Civil proceedings and PESEL number

The number from the Universal Electronic System of Population Registration is commonly known as the PESEL number. Every citizen receives it. It was introduced to civil proceedings as early as 2013. This was to reduce the number of mistakes that occurred in civil courts and bailiffs in the course of enforcement activities. These errors resulted from incorrect marking of the personal data of the accused / debtors.

The defendant's first letter

Pursuant to Art. 126 § 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the victim's first letter in the case should contain his PESEL number or NIP tax identification number.

Determining the PESEL number by the court

A much more important issue was related to the imposition on the court of the obligation to define ex officio the defendant's identification number. The number is considered to be the number identified with a given person. Pursuant to Art. 126 § 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the first letter of the injured party in the case should contain his PESEL number or NIP tax identification number, or the number from the National Court Register, NIP or other relevant register.

In order to obtain such information, the court asks the PESEL database or the Central Register and Information on Economic Activity.

Difficulties in determining the PESEL number

The problem may arise if several people with the same name and surname live in a given town or street. In this situation, the court may require the person submitting the claim to provide additional information about the defendant. These data are to facilitate the determination of the correct PESEL number. If the plaintiff does not provide the court with additional information, then the judiciary may stay the civil proceedings due to the inability to proceed with the case.

PESEL number and electronic writ of payment

The PESEL number was also entered in the electronic payment procedure (EPU). In a situation where the injured person files a claim, they should include their PESEL number (or NIP or KRS number). In addition, he is also required to indicate the defendant's PESEL number in it. If these details are not provided or are incorrect, the claimant may be fined. Provided that the indication of incorrect data was due to bad faith or lack of due diligence.

It is worth knowing the contractor's PESEL number

Each entrepreneur should strive to know the PESEL number of his contractor. In a situation where there are potential legal proceedings between the parties, this will greatly facilitate the conduct of court proceedings.

Court proceedings commenced before July 7, 2013 and PESEL

In a situation where the court proceedings concern a case that started before the introduction of PESEL numbers in civil proceedings, i.e. before July 7, 2013, the claimant cannot be required to provide the debtor's PESEL number.

This was confirmed by the Supreme Court in the resolution of May 30, 2014 (III CZP 22/14), according to which:

"When giving the enforcement clause to judgments of courts or court referendaries issued in proceedings initiated before 7 July 2013 and court settlements concluded in proceedings instituted before that date, the content of the enforcement clause does not indicate the information covered by § 21 of the Regulation of the Minister of Justice of 5 April 2012 on the wording of the enforcement clause (Journal of Laws of 2012, item 443 as amended. Journal of Laws of 2013, item 859). "