Refund of a Deposit upon Revocation of a Consumer Contract

Facts

The respondent ([A.] ) attended two information events organised by the appellant ([X.] Corp.) and concluded a contract on 30 August 2007 for further training materials and seminar days at a price of CHF 6,800.--. She made a deposit of CHF 4,000.--. On 31 August 2007, she revoked the contract. With a claim filed on 13 November 2009, she requested a refund of the deposit. The District Court of Sursee upheld the claim, and the High Court of the Canton of Lucerne dismissed the appellant's nullity appeal.

Considerations

The Federal Court decided that the one-year limitation period under Art. 67 CO applies to the refund claim after revocation of the contract, and not the ten-year limitation period under Art. 127 CO. The revocation under Art. 40a et seq. CO is comparable to a contract challenge due to defects of will or a contract nullity due to violation of formal requirements, so the unwinding must be carried out according to the rules of unjust…