Legal Definitions - extinctive prescription

Extinctive prescription is a legal principle where a right, claim, or legal action is lost or extinguished if it is not exercised or pursued within a specific period of time set by law. Essentially, if someone fails to enforce their legal right or obligation within the prescribed timeframe, they lose the ability to do so. This concept promotes legal certainty and prevents old, stale claims from being brought forward indefinitely.

Here are some examples to illustrate:

• Example 1: Debt Collection

  Imagine a situation where a small business owner lent money to a friend, and the friend promised to repay it. The local law states that a claim for repayment of a personal loan must be filed within five years from the date the payment was due. If the business owner waits six years to try and sue their friend for the money, their legal right to collect that debt through the courts would be lost due to extinctive prescription. The passage of time, without the right being enforced, extinguishes the ability to pursue the claim legally.

• Example 2: Property Dispute

  Consider two neighboring landowners. One landowner believes a small strip of land along their shared boundary rightfully belongs to them, based on an old deed description. However, the other neighbor has openly and continuously used that strip as part of their garden for the past twenty years. If the law in that jurisdiction specifies that any claim to recover land must be brought within fifteen years of adverse possession, the first landowner's right to reclaim that strip of land would be extinguished by prescription. Their failure to assert their claim within the statutory period means they can no longer legally challenge the neighbor's use.

• Example 3: Contractual Breach

  A company hires a software developer to create a custom application. The contract includes a clause stating that any claims for defects in the software must be reported and acted upon within two years of the application's delivery. If the company discovers a significant defect three years after delivery but has taken no action, their legal right to sue the developer for that specific defect might be extinguished by prescription. The agreed-upon timeframe for enforcing that contractual right has passed, making the claim unenforceable.