Legal proceeding allowing a creditor holding a conventional or legal hypothec to obtain recognition of his rights, when the debtor is in default of fulfilling his obligations and the claim is liquid and exigible. Before exercising a hypothecary recourse, the creditor must always give the debtor a prior notice that is served and published in the Québec Land Register (when the hypothec is immovable). The creditor generally has two options of recourses: sale under judicial authority or taking in payment. Insofar as the debtor is an enterprise, the creditor could also opt for taking possession for purposes of administration.