Coercive enforcement of civil judgments
Judgments and decisions of the courts, arbitral awards, and other rulings issued by state authorities constitute fundamental legal instruments in defining the rights and obligations between disputing parties. However, the practical effect of such instruments is only realized when the obligated party duly fulfills their obligations. Therefore, to ensure the parties’ strict compliance, the judgment enforcement agency may exercise state power to implement coercive enforcement measures against a judgment debtor who possesses the means for execution but fails to comply voluntarily within the statutory period. This article, prepared by TNTP, outlines the general legal framework governing the coercive enforcement of civil judgments.
1. Legal definition and scope of coercive civil judgment enforcement
Pursuant to current legal provisions, coercive enforcement of civil judgments refers to the exercise of state authority by judgment enforcement agencies and enforcement officers through the application of compulsory measures against judgment debtors and related parties. The objective of such enforcement is to secure compliance with the rights and obligations as established in effective judgments, decisions, and arbitral awards rendered by courts, arbitration tribunals, or other competent authorities.
Article 45 of the Law on Enforcement of Civil Judgment 2008, amended and supplemented in 2014 (“Law on Enforcement of Judgment”), stipulates that from the date the judgment debtor receives or is duly notified of the judgment enforcement decision, the judgment debtor must voluntarily execute judgment within 10 days. After this period, the enforcement agency will enforce the judgment if the judgment debtor has conditions for judgment execution.
2. Notification Procedures and Prohibited Periods for Enforcement Actions
Coercive enforcement must strictly adhere to procedural rules and principles established by law, including obligations to notify relevant parties and observe statutory periods during which enforcement actions are prohibited.
• Notification of judgment enforcement: According to the provisions of Article 39 of the Law on Enforcement of Judgment, the coercive judgment enforcement decision must be served by the enforcement officer upon the relevant parties, person with related rights and obligations within 03 working days from the date of the decision, except in exceptional cases where the involved parties commit acts to evade their obligations as specified in Clause 2 of this Article. This notification aims to ensure that they are aware of the coercive enforcement and exercise their rights and obligations in accordance with the decision.
• Prohibited periods for coercive enforcement of judgments: In order to ensure social order, respect citizens’ rest time and cultural and traditional values, the law stipulates the following time periods during which civil judgment enforcement agencies must not conduct coercive enforcement activities:
– The time from 10:00 PM to 06:00 AM the following day;
– Official weekends and public holidays as prescribed by law.
In addition, specifically for judgment enforcement with the mobilization of forces, the coercive judgment enforcement agency does not organize enforcement during the following periods:
– The 15-day period before and after the Lunar New Year;
– Traditional holidays of policy beneficiaries to which the judgment debtor belongs;
– Other cases where coercive judgment enforcement seriously affects security, politics, social order and safety, and local customs and traditions.
3. Special Circumstances in the Coercive Enforcement of Civil Judgments
3.1. Enforcement of Assets under Co-ownership
When conducting coercive enforcement of judgment on assets under common ownership (such as assets arising during the marriage of husband and wife), the first step is to identify the proportion of ownership attributable to the judgment debtor.
Before enforcement, the enforcement officer shall notify both the judgment debtor and the co-owners of the joint assets. This notification is intended to provide the parties with an opportunity to voluntarily reach an agreement on the division of the property or to petition the court for a formal adjudication of ownership shares.
After 30 days from the date of receiving the notice, if the parties do not agree, negotiate but fail to reach an agreement, or reach an agreement that violates Article 6 of the Law on Enforcement of Judgment, and at the same time, do not request the Court to resolve the division, the enforcement officer will notify the judgment creditor.
From the date of receiving the notice, the judgment creditor has 15 days to request the Court to identify the ownership proportions of the judgment debtor in the joint assets. If the judgment creditor also does not request the Court to resolve the division, in order to continue with the judgment enforcement, the enforcement officer will request the Court to resolve the division.
After identifying the ownership proportions of the judgment debtor, the enforcement officer will proceed with enforcement based on whether the joint assets are divisible or indivisible. For dividable common assets, the enforcement officer shall apply coercive measures regarding the asset proportion owned by the judgment debtor. For undividable common assets or in case the division will considerably reduce the asset value, the enforcement officer may apply coercive measures regarding the whole asset and pay to other co-owners the value of asset proportions under their ownership.
3.2. Judgment enforcement assets are the subject of a dispute
During the enforcement process, a situation may arise where a third party disputes the judgment enforcement assets (For example: Dispute over ownership or the right to use judgment enforcement assets). In this case, according to Clause 1, Article 75 of the Law on Enforcement of Judgment, the enforcement officer is responsible for notifying the involved parties (including the judgment debtor and the judgment creditor) and the disputing party of their right to file a lawsuit with the Court or request another competent authority to resolve the dispute.
Within 30 days from the date of receipt of the notice, if the parties initiate legal proceedings or request a competent authority to resolve the dispute, the enforcement of the relevant asset shall be carried out by the enforcement officer in accordance with the resulting decision. Conversely, if the parties fail to initiate such proceedings or submit a request within the aforesaid period, the enforcement officer shall proceed with the enforcement of the asset in accordance with applicable law.
The above is the article “Coercive enforcement of civil judgments” that TNTP sends to readers. We hope this article will be useful to readers interested in this issue.
Best regards,