Debt recovery

Most creditors ask, ‘How do I recover an invoice?’ A better question is: what can I prove, what can the debtor pay from, and which procedure will get me paid at the lowest cost? The answers to these three questions determine the outcome more than the filing itself, and can be found before costs arise.

What we check before filing anything

• Legal basis: exactly what was agreed and performed, and who is the creditor and debtor. After assignment, also whether you can prove that the claim belongs to you.
• Evidential chain: contract → order → delivery or handover → invoice → due date → demands → payments. The most frequently missing link is evidence of delivery.
• Claim amount: principal, default interest, contractual penalty, fixed compensation for recovery costs and litigation costs, without duplicates.
• Limitation: applicable rules, when the period began and whether anything interrupted it. Slovakia has a general four-year period for commercial relationships; Czechia generally applies three years. If the right is already time-barred, another reminder alone generally does not restore court recoverability.
• Recoverability: searches concerning the debtor and statutory officers in registers, accounts and enforcement or insolvency records. Most creditors skip this part and then pay for a title that produces nothing.

Recovery routes and when each makes sense

Out-of-court recovery. If you want to preserve the business relationship or avoid court for now, out-of-court recovery takes over debtor communication: regular reminders, instalment negotiations and a debt acknowledgement with safeguards, while a lawyer monitors deadlines.

Letter before action. The most affordable and quickest form of pressure. A demand on a lawyer’s letterhead shows the debtor that court proceedings are next and that inaction adds interest and costs. Some claims are paid at this stage. See letter before action demanding payment for details.

Electronic payment order procedure and payment order. For undisputed monetary claims supported by good evidence. The court decides without a hearing, the procedure is quicker and cheaper than an ordinary claim, and once final you have an enforceable title. See letter before action and court recovery in Slovakia or, for Czech debtors, letter before action and payment order in Czechia.

Claim for payment. When the debtor lodges opposition or the matter is disputed from the outset over defects, price or set-off. An evidence plan and realistic assessment of costs and prospects matter more than a form. You receive these before filing.

Enforcement. A final payment order or judgment is an enforceable title. We prepare an enforcement application with a breakdown of principal and ancillary claims and monitor asset searches. See recovery through enforcement for details.

Lodging an insolvency or bankruptcy claim. If the debtor becomes insolvent, individual recovery loses its purpose and timely filing is decisive. That is why we monitor the debtor throughout proceedings too.

Cross-border recovery. A debtor in another country is not a lost claim: the procedure changes, rather than recoverability. As lawyers registered with both Czech and Slovak Bars, we handle both countries ourselves. See cross-border debt recovery CZ ↔ SK, or go directly to debt recovery in Slovakia and debt recovery in the Czech Republic. For Polish debtors, we coordinate recovery in Poland with our regular Polish lawyer.

An honest view of recoverability

Recovery is not always worthwhile. Some claims involve proceedings costs greater than what can realistically be recovered: a debtor without assets, an empty shell or a company approaching removal from the register. We do not promise recovery because it is beyond our control; we promise to tell you before filing, rather than afterwards. If the assessment is unfavourable, we recommend taking the claim no further. That too is an outcome that saves you money.