Negatory action

Pursuant to Article 222(2) of the Civil Code, the owner has a claim against a person who infringes property otherwise than by depriving the owner of actual authority over the item, to restore it to its lawful state and to desist from the infringement.

Active legitimacy

Those entitled to pursue a negatory claim are the owner of the item or its co-owners. Also entitled to pursue this claim are the perpetual usufructuaries or joint perpetual usufructuaries to the extent of infringements arising in the right of perpetual usufruct.
The right of issuing the claim (the right to effectively enforce a claim before a court) is vested in each contemporary owner or perpetual usufructuary. The disposal of the property therefore changes the person entitled to enforce the claim.

Passive legitimacy

The claim must be directed against the person who infringes the property otherwise than by depriving the owner of actual power over the item.
If there has been a change on the part of the infringer, the claim must name the person currently taking the action encroaching on the owner’s rights.

Conditions of claim

The premises of the claim are considered to be:

• the existence of a property right,
• unlawful interference with the right to property otherwise than by depriving the owner of the actual possession of the item.

The accrual of a claim does not depend on the infringer’s knowledge or awareness that he has trespassed on another’s property right, nor on his fault.

Content of the claim

The claim for the cessation of infringements of property, which is made in the lawsuit, is aimed at ensuring that there is no permanent or repeated encroachment on the property rights of the holder of the property in the future. The claim seeks to enforce the obligation incumbent on third parties (all but the owner) to comply with the prohibition on the infringement of property rights.

Deadline

A negator’s claim is not barred by the statute of limitations if it relates to immovable property (Article 223 § 1 of the Civil Code).
With regard to movable property, the limitation period for a claim is 6 years. However, if the negator’s claim for movable property is related to the conduct of a business, the limitation period is 3 years (Article 118 of the Civil Code).
Legal status: 11.09.2024