Vietnam: Regarding the statute of limitations for initiation of civil lawsuits, the Court will only consider at request

Vietnam: Regarding the statute of limitations for initiation of civil lawsuits, the Court will only consider at request (Illustrative image)

1. General legal provisions on statute of limitations for initiation of lawsuits in Vietnam​

The statute of limitations for initiation of a lawsuit is the period within which an entitled individual can initiate a lawsuit in court to protect their legitimate rights and interests that have been infringed upon; if this period lapses, the right to file a lawsuit is lost. The statute of limitations for initiation of a civil lawsuit is calculated from the date the entitled person knows or should have known that their legitimate rights and interests were infringed unless otherwise stipulated by law.

According to Clause 2, Article 184 of the Civil Procedure Code 2015: “The Courts shall apply the regulations on statute of limitations according to the requests for application of the statute of limitations of one or multiple sides, provided that such requests are made before the first-instance Courts issue the judgments/decisions on such matters/cases.

The persons to get benefits from the application of the statute of limitations may refuse to apply the statute of limitations unless such refusal is to avoid their performance of obligations.”

Essentially, all cases remain within the statute of limitations if the involved parties do not request the court to apply the statute of limitations. It also means that not every case outside the statute of limitations will be terminated by the court. The court will only terminate the case when a party requests the application of the statute of limitations, and this period has expired. However, the involved party must request the court to apply the statute of limitations before the Court of First Instance issues a decision or judgment on the case.

Recently, a provincial National Assembly delegation submitted a document proposing that the Chief Procurator of the Supreme People's Procuracy review and appeal a final judgment of an appellate case, arguing that the statute of limitations for this case had expired, and therefore the court's trial was not in compliance with the law. However, it is necessary to consider whether the involved parties in the above case had requested the Court of First Instance to apply the statute of limitations in settling the case. According to current legal provisions, the statute of limitations for initiation of a civil lawsuit is not automatically applied by the court in settling the case.

2. The automatic non-application of the statute of limitations in the settlement of civil lawsuits by the Court in Vietnam

The statute of limitations for initiation of a lawsuit shall not be automatically applied by the court in settling civil cases but must be requested by a related party before the Court of First Instance issues a judgment or decision. Upon receiving a request from an involved party regarding the application of the statute of limitations to settle the case, the court shall apply the statute of limitations according to legal provisions to determine whether the request is still within the statute of limitations. If the statute of limitations still applies, the court will continue to settle the case according to general procedures; if the statute of limitations has expired, the court will issue a decision to terminate the settlement of the case for the expired claim according to Point e, Clause 1, Article 217 of the Civil Procedure Code 2015.

In judicial practice, there is an issue of inconsistency in the application of the statute of limitations in civil case settlements. This involves different interpretations by judges assigned to settle cases concerning the right to request the application of the statute of limitations by involved parties. Different understandings among judges and involved parties regarding the statute of limitations have created obstacles in applying it in cases. In some instances, judges clearly explain the right to request the application of the statute of limitations to the parties, while in other cases, judges do not clarify this right, believing that it is the involved parties' responsibility to know.

The legal consequences of these different instances are entirely different. If the judge explains, the involved party will understand their right and may request the court to apply the statute of limitations to the plaintiff's claim, the defendant's counterclaim, or an independent claim by a person with related rights and obligations if the statute of limitations has expired. If the judge does not explain, given the current legal awareness of most involved parties, understanding and applying the right to request the statute of limitations is challenging. The law provides this right to involved parties, but they may not know to exercise it.

Therefore, there should be guidance and legal provisions requiring judges to explain the right to request the court to apply the statute of limitations in settling civil cases. This ensures equality in the rights and obligations of involved parties before the law, as guaranteed by Clause 2, Article 8 of the Civil Procedure Code 2015.

At the same time, involved parties must also prepare themselves with legal knowledge about the statute of limitations to utilize and protect their legitimate rights and interests.

Duc Thao

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