These days, the transportation of goods is a phenomenon without which it is hard to imagine everyday life. During the pandemic, people have no other option but to order the goods they want exclusively through the internet and online stores. However, consumers are at the very end of this chain, and the delivery of goods to the consumer is preceded by a long process ranging from the production of the goods to their transport between businesses. Since every business owner has an interest in ensuring that the goods they order are delivered properly and on time, and at the same time every carrier requires certainty of payment for the transport they perform, it is essential that these contractual relationships be regulated, whether generally by legal regulations or by individual contracts for specific cases, regardless of whether the transport is carried out within a single country or across multiple countries. In today’s article, we will examine the concept of the statute of limitations in the context of international and domestic transport and the impact of the passage of time on obligations arising from transport.
The primary legal regulation governing contractual relationships in the domestic transport of goods is Act No. 513/1991 Coll., the Commercial Code, which, in its third part, regulates freight forwarding contracts and contracts for the carriage of goods. International road transport is governed by the Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road (hereinafter the “CMR Convention”)
The passage of time is a significant factor in law. Legal regulations or the contracts themselves often set specific time limits for the parties within which a certain right must be exercised. Upon the fruitless expiration of these time limits, two legally significant outcomes may occur—statute of limitations or preclusion. Preclusion means the extinction of a right because that right was not exercised within the prescribed time limit. Preclusion can be identified in a legal provision, for example, through the phrase “otherwise the right shall expire.” The court takes a precluded right into account ex officio, that is, as a matter of official duty. However, the fruitless expiration of a time limit need not result solely in the extinction of a right; in practice, the occurrence of time-barred rights is more common. Statute of limitations is a legal concept wherein, while the right itself does not expire, the possibility of successfully enforcing that right is significantly diminished. However, the court does not take the statute of limitations into account ex officio, but only upon the debtor’s objection. After a right becomes time-barred, the obligation becomes a so-called natural obligation, which means that the debtor is not obligated to fulfill the obligation if they raise a statute of limitations defense; however, they still have the option to fulfill it voluntarily, and in the event of fulfillment, it will not constitute unjust enrichment of the creditor. The consequences arising from the fruitless expiration of time limits are underscored by the Roman legal principle vigilantibus iura scripta sunt, which can be loosely translated as the law belongs to the vigilant and whose essence is that rights belong to those who actively seek to protect and exercise their rights and who exercise their procedural rights in a timely manner and with sufficient care and foresight.
Domestic Transport and the Statute of Limitations
The statute of limitations also has a fundamental impact on obligations arising from transport contracts. It is not without reason that we emphasized the distinction between domestic and international transport at the beginning of this article; this distinction is also of fundamental importance for assessing the statute of limitations. As mentioned above, the legal framework for domestic transport is provided by the Commercial Code. In Sections 387 and following, it regulates the concept of the statute of limitations, which is subsequently applied to commercial legal relationships. The law stipulates that a right becomes time-barred upon the expiration of the limitation period established by law, and all rights arising from contractual relationships are subject to the statute of limitations, with the exception of the right to terminate a contract concluded for an indefinite period. To assess the statute of limitations, it is essential to correctly determine the start of the limitation period, its end, and, of course, its duration.
The limitation period begins to run from the day on which the right could have been exercised or asserted in court for the first time. For the right to performance of an obligation, the statute of limitations runs from the day on which the obligation was to be performed or performance was to commence.
The general statute of limitations for commercial obligations is set at 4 years. For the right to compensation for damages, the statute of limitations begins to run from the date on which the injured party learned or could have learned of the damage and of who is liable for its compensation. However, it expires no later than 10 years from the date on which the breach of duty occurred.
However, in connection with the carriage of goods, it should be emphasized that rights arising from a forwarding contract or a contract for the carriage of goods—specifically, damage to the goods being transported and rights arising from the delayed delivery of a shipment against the forwarder and the carrier—are subject to a one-year statute of limitations. The right to compensation for damage to a shipment arises from its loss, damage, deterioration, or destruction. For rights arising from the total destruction or loss of a shipment, the limitation period begins on the day the shipment was to be delivered to the consignee, and for other rights, on the day the shipment was delivered. However, a four-year limitation period applies to intentionally caused damage. Thus, the special one-year limitation period does not apply to other rights that may arise from the aforementioned contracts, such as the right to freight charges, or rights arising from causes other than damage to the goods or their delayed delivery.
Statute of Limitations in International Transport
The CMR Convention, which serves as the legal basis for international road transport, also contains specific provisions regarding the statute of limitations, under which claims arising from transport covered by this Convention are subject to a one-year limitation period. In cases of intent or such fault that, under the law of the court hearing the case, is deemed equivalent to intent, the limitation period is three years. Under Slovak law, willful negligence may also be deemed equivalent to intent. The CMR Convention also specifically regulates three cases regarding the commencement of the limitation period, stipulating that in the event of partial loss of the consignment, damage to it, or a delay in delivery, the limitation period begins to run on the day of delivery of the consignment. In the event of total loss, the limitation period begins on the thirtieth day after the expiration of the agreed delivery period, and if no delivery period was agreed, on the sixtieth day after the carrier took possession of the shipment. In all other cases, the limitation period begins to run three months after the date of conclusion of the contract of carriage. As with the general calculation of time limits, the day on which the limitation period begins to run is not counted as part of the limitation period. The limitation period provisions under the CMR Convention are specific, particularly in light of the fact that the limitation period under the CMR Convention begins to run even without the actual performance of the carriage having commenced following the conclusion of the contract of carriage. This means that the prerequisite for the application of the Convention’s provisions is not the performance of the carriage but the conclusion of the contract of carriage.
It follows from Article 32 of the CMR Convention, which governs the statute of limitations, that not only claims asserted exclusively against the carrier are subject to the statute of limitations, but it is clear that such claims may also be asserted by the carrier, the shipper, and the consignee, and their claims are subject to the statute of limitations as described above.
The specially regulated limitation period has several consequences, the most important of which is that a person wishing to assert claims arising from the contract of carriage must ensure that their claims are asserted in a timely manner. In practice, however, it often happens that these persons are not fully aware of the fact that their claim is not subject to the 4-year statute of limitations under the Commercial Code, but only to the 1-year period under the CMR Convention. Consequently, they fail to assert their claims in a timely manner, resulting in the period for exercising the right expiring in vain and the right becoming time-barred. In any subsequent court proceedings, the debtor typically raises a statute of limitations defense, and the creditor may effectively have to abandon their claim.
If you provide international road transport, or if you are frequently a party to transport contracts under which transport is carried out at the international level, it is necessary for you to be familiar not only with domestic regulations but also with international regulations applicable to the relevant area, specifically the CMR Convention in this case; otherwise, you run the risk that relying on your knowledge of domestic law will not help you in a potential dispute. The law firm Hronček & Partner, s. r. o. has been providing legal services in the field of transport law for several years, and our staff will be happy to assist you and provide valuable advice in the conduct of your business.
