Joinder and separation of civil cases in accordance with the provisions of Vietnamese law

In the process of accepting and settling civil disputes, the joinder or separation of cases is a procedural measure that helps ensure efficiency and protect the legitimate rights and interests of the parties. Accurately determining the issues related to the joinder or separation of civil cases is extremely important. The following article provides a detailed analysis of the legal provisions on the joinder and separation of civil cases under the 2015 Civil Procedure Code (“CPC”).

1.Concept of joinder and separation of civil cases

Civil cases are disputes over rights and obligations between involved parties arising from civil legal relations, marriage and family, business, commercial and labor relations, which are examined and accepted by the Court for settlement through civil procedures.

Joinder of civil cases is the act of the Court combining two or more cases that were separately accepted into a single case for resolution according to the procedures and regulations prescribed by law.

Separation of civil cases is the act of the Court resolving different requests within one case into two or more independent cases according to the procedures and regulations prescribed by law.

2.Conditions for joinder of civil cases

Clause 1, Article 42 of the CPC stipulates that the Court may join two or more cases that it has accepted separately into a single case for resolution if such joinder and the resolution of the joined case comply with the law. Accordingly, the specific conditions for the joinder of civil cases are as follows:

• Joinder may only take place after two or more independent cases have been accepted by the Court.
• Conditions on the parties: The parties in the joined case must fall into one of the following situations: (i) an individual, agency or organization sues one or more other individuals, agencies or organizations; or (ii) many individuals, agencies, or organizations sue another individual, agency or organization.
• Conditions regarding legal relations: The disputed legal relations in the cases being joined must be of the same type of legal relations, or may involve multiple legal relations that are related to each other. Legal relations are considered related when the resolution of one legal relation requires the simultaneous resolution of another, or when the relations involve the same parties and fall within the same type of dispute as specified in one of Articles 26, 28, 30, or 32 of the CPC.

3.Conditions for separation of civil cases

Clause 2, Article 42 of the CPC stipulates that the Court shall separate a case that contains different requests into two or more cases if such separation and the resolution of the separated cases ensure compliance with the law. Accordingly, the specific conditions for the separation of civil cases are as follows:

• Separation of a civil case is only carried out when the case contains multiple different requests from the parties. The decision to separate a civil case may be made after the Court has accepted the case or at the trial.
• The separation of a civil case must be based on the scope of initiation of lawsuits stipulated in Article 188 of the CPC. Accordingly, separation is conducted when the requests within a single case exceed the permissible scope of the lawsuit or no longer satisfy the requirement of involving multiple related legal relations.
• In addition, because the request to be separated into an independent case may constitute a counterclaim or an independent claim, the Court shall only separate the case if such requests do not meet the statutory conditions to qualify as a counterclaim or an independent claim. If, after the Court has accepted a counterclaim or an independent claim, it subsequently determines during the resolution process that the legal conditions for such counterclaim or independent claim are not met, the Court must separate these requests into independent cases for resolution. Therefore, the separation of cases must also take into account the conditions for accepting a counterclaim as prescribed in Article 200 of the CPC and the conditions for accepting an independent claim as prescribed in Article 201 of the CPC.

4.Competence to decide on the joinder and separation of civil cases

Clause 3, Article 42 of the CPC does not specify the authority responsible for deciding on the joinder or separation of civil cases; it only provides that the Court has the authority to join or separate civil cases for resolution.

However, pursuant to Clause 1, Article 47 of the CPC, the Chief Justice is empowered to make decisions and conduct civil procedural activities in accordance with the provisions of civil procedure law. The joinder or separation of civil cases is one of the procedural activities governed by the CPC. In addition, the Chief Justice is responsible for assigning Judges to accept and resolve civil cases and matters. Therefore, the Chief Justice is the appropriate authority to decide on the joinder or separation of civil cases that have been independently accepted for resolution by the Court.

Above is the article “Joinder and separation of civil cases in accordance with the provisions of Vietnamese law” that TNTP sends to readers. We hope that this article will be useful for readers interested in this topic.

Respectfully,