A court-ordered seizure of property used to compel the personal appearance of a nonresident property owner in a lawsuit brought against that owner in a court of equity. For a court to exercise jurisdiction over a nonresident by sequestering the nonresident's property located in the forum state, the nonresident must have sufficient minimum contacts with the state so that the exercise of jurisdiction comports with due process (Shaffer v. Heitner, 433 U.S. 186 (1977); see quasi in-rem jurisdiction).

The term also refers to the court-ordered seizure of property in certain circumstances, such as when:

In the context of a trial, sequestration refers to the isolation of a jury to prevent its members from being tampered with or prejudiced by media coverage. Jury sequestration is rare, and is usually reserved for high-profile criminal cases. The members of a sequestered jury typically stay at a hotel for the duration of the trial, where they are closely supervised by court personnel, prohibited from contacting relatives and friends, and denied access to press reports from newspapers, television, and the internet.

The term can also refer to the isolation of trial witnesses to prevent them from hearing the testimony of other witnesses.