Dismissal of the claim in civil litigation: Theory and practice

The initiation of civil litigation requires a party's intention to seek judicial protection of infringed or threatened subjective rights. This intention is expressed by filing a statement of claim before the competent court. A statement of claim constitutes a procedural act that triggers the commencement of litigation. In the absence of a properly submitted claim, no proceedings can be conducted. The required content of a claim is regulated by several provisions of the Civil Procedure Act. Filing a claim entails certain procedural consequences, obligating the court, during the preliminary review stage, to examine whether procedural prerequisites for conducting the proceedings are met. Should such impediments exist, the court is obliged to instruct the parties to rectify the deficiencies within a prescribed time limit; failing that, the court shall dismiss the claim. This paper examines both the normative framework governing the dismissal of claims and the common misconceptions in legal practice where certain situations are erroneously equated with or confused for the institution of claim dismissal. Selected examples from judicial practice are also analysed.