What are the consequences of the expiration of the limitation period for participants in civil matters? What will happen if all possible deadlines are reached when banks and credit organizations have the right to collect debts in court? We will try to analyze these and other similar questions in this article.
The concept
Before talking about the consequences of the expiration of the limitation period, we explain this term.
Statute of limitations is the time allotted by law for the protection of rights in a judicial proceeding. In civil law, it is divided into two categories: general (three years), special (depending on the nature of the legal relationship).
This means that if the deadlines for filing claims are over, then it will be very difficult to win the case, even if the plaintiff is three times right. But there is one interesting feature that citizens who are illiterate in jurisprudence do not know about: without a special application for application, the courts themselves do not make decisions. More in this we will analyze further.
Practical application
If the statute of limitations has expired, this does not mean that the “culprit” can sleep peacefully. There is no automatic application of the norm. There will be no negative consequences of the expiration of the limitation period for creditors if the defendant, i.e., the debtor, does not declare that the court has applied the relevant rule of law. This is one of the significant changes in Russian law. Previously, the statute of limitations was applied automatically by the courts, that is, if the servants of Themis see that the deadlines are missed, they will not consider the statement of claim. Today, everything has changed: it will be necessary to declare in the petition that the plaintiff does not have the opportunity, according to Art. 196 of the Civil Code, to claim any debts.
Hence the conclusion: it is necessary to constantly increase legal literacy, in whatever field of activity a citizen may work. Courts, as before, no longer apply the rule of law without a corresponding requirement.
Statute of limitations
There are few civil cases without statute of limitations, so you need to keep track of time. True, there is the possibility of restoring the right to file claims. Anything can happen in life. There are situations when a citizen for objective reasons could not file an application with the court. In order to exercise the right to judicial protection, he will have to restore the missed procedural term. The court considers such applications separately from the main requirements. If he admits that the deadline has been missed without good reason, there is no doubt that the restoration will be refused.
Good Reasons for Recovery
The plaintiff’s requirements for the restoration of terms are satisfied, as a rule, on the following grounds:
- Deterioration of health, illness of close relatives, children.
- Business trips, change of place of work.
- Illiteracy - this does not mean legal illiteracy, that is, misunderstanding of laws, inability to interpret them, but banal inability to read or write.
- Another reason recognized by the court as valid.
If a citizen needs to sue, but he, for example, has got the only way out of the settlement with a snow avalanche, the court will go forward and give an opportunity to file a complaint.
Who does not have the right to restore the limitation period
Legal organizations are not entitled to restore deadlines. It doesn't matter what the reasons are: even if the company is located on a peninsula, and it was flooded by spring snowmelt, in which case lawyers will be powerless to do anything. Credit institutions and banks, collection agencies know this, but they deliberately mislead citizens who do not understand jurisprudence. Hence the conclusion: if a sufficient amount of time has passed since, for example, taking a loan, then most likely the time has come and the lenders are not entitled to collect the debt through the court. However, we have already said above: for the application of Art. 196 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, it is necessary to declare that the deadlines have passed. The courts themselves are not entitled to do this for citizens. Therefore, it is still necessary to appear at meetings - at least to monitor your trials, not to let everything go by its own accord. If it is not possible to attend the trial in person, a written request can be sent.
Where to count
One of the most difficult questions that puzzles even some novice professional lawyers is the beginning of the limitation period. That is, from which day to count. The deadlines for general reasons are three years, but in each case, nuances arise in determining the outgoing number. This issue is difficult mainly for loan and loan agreements.
The calculation of the limitation period occurs, as a rule, from a specific legal action. For example, buying a car, drawing up a civil law act, concluding a loan agreement, etc. The limitation period for a debt is three years. However, many incorrectly interpret the outgoing, starting point, from where it is necessary to count. We will try to understand this issue.
Credit agreements: where does the statute of limitations come from
Suppose a borrower took a loan from a bank for a period of 5 years in January 2010 in the amount of 100 thousand rubles. A year later, in January 2011, he was reduced, and he stopped paying for his obligations. Where does the three-year limitation period come from in this situation? From January 2011 or from 2015? The final point of view on this issue was raised by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation. He said that the statute of limitations began to flow from the moment when the creditor knew about the violation of his rights. With legal entities (banks, microfinance organizations, etc.) everything is simple here: it is assumed that they are required to know automatically in cases of non-payment of loan obligations by borrowers. It turns out that in our case the limitation period ends in January 2014.
