Setting aside a final default judgment

Under Article 240(1) of the Bulgarian Code of Civil Procedure, a party against whom a default judgment has been given may apply to the appellate court to have it set aside within one month of service of the judgment. The provision lists three exhaustive grounds for this extraordinary remedy against a final default judgment. The article discusses them as procedural defects in the first-instance proceedings that deprived the party of the opportunity to participate: 1. The copy of the statement of claim or the summons to the hearing was not duly served. 2. Exceptional, unforeseen circumstances prevented the party from learning in time that the copy of the statement of claim or the summons to the hearing had been served. 3. Exceptional, unforeseen circumstances which the party could not overcome prevented it from appearing in person or through a representative.

In proceedings under Article 240(1), the appellate court does not determine the merits of the dispute. Its power is confined to deciding, on the grounds raised by the party, whether one of the circumstances set out in that provision occurred and deprived the party of the opportunity to participate. The procedural issue before it concerns the conduct of the first-instance proceedings.

This article is neither a legal opinion of attorney Elitsa Markova, attorney Mihail Tomov or a lawyer at Markova, Tomov and Partners, nor advice concerning a particular situation or person. For assistance with a similar case, consult a lawyer who practises civil law.