Law of Prescription: Practicalities
Original Article: https://www.legalwise.co.za/help-yourself/quicklaw-guides/prescription
Date Updated: July 2022
For all your prescription answers, simply follow our guide below:
- What does prescription mean?
- What are the consequences of a debt that prescribed?
- When does a prescription period start to run?
- When will a prescription period be delayed?
- When will a prescription period be interrupted?
- What are the different prescription periods?
- How can LegalWise assist you?
1. What does prescription mean?
- Prescription is when a debt (for example, obligation to pay money) is extinguished after a period of time.
- South Africa has different laws which specify prescription periods, for example, the Prescription Act says that contractual and delictual debts extinguish after three years from the date when it became payable (due).
- Prescription periods may, in certain circumstances, be delayed or interrupted.
2. What are the consequences of a debt that prescribed?
- A person who is indebted (“debtor”) to another person (“creditor”) will not be liable to pay such debt after a certain period of time has passed.
- This means that the creditor may not institute legal action against the debtor for such a debt.
3. When does a prescription period start to run?
- As soon as the debt is due. A debt is due once the creditor can identify the debtor and the facts from which the debt arose.
- If the debtor prevents the creditor from gaining knowledge of the debt (excluding debts arising from contracts), prescription runs from when the creditor gains knowledge of the existence of the debt.
- If a debt is related to trafficking in persons, rape, and sexual exploitation of children the prescription period will not run during a period where the creditor cannot institute his/her claim due to his/her mental or psychological condition.