Two types of lawsuits (vindication and negative) are important elements of civil law. With their help, property is protected. Although the functions of these institutions are generally the same, there are several differences between them, without knowledge of which it is difficult to imagine the judicial system of any country, including Russia.
Key differences
Traditionally, a vindication lawsuit and a negative lawsuit cause confusion because of their alleged identity. In fact, there are fundamental differences between them. A negative lawsuit is possible only when the thing remains in the possession of the owner. In the case of the vindication requirement, the situation is different. Such a lawsuit is used when the thing is not in the possession of the owner, and it is owned by a person who does not have a right to it.
There are other important points that distinguish two close concepts. Vindication lawsuit and negative lawsuit have different purposes (negative is needed, rather, to protect the right to use than to protect the right to own). The third factor is no less determining. A negative claim has no statute of limitations, which means that no statute of limitations can impede its satisfaction (in a vindication claim, the statute of limitations is 3 years).
Features of Vindication Claims
A lawsuit is considered to be a claim of a non-possessing owner against another owning non-owner. The name has Latin roots. And this is not surprising, because all modern jurisprudence appeared thanks to the system of ancient Roman law. The Latin phrase vim dicere can literally be translated as "I declare the use of force."
It should be noted here that the vindication claim and the negative claim relate equally to the substantive protection methods. This concept has a special legal status. Vindication lawsuit can be brought to any owner of the required thing, if he is not in the contractual relationship with the owner.
There are some restrictions that are detailed in the Civil Code. So, vindication can only be used in relation to a physically preserved thing. In this case, it must be clearly defined and be with the specific owner. Otherwise, the vindication lawsuit will be recognized as pointless. If the item has been lost or destroyed, the owner has the right to demand damages.
Vindication claims occupy a special place among all civil legal remedies for the protection of civil property rights. In judicial practice, they are less common than legal requirements, which does not prevent them from playing an important educational and preventive role. Using this tool, the inviolability of private, municipal and state property is ensured . Vindication lawsuit acts only on an individual thing, so if a dispute affects a lot of homogeneous things, you should use a lawsuit from unjust enrichment.
Property Rights Protection
The legal forms of lawsuits (negative, vindication) have different purposes and nature, which have developed as a tradition laid down in Roman law. The legislation of the Russian Federation in this sense is not much different from other Western systems. Even in antiquity, a vindication lawsuit was intended to protect the right of the owner in relation to bodily objects - things that have clear physical parameters. The tradition is preserved. Therefore, today a vindication lawsuit does not apply to stocks and other incorporeal objects.
Any types of claims (negative, vindication) are satisfied only if substantial evidence is provided. If real estate is disputed, an extract from the state register may be in such quality. In this sense, the vindication and negative claims of the Republic of Belarus (Belarus) are no different from the Russian ones.
A separate case is a claim for property that has become a contribution to the charter capital of a partnership or business entity. In such a situation, the court relies on several additional rules. He should take into account that the contribution is a reimbursable acquisition.
Plaintiff and defendant
Most of all, the vindication claim and the negative claim differ in the interpretation of who may be the plaintiff and defendant. In both cases, two parties are involved. In a case law, this is a non-possessing owner (such a status is given to a person who has a right of ownership, but actually does not own the thing). Requirements for the plaintiff: citizen, body or legal entity related to the Russian Federation. They can also be government agencies and enterprises.
The defendant is the illegal owner of another's property. The plaintiff demands to resolve the contradiction between formality and the actual state of affairs. He uses his property right. Vindication lawsuit, negative lawsuit and some other ways of protecting one’s own interests in court are needed in order to prove their innocence in a civilized way. Of course, the plaintiff will have to make arguments in favor of the fact that he has the right to property (operational management, economic ownership). If he proves that the defendant illegally holds other people's property, then the court will return the disputed thing.
Ownership after the transaction
The requirements that are presented to the grounds for the emergence of ownership of a thing (or legal title) are established in the legislation. This issue is addressed in Chapter 14 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, which received the characteristic title “Acquisition of property rights”. In practice, most often such a basis is a transaction related to the disposal of property. Several legal conflicts are associated with it. The court often raises the contentious issue of whether the court, when considering a vindication claim, should verify the validity of the transaction. This aspect of the case is all the more relevant since the defendant may refer to the lack of ownership of the plaintiff.
The resolution of the issue with the validity of the transaction should be based on the individual characteristics of the dispute. A court will remain objective only if in each particular case it focuses on the unique circumstances of the next process. This helps to screen out plaintiffs who filed a lawsuit, knowingly aware of the nullity of their transaction. If such a fact is nevertheless established, a decision may be made in favor of the defendant. This is evidenced by both practice and the generally accepted classification of claims (vindication and negative claims differ in many difficulties and nuances, but, guided by the laws, the court can figure out even the most controversial dispute).
Respondent Status
According to the laws, in addition to transactions, there are several more grounds for obtaining a property right (this can be a succession, inheritance, etc.). In any of these cases, the plaintiff must provide the relevant documents. For example, when the right of ownership arose after the purchase of a thing, the court will need a contract of sale.
