ENROLLED
2018 Regular Session
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 88
BY REPRESENTATIVE JAMES
A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
To urge and request the Louisiana State Law Institute to study the effects of enacting a law
that would amend Code of Civil Procedure Article 927 and Civil Code Article 3452
to allow courts to raise prescription sua sponte in lawsuits and to report its findings
of the study to the legislature no later than February 1, 2019.
WHEREAS, Louisiana Civil Code Article 3494 states that the prescriptive period for
an action on an open account is subject to a liberative prescription period of three years; and
WHEREAS, Civil Code Article 3452 and Code of Civil Procedure Article 927(B)
state that prescription must be pleaded and the court is not permitted to supply a plea of
prescription; and
WHEREAS, prescription is the only peremptory exception that may not be raised by
the court; and
WHEREAS, a default judgment can be rendered on a prescribed debt and result in
wage garnishments for unrepresented defendants; and
WHEREAS, filing suit on a prescribed debt can result in legally unenforceable
obligations becoming enforceable against unrepresented consumers; and
WHEREAS, filing suit after the prescriptive period is a violation of the Fair Debt
Collection Practices Act.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
urge and request the Louisiana State Law Institute to commission a study regarding a law
that would allow the courts to raise prescription sua sponte in lawsuits and to report its
findings of the study to the Louisiana Legislature no later than February 1, 2019.
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitable copy of this Resolution be transmitted
to the director of the Louisiana State Law Institute.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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