Claims Over Dividend Prescription by Cerro Colorado
Cerro Colorado, S.A.
C. 01046-2020-00057
Summary
This is an ordinary civil lawsuit filed by Cerro Colorado, S.A. against Lisa, S.A. seeking a declaration of extinctive prescription of dividends. The dispute centered on whether the case should proceed in the ordinary or summary process. Lisa successfully argued that the claim was improperly filed in the ordinary route.
Decisions
Whether Cerro Colorado’s dividend prescription claim was admissible in the ordinary process.
The court granted Lisa’s revocatoria, holding that the ordinary process was not the correct venue. It rejected the claim in limine, ruling that, under Article 1039 of the Commercial Code, disputes over dividend obligations between commercial companies must be litigated in the summary process.
The extinctive-prescription action was rejected at the preliminary stage.
Cerro Colorado appealed the December 2020 revocation order.
The Court of Appeals rejected the appeal and confirmed the trial decision, agreeing that the prescripción claim could not be processed through the ordinary route.
The dismissal of the claim was upheld at the appellate level.
Amparo filed by Cerro Colorado, alleging violation of due process and judicial access.
The Court denied the amparo as inadmissible and confirmed the prior decisions. It found that Lisa’s objection was valid and imposed a Q1,000 fine on Cerro Colorado’s attorney.
The dismissal of the ordinary prescripción claim became final and binding.
Conclusion
Lisa, S.A. prevailed at every stage. The trial court granted Lisa’s revocatoria, and dismissed the case. The Court of Appeals confirmed the dismissal in April 2021, and the Constitutional Court denied amparo in September 2022. This sequence constitutes a final judicial victory for Lisa, safeguarding its dividend rights against an improperly filed prescripción claim.