Facts
The case concerns an action for liability brought against a former management board for asset management. The management board had been appointed in 1949 and submitted its final report and accounting in 1952. The Vormundschaftsbehörde approved the accounting, but refused to take any responsibility for the loss of assets. The plaintiff brought an action for liability against the former management board in 1956, but the defendant invoked the statute of limitations.
The key facts are as follows
- The management board submitted its final report and accounting in 1952.
- The Vormundschaftsbehörde approved the accounting, but refused to take any responsibility for the loss of assets.
- The plaintiff brought an action for liability against the former management board in 1956.
- The defendant invoked the statute of limitations.
Considerations
The decision of the federal court is based on the interpretation of Article 454 of the Swiss Civil Code, which provides that the statute of limitations for an action for liability against a management board begins to run from the submission of the final account. The court considered that the submission of the final account must be made in a formal manner, with notice of the rules concerning the action for liability and communication of the decision that approves the final account or refuses to accept it.
The court also considered that the statute of limitations only begins to run from the moment when the final account has been submitted in a formal manner, and not from the moment when the management board submitted its final report and accounting. In this case, the final account had not been submitted in a formal manner, and the statute of limitations had…