Unpaid invoices lose value with time: the debtor’s assets move, security expires and limitation periods run. We act for creditors — Czech and foreign — from the first demand through to enforcement, and we say at the outset whether a claim is worth pursuing.
Before litigation
- An assessment first. We check the debtor in the Commercial Register, the insolvency register and the register of enforcement proceedings, and tell you what recovery realistically looks like before you spend on it.
- Pre-action demand on the firm’s letterhead, which in Czech practice is also what entitles a successful creditor to costs.
- Negotiated outcomes: settlement agreements, payment schedules, acknowledgements of debt — an acknowledgement restarts the limitation period and is often worth more than a judgment obtained years later.
- Security: promissory notes, pledges, guarantees and retention of title, both when taking security and when calling on it.
Court and arbitration
- Claims before Czech courts, including the electronic payment order for straightforward money claims
- Arbitration where the contract provides for it
- Enforcement (exekuce) once you hold a title, and the choice between the enforcement route and a judicial sale
- Filing and pursuing claims in insolvency, including challenges to their treatment
- Actions to set aside transfers by which a debtor put assets out of reach
Cross-border recovery
- Debtors in Germany and Slovakia handled by us directly — our partner is admitted in all three jurisdictions, so the file does not pass to correspondence counsel and you are not paying two firms to learn the same facts.
- Which court, which law. Jurisdiction and applicable law under Brussels Ia (Regulation 1215/2012) and the Rome I rules, settled at the start rather than after a claim is filed in the wrong place.
- Enforcing a foreign judgment in the Czech Republic and a Czech judgment abroad, including the European Enforcement Order and the European Account Preservation Order.
Ongoing receivables management
- Monitoring whether debtors perform as agreed, and escalation at the point it stops being worth waiting
- Reviewing your terms of business so that the next claim is easier to enforce than the last one
- Portfolio work for creditors with recurring receivables
Frequently asked questions
How long do I have to sue?
The general limitation period under the Czech Civil Code is three years, but it starts at different moments depending on the claim, and it can be extended by agreement or interrupted by an acknowledgement of debt. If the invoice is old, that is the first thing to check.
My debtor has gone into insolvency. Is the claim lost?
Not necessarily, but the deadline to file is short and it is strict. A claim filed late is not considered at all, regardless of how well documented it is.
Can you recover a debt from a Czech company for a foreign creditor?
Yes, and it is a large part of this practice. We need the contract or invoices, proof of delivery or performance, and any correspondence in which the debt was discussed.
Who pays the costs?
In Czech civil proceedings the unsuccessful party is generally ordered to pay the costs of the successful one, at statutory rates. That order is only as good as the debtor’s assets, which is why we assess recoverability before filing.
Why bring this to MACH LEGAL
- We work with you in English. You deal with the lawyer handling your file, not with a translator in between. We also work in German, Czech, Hebrew and Portuguese.
- Czech law, explained in the terms you know. Most of our English-speaking clients come from another legal system. We say where Czech law differs from what you would expect, not only what it says.
- Cross-border matters stay in one place. Our partner Dr. Tomas Mach is an attorney-at-law registered with the Czech Bar Association (13282), the Slovak Bar Association (7581) and the Rechtsanwaltskammer Köln (61058), and a court-appointed expert in the law of the Federal Republic of Germany and the law of the Slovak Republic.
- A written scope and a written fee. We agree what we will do and on what basis we charge before we start. See Legal services and fees.
How we work
- First contact. Send us the documents and a short description of the situation. We tell you whether the matter needs a lawyer at all.
- Assessment. You get our reading of the position, the options and the likely cost of each.
- Instruction. A power of attorney and a written scope of work.
- The work itself. Drafting, negotiating or representing you, with a report at each step that needs your decision.
Contact: Contact page · praha@machlegal.eu · +420 245 008 552