MEXICO Law and Practice Contributed by: Adrián Magallanes, Diego Sierra and Rodrigo Barradas Muñiz, Von Wobeser y Sierra, SC
means that the intent of a member of the class to join the collective action must be expressly declared. This consent can be declared during any stage of the proceedings or up to 18 months after the judgment issued is considered final. 3.8 Requirements for Cost Estimate Under Mexican law, there is no requirement to provide clients with a cost estimate of the poten- tial litigation at the outset. It is possible to obtain interim injunctions before a full trial, in the specific cases in which provi- sional remedies are available (see 6.1 Circum- stances of Injunctive Relief ). 4.2 Early Judgment Applications A party cannot apply for early judgment on some or all the issues in dispute, nor for the other party’s case to be struck out before a trial or substantive hearing of the claim. However, if the defendant confesses and agrees to the terms of the claim, the court shall summon the parties directly to the trial hearing, in which a final judg- ment shall be rendered (Article 1390 Bis 19 of the Commerce Code). If there is only documentary evidence, the court might decide to concentrate the whole pro- cedure in the preliminary hearing (instead of appointing a new date for the trial hearing) and to enter a final judgment directly (Article 1390 Bis 37). 4. Pre-trial Proceedings 4.1 Interim Applications/Motions A case can also be concluded before trial if cer- tain matters are resolved in the preliminary hear- ing or in ancillary proceedings, such as lack of authority, lack of representation, lack of subject
matter or territorial jurisdiction, or lis pendens. Most issues that can lead to the early conclusion of a trial have to be alleged as a defence when the answer to the complaint is filed (Article 1127 of the Commerce Code). 4.3 Dispositive Motions No dispositive motions are usually made before trial, other than the ones related to the applica- tion for interim relief to maintain the status quo, typically consisting of the attachment of assets. 4.4 Requirements for Interested Parties to Join a Lawsuit Any party who may be affected by the judgment has the right to be heard in the proceedings. A third party may become involved in the proceed- ings by being summoned by one of the parties or by appearing voluntarily before the court. 4.5 Applications for Security for Defendant’s Costs In a commercial or civil action, a defendant can- not apply for an order for the plaintiff to pay a sum of money as security for the defendant’s costs. 4.6 Costs of Interim Applications/ Motions Courts do not impose costs on interim applica- tions or motions. However, they can consider whether such applications or motions are friv- olous or only meant to delay the proceedings when they decide if one of the parties must pay the costs of the trial (Article 1082 of the Com- merce Code). 4.7 Application/Motion Timeframe In practice, the timeframe for a court to deal with an application or motion depends on the issue presented to the court. If it is related to defences such as lack of authority, lack of representation,
965 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook