Business Contracts

Failure by the purchaser to comply with the time-limit set out in Article 1648 of the Civil Code extinguishes the action . In view of the severity of the sanction, the buyer's default must be carefully assessed.
1) Date of summons
Whether an action for warranty against latent defects is late in respect of the time-limit laid down in article 1648 of the Civil Code is determined by the date on which …

Non-compliance

Failure by the purchaser to comply with the time-limit set out in Article 1648 of the Civil Code extinguishes the action . In view of the severity of the sanction, the buyer's default must be carefully assessed.

Whether an action for warranty against latent defects is late in respect of the time-limit laid down in article 1648 of the Civil Code is determined by the date on which the buyer serves a summons on the seller. In this respect, the fact that the buyer has only indicated the cause of action at the pleadings stage is immaterial .

Article 480 of the Code of Civil Procedure stipulates that a judgment which rules on a plea of inadmissibility is, as soon as it is delivered, res judicata with regard to the dispute which it decides. This provision necessarily applies to a plea of non-receivability based on failure to comply with the time-limit set out in Article 1648 of the Civil Code. Accordingly, the court may not overturn a judgment declaring an action for warranty against latent defects to be admissible if, in the absence of an appeal, the judgment has become final .

The argument that the time-limit for taking action in warranty latent against defects has elapsed is not a matter of public policy: it cannot be raised ex officio by the court , nor can it be raised for the first time before the Court of Cassation .

In accordance with the rules of evidence in civil matters, the burden of proof lies with the party claiming non-compliance with the period specified in Article 1648 of the Civil Code, rather than the purchaser being obliged to establish the date on which he became aware of the defect .

Cass. 1re civ., 28 May 2004, LawLex201400000724JBJ, declaring the buyer's action for warranty against latent defects precluded for failure to act within the time-limit of two years from discovery of the defect. Cf. Cass. mixte, 21 July 2023, LawLex202300010599JBJ, qualifying the two-year time-limit provided for in Article 1648, paragraph 1, of the Civil Code not as a forfeiture due to failure to act within the time -limit, but as a limitation period, subject to suspension in application of Article 2239 of the Civil Code.

Cass. 1re civ, 9 December 2004, LawLex200500003850JBJ.

Cass. com, 4 March 2003, LawLex200300003421JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ, 12 December 2000, LawLex200400003633JBJ, overruled on this point by CA Lyon, 11 September 1998, LawLex200500005512JBJ; 6 November 2002, LawLex200400003616JBJ; 28 October 2010, LawLex201200001429JBJ

Cass. 1re civ, 5 December 1995, LawLex200500003843JBJ.

Cass. 3e civ, 9 February 2011, LawLex201200001508JBJ; 20 January 2015, LawLex201600000232JBJ.

Business Contracts

232. Non-compliance

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

232. Non-compliance

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

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