If you are going to defend your interests in the courtroom, then you should make sure that the limitation period for filing a claim has expired. Otherwise, the other party to the legal relationship has the right to inform the court of the deadline, and then your claim will be rejected.
For years
The limitation period for violations of the criminal law is the length of time for which a citizen who has committed a criminal offense must be held criminally liable. A citizen can be held accountable for a crime of the law, provided that investigative actions were initiated before the end of the statute of limitations under criminal law.
The timeline for initiating proceedings starts from the date of the commission of criminal acts. There are exceptions. If the crime was started, but not completed (disclosing it at the stage of drafting the plan), then the limitation period originates from the time of the commission of the illegal act, which caused the subsequent criminal act, which poses a danger to civil society.
In case of violation of the rule of law, consisting of a number of systematically repeated illegal acts, the period of inability to present claims begins with the commission of the last criminal act in the chain.
In addition to the discovery of the concept of the statute of limitations, the law defines the time of its closure. This is the last day of the period established by criminal law in our country. Or the day from which the decision of the judicial authorities in this criminal case comes into force.
The total limitation period under the laws of our country is three years. The period is intended for victims to be able to file a lawsuit with the court for the restoration of their rights and bringing the perpetrators to justice in accordance with the law.
For some types of claims and punishments, the period may be reduced or increased, that is, a special limitation period is provided.
Do not attract fraud
According to criminal law, in our country a criminal is exempted from criminal prosecution if certain periods have passed since the commission of the criminal offense:
- two years from the end of the minor gravity of the crime;
- six years from the date of the criminal act of medium gravity;
- ten years after the end of a serious crime;
- fifteen years from the date of completion of a particularly grave illegal act.
There are no statutes of limitations for certain requirements in the law. Their list is given in civil law. Fraud does not appear on this list. For criminal acts consistent with article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation on fraud, these restrictions do not apply.
Fraud and statute of limitations
In Russia, this period defaults to three years (the upper limit is ten years) from the moment the criminal act was committed. This statute of limitations is general.
Calculation of the limitation period
For fraud, to calculate the period when the victim has the right to contact the executive authorities to protect his interests, you should first indicate the reference point of the statute of limitations. Civil law establishes several calculation options:
- The start date is calculated from the time when information was received about the violation of your rights and the perpetrator of this criminal act. For example, a citizen, collecting money from you and your friends, disappeared.The starting point is calculated from the moment when you tried to contact him, but could not do it, since he cut off all the possibilities for contacting him. You realized that by rubbing trust in you, you were deceived.
- If the fulfillment of obligations was assigned to a specific date, then the countdown of the limitation period shall be considered from the next day and may be no more than ten years from the date of occurrence of obligations. For example, when selling a car, you agreed that part of the money will be paid in a month. The rights to own the car have been transferred, the documents are legally executed. When the deadline for the transfer of money has come, the buyer did not transfer the money to you and did not contact you. This is a fraud. The countdown starts from the day the customer claims are submitted, unless a specific payment deadline has been established. You make demands and set a deadline after which, if you have not paid, you can file a lawsuit in court.
To understand what the statute of limitations for fraud is required:
- Find the article you need in the criminal law. If the article has sub-articles, then decide on its part.
- Determine how long the person guilty of a criminal act will be deprived of their liberty for this type of illegal act.
- Assess the severity of a criminal act committed by a citizen, in accordance with article 15 of the Code.
- Determine the terms of inquiry, according to the severity of the committed act. It is required to rely on the rules in accordance with Article 78 of Part 1 of the Code of the Russian Federation.
Current legislation on the territory of our country provides for situations where a statute of limitations is not provided. These include:
- crime of law related to the presence of intentional development, with special adjustment of the implementation or assistance in committing illegal activities of a terrorist nature in any territory;
- genocide, criminal acts using weapons of any kind;
- development or initiation of aggressive acts and the use of illegal methods;
- seizure of the legitimate authority of the state;
- attacks on any institutions protected by international jurisdiction;
- attempted attack on a municipal and public person.
Small fraud
For petty fraud, citizens are not deprived of their liberty for more than two years. These acts amount to minor offenses. The statute of limitations for these types of fraud is determined by two years from the date of the crime.
Large-scale fraud
Serious crimes classify fraudulent activity on an especially large scale. These are cases related to the appropriation of property worth more than a million rubles. For fraud on a particularly large scale, the statute of limitations is ten years from the date of commission.
Group fraud
The punishment for financial fraud involving several individuals, provided for in the fourth part of Article 159, does not exceed ten years in prison. This is considered a serious criminal act. The statute of limitations for fraudulent acts committed by a group of persons is ten years after the activity of a criminal nature.
Physical damage
If a person has been harmed by life or physical health through fraud, Art. 159 of the Criminal Code does not determine the statute of limitations. The fact is determined by the norm of civil legislation of our country.
Credit offenses
Depending on the total amount and the person or group of persons who committed fraud, the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation will help determine the statute of limitations. If a con man has committed the crime alone, then he can be given the most severe punishment. The maximum term of imprisonment may be two years. The severity of the perfect act is small. Two years is the statute of limitations for fraud.
If the action is completely a group of persons, then for the act they will be deprived of their liberty for a maximum of four years.This is a moderate crime. The limitation period is not taken more than six years. Such acts, but on a large scale, can make those responsible not free for five years. This crime is classified as moderate in severity with a period of six years.
For a particularly large amount of fraudulent conduct, the criminal punishment is up to a maximum of ten years of lack of freedom. This act is considered serious under the criminal law. The statute of limitations is ten years from the time it was committed, as indicated in article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation on fraud.
Period of limitation and its extension
The criminal law does not provide for the extension of the statute of limitations. However, civil law allows for the suspension, interruption and even restoration of the statute of limitations and prescribes the procedure and rules for its calculation. The Code of the Russian Federation identifies cases in which you can suspend the statute of limitations:
- the presence of documented evidence that the application was hindered by insurmountable circumstances;
- service in the armed forces of our country, who are in martial law;
- compliance with a normative legal act;
- moratorium.
These circumstances may begin within the last six months of the initial limitation period for the protection of rights. If this reason disappears, the remaining period is extended for another six months.
If both parties make all possible attempts to resolve the matter in pre-trial procedure, the statute of limitations under the article “Fraud” shall be suspended for six months, unless the decision of this case has a specific deadline for its completion. The decision of the case before the court is resolved by contacting the mediator and other procedures.
In the case of a lawsuit, the statute of limitations for fraud is suspended until a court decision is made. If the claim is not accepted by the court, the period will be continued again from the time of suspension. If, upon completion of the court case, the statute of limitations is less than six calendar months, then it immediately becomes equal to six months.
If you need to restore the expired statute of limitations, you need to know the following. The justification for missing the term for protecting your rights in court should arise no later than six months before the end of the entire limitation period. If this condition is met, then it is necessary for the court to prove that you really did not have a real opportunity to apply for the protection of your legitimate interests.