Notification and prosecution of a person living abroad
Notification and prosecution of a person living abroad
As you know by now, when a debtor owes you a sum of money, you can put them in debt collection proceedings after giving them formal notice. To do this, you need to fill in a document called a "debt collection requisition", in which you need to give all the personal details of the debtor, the creditor (i.e. yourself), the reason for the debt and the amount claimed. This requisition must be sent to the debt collection office responsible for the debtor's place of residence. In Geneva, there is only one debt collection office for the entire canton. In the canton of Vaud, on the other hand, there are ten debt collection offices corresponding to the various debt collection districts. The debt collection jurisdiction is determined by the debtor's place of residence or, in the case of a company, its registered office in Switzerland. This means that if the debtor's domicile is not in Switzerland, it will not be possible to take legal action in Switzerland. In your case, you will have to take legal action in France. The only exceptions provided for by the law concern cases where a foreign debtor has a permanent establishment in Switzerland, such as a subsidiary, a branch or a trust, or where the foreign debtor has assets in Switzerland that can be sued at the place where the assets are located. In the latter case, the procedure will be more complex, as it will often involve a special enforcement procedure to realise a pledge or sequestration, which is best carried out by a lawyer or agent professionally experienced in this type of legal action.
