Promlčení

Under Czech law

Limitation is regulated by § 609–§ 653 of the Civil Code (Act No. 89/2012 Sb.). The general subjective period is three years from the day the right could first be exercised (§ 629); most property rights are additionally capped by an objective period of ten years (§ 636). Parties may contractually shorten or lengthen the period within the bounds of § 630 (between one and fifteen years, with consumer-protection limits). A limited claim does not disappear — the court simply may not award it once the debtor raises the objection, and § 609 forbids the court from considering limitation on its own motion.

Certain rights never limit (ownership itself, § 611), and acknowledgment of a debt (§ 639) or enforcement steps restart or suspend the clock in defined ways.

A practical example

A contractor invoices 180 000 Kč in March 2022, due in April 2022. The customer never pays; the contractor, busy elsewhere, sues in June 2025 — more than three years after due date. The customer's lawyer raises the limitation objection in the first response, and the otherwise valid claim is dismissed entirely.

When you need a lawyer

Twice. When you hold a claim: to interrupt limitation in time — filing suit, obtaining an acknowledgment, or agreeing an extension. When you are sued on an old debt: limitation is a complete defence, but only if pleaded; courts will not raise it for you.