Facts

On 9 March 1967, Alberto and Joaquin Chapaprieta Ornstein obtained a seizure against their brother José Maria Chapaprieta Ornstein for a debt of 2 million Swiss francs. The seizure was executed on 10 March 1967. The debtor requested that the seizure be declared void on 17 June 1967, as no proceedings had been initiated to validate the seizure and the debt for which the seizure had been made was not the subject of a lawsuit. The debt collection office rejected this request on 18 July 1967. The debtor then filed an appeal against this decision, which was granted by the cantonal court on 16 October 1967. The creditors filed an appeal against this decision with the Federal Court.

The key facts are as follows

  • The seizure was obtained for a debt of 2 million Swiss francs.
  • The debtor requested that the seizure be declared void because no proceedings had been initiated to validate the seizure.
  • The debt for which the seizure had been made was not the subject of a lawsuit.
  • The creditors filed an appeal against the decision of the cantonal court with the Federal Court.

Considerations

The Federal Court examined the arguments of the parties and considered that the debtor had the right to request that the seizure be declared void because no proceedings had been initiated to validate the seizure. The Federal Court also considered that the debt for which the seizure had been made was not the subject of a lawsuit and that the seizure was therefore void.

The Federal Court rejected the arguments of the creditors that the seizure could be validated by a lawsuit that aimed to provide securities. The Federal Court considered that the seizure could only be…