If the disputed object was in the possession of the defendant, but was lost by the time of the trial, then it receives the new status of an improper defendant. In this case, the claim cannot be satisfied. Also, in some cases, the defendant receives the status of bona fide owner. The court can make such a decision if he did not know that the alienator of the thing did not have the right to alienate it and transfer or sell it to anyone. The acquirer is recognized as unfair only when he acted according to intent or gross negligence. In any case, the court determines the status of the defendant based on the actual circumstances of the case.
Claiming things
In legal vocabulary, negligence is divided into gross and simple. When a court determines whether a third party acted out of criminal intent, it always proceeds from the presumption of good faith of the acquirer (the acquirer is a priori considered to be bona fide until proven otherwise).
At the same time, there are several important reservations. Firstly, the owner can legally claim property from a bona fide purchaser in any circumstances if he acquired the thing from a person who did not have the right to alienate it free of charge. Separate rules are stipulated in the Civil Code for money and securities. These are the most circulating assets. Consequently, secondly, they cannot be claimed from an unscrupulous buyer, regardless of the circumstances. The opposite situation arises in the case of gratuitous acquisition of property from a person who did not have the right to alienate it. In such a situation, under any circumstances, the owner can claim his belongings.
Ground of action
The subject of the vindication lawsuit is the return of property from an illegally owned property. This wording does not imply reservations. So, if the plaintiff is going to receive other property of equal value or wants to achieve payment of monetary compensation, he needs to protect his interests in other ways (for example, a claim for harm).
One way or another, but the subject is far from everything. A lawsuit also consists of a ground and parties. What is their essence? The basis shall be considered the circumstances on the basis of which the plaintiff asks the court to protect his own rights. In this case, the owner must indicate in the application the rule of law with which he considers it appropriate to resolve the conflict. But, in addition to the above, an explanation of the factual circumstances of the case is also necessary, since without them the entire judicial mechanism will not work. Parties - this is the defendant and the plaintiff.
Negative lawsuit
In Roman law, vindication and negative claims were a type of proprietary claims. They have remained so to this day. A negative lawsuit (translated from Latin as “denying”) is used if the owner owns the property, but due to certain circumstances it is difficult to use it. The reason for the contradiction lies in the actions of the defendant. That is what international law says. Vindication and negative claims are used for the same purpose, but under different circumstances.
The difficulty in accessing legal property is often the construction of a building on the land, which disrupts the solar lighting of the neighboring plot. Another example is the installation of a billboard covering the facade and windows of residential apartments.
According to Article 304 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the owner has the right to demand the elimination of such violations. In the theoretical formulation, everything is simple and understandable, but in practice it can be extremely difficult to end the dispute. Last but not least, this is due to inaccurate wording in the laws.
Proceedings
What is the difference between a vindication claim and a negative claim? The examples clearly show that in the first case the owner is deprived of property, and in the second he owns it, but cannot use it fully due to someone's indiscretion. Most often, conflicts associated with negative claims affect the relationship of neighbors (in summer cottages, apartments, etc.). For the most part, such disputes end with verbal agreements. However, if the neighbors are irreconcilable, they can go to court. In this case, they will have to be ready to provide evidence of their innocence.
Excessive noise can be the subject of litigation. If it interferes with the tenants, they will need protection of property rights. Vindication and negative claims are suitable for different situations (in this case, you need negative). It is curious that in Western Europe, even aviation companies are sued using this method. Moreover, defendants, as a rule, undertake to pay compensation or to build anti-noise walls at their own expense. On the whole, differences between vindication and negative claims in the Republic of Belarus (Republic of Belarus) are also arranged.
Prohibition
The owner’s lack of access to his building with the help of security guards, a power outage are two other reasons for filing a negative claim. In addition, with his help, the arrest of his property unfair from the point of view of the plaintiff is disputed. In this light, it is important to note another feature that separates a negative and vindication lawsuit (the differences between them also lie in the fact that a negative lawsuit is prohibitive). The essence of this feature is that the defendant is obliged not only to eliminate interference, but also not to allow them in the future. In the case of the arrest, both a negative and a vindication claim can be used (in the first case, if the property remained in the possession of the owner, and in the second, if it was already seized). You can go to court at any time.
The Civil Code has still not resolved the question of whether it is possible and necessary to file a negative lawsuit in the event that there is a potential threat of interference with the use of the owners of its property. An example of a similar situation: the building has not yet been built, but the neighbor has already begun preparatory work. At the same time, it is obvious that the construction will interfere with the insolation of the adjacent site, spoil the summer cottage, etc. For such cases, a preventive claim is provided, but it does not relate to a negative claim, but to a tort one.
Limitation of actions
Although vindication and negativity lawsuits appeared in Roman law, by the 21st century they naturally changed somewhat. In general, these changes come down to the peculiarities of modern international law. For example, statute of limitations does not apply to negative claims.
This feature is due to the fact that the lawsuit is designed to stop the ongoing violations. This means that while the violation of the owner’s rights continues, he has the right to go to court, regardless of when this violation began. At the same time, a limitation of actions is provided for in the case of vindication (it is 3 years).