Legal Claims: Essential Requirements and Procedural Defenses

Legal Claim Filing Requirements

According to Article 340, a legal claim must state:

1. Court Jurisdiction: The statement of the court before which the application is proposed.
2. Parties' Identification: The full name, surname, and address of both the applicant (plaintiff) and the defendant, along with their legal capacity or role.
3. Legal Entity Details: If the plaintiff or defendant is a legal person, the application must contain its name or business name and data relating to its creation or registration.
4. Purpose and Object of the Claim: The purpose of the claim, which must be accurately determined. This includes indicating the location and boundaries for immovable property; marks, colors, or indicia for self-propelled vehicles; signs, signals, and features to determine identity for other movable property; and necessary data, titles, and explanations for incorporeal rights or objects.
5. Factual and Legal Grounds: The relationship of the facts and legal grounds on which the claim is based, with appropriate conclusions.
6. Supporting Documents: The instruments upon which the claim is based, meaning those from which the right immediately derives, which must be submitted with the suit.
7. Damages Claim Specification: If compensation for damages is sought, a detailed specification of these damages and their causes.
8. Representative's Authority: The full name of the president (or authorized representative) and the appropriation of their power (proof of legal authority).
9. Applicant's Address for Notifications: The location or address of the applicant for notifications, as referred to in Article 174.

Grounds for Challenging a Legal Claim

A legal claim may be challenged on the following grounds:

1. Lack of Jurisdiction or Competence: The court's lack of jurisdiction, its incompetence, the existence of lis pendens (a pending lawsuit on the same matter), or that the case should be consolidated with another process due to incidental nature, connection, or continence.
2. Lack of Legal Standing (Plaintiff): The illegitimacy of the plaintiff (actor) due to lacking the necessary legal capacity to stand trial.
3. Illegitimate Representation (Plaintiff's Proxy): The illegality of the person presenting themselves as a proxy or representative for the plaintiff, either lacking the capacity to exercise power in trial, not possessing the attributed representation, or because the power of attorney is not legally granted or is insufficient.
4. Illegitimate Representation (Defendant's Proxy): The illegality of the person cited as the defendant's representative, or not having the character attributed to them. This illegitimacy can be raised by both the named representative and the defendant themselves, or their proxy.
5. Absence of Required Security: The lack of bail or bond required prior to the trial.
6. Formal Defects in the Application: Default in the form of the application due to failure to meet the requirements stated in Article 340, or for having made an accumulation of claims prohibited in Section 78.
7. Pending Condition or Term: The existence of a condition or term that is still pending.
8. Prejudicial Question: The existence of a question that needs to be resolved in a different process.
9. Res Judicata (Matter Already Judged): The existence of res judicata, preventing re-litigation of the same issue.
10. Statute of Limitations: The expiration of the action as set out in the relevant Act.
11. Action Prohibited by Law: The action proposed is prohibited by law, or can only be admitted for specific reasons that are not those alleged in the application.