Order: Rejects dividends suit by Inversiones Empresariales

On May 6, 2020, the Eighth Civil Court of First Instance in Guatemala received and complied with higher-court rulings noting that disputes over dividend payments between commercial entities must proceed by summary process, including a submission clause in the company charter. Applying Article 1039 of the Guatemalan Commercial Code and the parties’ submission pact, the court held that the ordinary action filed by Inversiones Empresariales, S.A. to declare the alleged extinction of dividend-payment obligations against Lisa, S.A. was procedurally improper.

The court therefore granted Lisa, S.A.’s motion for reconsideration (revocatoria), revoked the prior decree of February 24, 2017, and rejected the ordinary claim, directing that any such controversy be pursued in the summary track. The ruling follows the Constitutional Court’s October 17, 2019 guidance and the Second Civil and Commercial Appeals Chamber’s February 10, 2020 amparo-related instructions restoring due process guarantees.