But there is one main nuance: the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation determines an individual countdown for each payment. This means that in January 2014 the deadline for the right to demand payment for January 2011 ends, in February 2014 - for February 2011, etc. The debtor can finally sleep peacefully in our conditional example only after January 2017. Credit organizations know this very well, and they always emphasize it, but they forget one nuance: if you sue to recover overdue debts, say, in December 2016, you can only claim the amount for one month of the loan. The longer banks and credit organizations drag out filing claims, the less they will receive in the end. Of course, only if the borrower himself makes a request. The court will not just do this for him, but, as judicial practice shows, he cannot. It is also worth noting that the end of the statute of limitations on the right to recover a debt through a court does not legally mean writing off a debt. The bank also has the right to demand its money in other legal ways.
Interrupt
Speaking about the statute of limitations and the consequences, it is necessary to remember such a concept in civil law as interruption - this is a procedural action that resets the deadline, puts the stopwatch hands in their original position. The Law clearly states that interruption is possible only if the citizen agreed to the debt, recognized it as a specific procedural action: payment, installment agreement, written supplement, restructuring agreement, etc.
What actions are misinterpreted
Often banks and collectors mislead gullible citizens: they say that any telephone conversation, contact will reset the deadlines for filing claims. For this reason, many citizens are mistakenly afraid to talk with employees of financial institutions. Legally, a telephone conversation will not be used as evidence, even if the debtor fully agrees with all the requirements, since using audio recordings is a rather difficult and expensive way. It will be necessary for credit organizations to prove that it was the debtor who was sitting on the other end of the wire. If the court does not have the latter, then this option is extremely problematic.
The second misconception is to consider an interruption after a credit institution submits to a magistrate court, and, as a result, a court order is issued. Debtors have the right, without any reason, to write a petition, to cancel it. However, banks and collectors are beginning to claim that an interruption occurred in this way. This is not true. The Civil Code explicitly states that an interruption only occurs if the borrower fully agrees with all the requirements of the lender. The cancellation of the court order just proves any disagreement.
What disputes do not have a statute of limitations
There are many civil disputes without statute of limitations. They relate to the protection of court cases related to the protection of honor and dignity, the payment of moral compensation for illegal actions. This provision is primarily aimed at the legal protection of a citizen, his personality, in accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, international conventions and treaties. This is understandable: for example, a person found out three years later that he had been slandered. It is no longer possible to bring the culprit to the criminal article; give him a fine too. However, this does not prevent the victim from going to court with a view to formally apologizing to the offender. He also has the right to demand compensation for non-pecuniary damage.
The consequences of the expiration of the limitation period
We will analyze the consequences of the deadlines for filing claims in court. What happens in this case, for example, with a loan agreement? After all, legal entities do not have the right to restore the term under any conditions. This is clearly spelled out in the civil code. Many people think that if a bank or a credit institution missed the statute of limitations through a court, then the debt is written off. In fact, this is not so: despite the deadline for filing a lawsuit, the creditor retains the right to claim his debt. This means that the debtor still retains this status. The only plus is that you cannot sue him. Since the compulsory collection of property, including arrest, is possible only through court bailiffs by court order, banks and collectors have the only legitimate opportunity to “knock out” a debt in this case - to persuade the debtor and call on his conscience. Citizens who do not know the laws are “warned” by the seizure of property, although they are well aware that there can no longer be any lawful arrest, and unauthorized persons are criminally liable.
As a rule, debt is written off if all possible statutes of limitations on loan agreements have expired. Such actions are voluntary, they are not fixed in the legislation. This means that banks can both write off debt and not do it. However, in the second case, the recovery rate is very low. Mostly they are paid by conscious and responsible citizens who want to fulfill their obligations, knowing that there will be no negative consequences for the seizure of property, or legally illiterate citizens - they do not know that there can be no penalties. Sometimes there are those who simply do not want to be bothered by calls, letters, visits.