legal process by which an insurance company, after paying for a loss, seeks to recover the amount of the loss from another party who is legally liable for it.

substitution of one creditor for another in settlement of a claim or obligation, or transfer of ownership, as when a mortgage is sold in the secondary market.

the substitution of one person for another. The substituted person acquires all rights.

Example: Stephen has a contract to buy real estate. He changes his mind, but rather than default , he locates Scott, who is willing to take his place. With permission from the seller (which is required), Stephen subrogates the contract to Scott.

substitution of another person, the subrogee, in the place of the creditor, to whose rights to the debt the other person succeeds; one's payment or assumption of an obligation for which another is primarily liable. Subrogation typically arises when an insurance company pays its insured under the provisions of an insurance policy; in that event the company is subrogated to the cause of action of its insured against the one responsible for the damage for which the insurance company has paid.