BELIZE Law and Practice Contributed by: Nigel Ebanks and Darinka Muñoz, Barrow and Williams LLP
mencing a suit. These demands will generally specify what is being demanded and a reason- able period for compliance, failing which a suit will be commenced. These steps are usually taken as a matter of courtesy. However, the coming into force of court-connected mediation rules (see 1.4 Legal Representation in Court ) has also proved such pre-action steps to be of further use: once a suit is commenced, the court will very often require the parties to attempt out-of-court negotiation by referring the case to mediation. These pre- action steps may therefore save parties the cost and effort of commencing a suit by serving as a means to engage the other side before doing so. A potential defendant may reply to such letters if they so choose. 3.2 Statutes of Limitations The usual limitation period for actions founded in tort or contract is six years, beginning from the date when the cause of action arises. There is also a 12-year limitation period that applies with respect to matters founded on trust principles, those concerning claims made on the estates of deceased persons and some claims based on adverse possession of real property. 3.3 Jurisdictional Requirements for a Defendant The jurisdiction of the Belize High Court is based upon a person’s physical presence within the jurisdiction of Belize. In contractual claims, a Belize court will generally recognise and honour the jurisdiction clause in the contract, including the parties’ choice of law and choice of dispute resolution mechanism and forum. A person may be lawfully served with a court process emanating from the Belize High Court
when that person is served at a place within the jurisdiction. Alternatively, a person may be law- fully served with a Belize court process outside of the jurisdiction with the permission of the Belize High Court. A defendant located outside of the jurisdiction may also choose to voluntar- ily accept service through an agent within the jurisdiction appointed for that purpose. A defendant served outside of the jurisdiction runs the risk of being deemed as having vol- untarily submitted to the Belize court’s jurisdic- tion, or having waived their right to challenge the court’s jurisdiction, if they actively take steps in the Belize proceedings without promptly indi- cating that they do not accept the court’s juris- diction and intend to challenge it. This includes, for instance, where a defendant commences a counterclaim and takes steps to prosecute it in the Belize court. Although a Belize court may legally have jurisdiction over a foreign resident under certain conditions, the court may still nonetheless decline to exercise that jurisdiction. This applies, for instance, where a defendant validly raises a plea of forum non conveniens. 3.4 Initial Complaint High Court claims are commenced by filing and serving a claim form setting out the particulars of the parties to the claim, the brief nature of the claim, and the relief sought. It is generally accompanied by a statement of claim, which supports the claim form by stating the claim in greater detail, including all information techni- cally required by law. Certain claims must be initiated by way of a fixed date claim form, such as: • proceedings for possession of land; • claims arising out of hire-purchase or credit sale agreements;
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