof required of redemptioner. Read the full provision →
Documentary proof required for a judgment-based redemption
A redemptioner must produce to the officer, or to the person from whom he seeks to redeem, and serve with his notice to the officer, a copy of the judgment or final order under which he claims the right to redeem, certified by the clerk of the court where that judgment or order was entered. Requiring a certified copy, rather than an ordinary photocopy, ensures the officer is relying on an authentic record of the judgment the redemptioner is invoking, rather than a document that could easily be altered or fabricated. Serving this document with the notice to the officer, rather than simply mentioning the judgment, gives the officer something concrete to check against the court's own records.
Alternatives for lien-based claims
If the redemptioner is instead redeeming on the strength of a mortgage or other lien rather than a judgment, he must produce a memorandum of the record of that lien, certified by the registrar of deeds, or else an original or certified copy of whatever assignment is necessary to establish his claim to redeem. These alternative documents serve the same verifying function as the certified judgment copy does for a redemptioner who is instead relying on a lien rather than a money judgment against the original debtor. Whichever document applies, it must still be an original or a certified copy — an uncertified photocopy of an assignment would not satisfy this requirement on its own.
The affidavit requirement, and why the proof matters
On top of the documentary proof, the redemptioner must also produce an affidavit, executed either by himself or by his agent, showing the amount then actually due on the lien he is relying on. All of this lets the officer verify that the redemptioner genuinely holds a valid claim, and the correct amount owed, before the officer honors the redemption, protecting both the original purchaser and other creditors from a redemption based on an inflated or unsubstantiated claim.
Related provisions
- Rule 39, Section 30 — Proof required of redemptioner
- Rule 39, Section 29 — Effect of redemption by judgment obligor, and a certificate to be delivered and recorded thereupon; to whom payments on redemption made
- Rule 39, Section 31 — Manner of using premises pending redemption; waste restrained