Void service and limitation: the cure operates from the original document

The Sezioni Unite (Joint Divisions of the Italian Court of Cassation) settled a decade-long conflict on the interruption of limitation where service of the originating document is void. The principle stated is that the interrupting effect arises from the invalid service itself, provided that service is subsequently renewed: the cure of the defect therefore operates ex tunc, and not only from the moment service is correctly repeated.

The rule has a limit, however. Retroactive effect does not operate where the nullity is due to the fault of the party effecting service, a matter which the opposing party must plead and prove. The outcome balances the protection of a claimant who has in any event shown the intention to assert the right against the protection of a debtor faced with careless service: for the creditor, the difference between a live and a time-barred claim may turn precisely on how the first service was handled.

Summary note by the CommercialistiAvvocati network, based on specialised legal and practice sources. The text does not reproduce original contributions and does not constitute professional advice.