Acquisition of movable property

The legislator has provided for the possibility of acquiring ownership of a movable property by acquisitive prescription. Pursuant to Article 174(1) of the Civil Code, a possessor of a movable object who is not its owner acquires ownership if he has possessed the object continuously for three years as a spontaneous possessor, unless he is in bad faith. In turn, according to Article 174 § 2 of the Civil Code, the provision of § 1 shall not apply to an item entered in the national register of lost cultural property.
The effects of acquisitive possession of movable property are analogous to those of immovable property. Acquisition of the right of ownership occurs by operation of law as soon as three years have elapsed since the non-owner took possession of the movable property, wielding the property as if it were a spontaneous possessor.

Prerequisites of the acquisition of movable property

• intrinsic possession of a movable property

Spontaneous possession occurs when the ruler behaves as if he were the owner, i.e. takes the actions that the owner takes in relation to the thing, i.e. uses the thing in a way that excludes other persons, considers himself to be the person entitled to dispose of the thing.

• passage of time

In order for a movable property to be validly possessed, the lapse of three years from the date on which the holder took actual possession of the property is required.
The course of the limitation period may be interrupted. In this respect, the remarks made in relation to the calculation of the time limit for the seizure of immovable property will apply.
The provision allowing the time of possession of the thing by the previous possessor to be added to the period of the prescription also applies to movable property (Article 176 of the Civil Code).

• good faith

Contrary to the case of immovable property, the prerequisite for the acquisitions of movable property is the good faith of the possessor of the thing. The possessor of an item should remain in good faith for the entire time required for the acquisitive prescription of movable property, i.e. for a period of three years after taking possession of the item.
Good faith in the context of the acquisition of movable property means that the possessor of the property did not know and, by exercising due diligence, could not have known that he was not the owner of the movable property. The movant should therefore remain in the mistaken belief that he or she is entitled to the ownership of the movable property for the entire time it takes to acquire the thing by way of acquisitive prescription.
The legislator provides for a presumption of good faith in Article 7 of the Civil Code, which has the effect of shifting the burden of proof to the other party, i.e. the party claiming that the possessor was not in good faith.

Negative prerequisites

A certain category of things has been excluded from the application of the seizure of assets. In turn, according to Article 174 § 2 of the Civil Code, the provision of § 1 does not apply to an item entered in the national register of lost cultural property.
Legal status as at 16.10.2024