Limitation Period in Lithuania

Concept of the Limitation Period

The limitation period is a time frame established by law within which a person may defend their violated rights by bringing a claim before the court. The purpose of the limitation period is to provide a real opportunity to protect infringed rights, ensure the stability of civil relations, prevent endless litigation, encourage individuals to defend their rights promptly, and simplify the evidentiary process. The institution of the limitation period promotes the activity of legal subjects in fulfilling their mutual rights and obligations, contractual discipline, and reciprocal control over the performance of duties.

It is prohibited to waive the application of the limitation period in advance by agreement of the parties. Such agreements are void and invalid from the moment of their conclusion.

The general limitation period is ten years. For certain types of claims, the law provides for shorter limitation periods. A shortened one-month limitation period applies to claims arising from the results of a competition. A shortened three-month limitation period applies to claims for declaring decisions of the bodies of a legal entity invalid.

A shortened six-month limitation period applies to:

1. Claims for the recovery of penalties (fines, late payment interest);
2. Claims concerning defects of sold goods.

A shortened six-month limitation period applies to claims arising from the relations of communication enterprises with their clients, if the consignments were sent within the Lithuania, or a one-year limitation period if consignments were sent abroad.

A shortened one-year limitation period applies to claims arising from insurance legal relations.
A shortened three-year limitation period applies to claims for compensation of damage, including claims for damage caused by defective products.
A shortened five-year limitation period applies to claims for the recovery of interest and other periodic payments.
Claims arising from the carriage of goods, passengers, and baggage are subject to the limitation periods established in the codes (laws) of individual modes of transport.

The limitation period begins on the day the right to bring a claim arises, and this right arises on the day a person became aware or should have become aware of the violation of their right. The limitation period becomes legally relevant only if a right has been violated. If a person is mistakenly convinced that their right has been violated, such a situation is considered a factual error regarding the violation of rights, which has no legal effect on the commencement of the limitation period. To correctly assess the start of the limitation period, it is first necessary to determine the moment of the violation of the right (the objective moment), which is the starting point for establishing the beginning of the limitation period according to subjective criteria.

If an obligation has a fixed term, the limitation period for claims arising from such an obligation begins upon the expiration of that term. If the obligation has no fixed term, the limitation period begins from the moment the demand to fulfill the obligation is made. For claims arising from recourse obligations, the limitation period begins from the performance of the principal obligation. If the violation is continuous, i.e., it occurs every day (a person fails to perform actions they are obliged to perform, performs actions they are not entitled to perform, or does not cease another violation), the limitation period for claims regarding such actions or omissions begins each day separately.

The court accepts a claim for the protection of a violated right regardless of whether the limitation period has expired. This is because determining whether the limitation period has been missed is generally possible only after establishing its beginning and verifying whether it was suspended or interrupted, which requires examining all case circumstances. Moreover, the court may restore a missed limitation period, and the limitation period may be applied only at the request of a party to the dispute. It is prohibited to waive the application of the limitation period in advance.

The limitation period is suspended:

1. If the filing of a claim was prevented by an extraordinary event that could not have been avoided under the circumstances (force majeure);
2. If the Government of Lithuania has established a postponement of the performance of obligations (moratorium);
3. If the claimant or the defendant serves in a unit of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Lithuania where martial law has been declared;
4. If a guardian or custodian has not been appointed for an incapacitated or partially incapacitated person;
5. If the parties to the obligation are spouses;
6. If the parties to the obligation are a guardian and a ward, or a custodian and a dependent;
7. If the parties to the obligation are parents and their minor children;
8. If the effect of a law or other legal act regulating the disputed relations is suspended.

The limitation period is suspended only if the specified circumstances arose within the last six months of the limitation period, and if the limitation period is shorter than six months – for the entire duration of the limitation period. From the day the circumstance that justified the suspension ceases to exist, the limitation period continues. In such a case, the remaining period is extended to six months, or if the limitation period was shorter than six months – to the full duration.

The limitation period is interrupted by the filing of a claim in accordance with the law. It is also interrupted by actions of the debtor indicating recognition of the obligation.

If the limitation period has expired before the filing of a claim, this constitutes grounds for dismissal of the claim. If the court finds that the limitation period was missed for a valid reason, the violated right must be protected and the missed limitation period restored.

The limitation period does not apply to:

1. Claims arising from violations of personal non-property rights, except in cases provided by law;
2. Claims of depositors to recover deposits placed in a bank or other credit institutions;
3. Other cases provided by law and other claims.