Countries › Uruguay › Guide › 14. Disputes › Commercial litigation in Uruguay

Commercial litigation in Uruguay

Last verified: 2026-10-27 · Status: Stable

Uruguayan civil and commercial cases run under the Código General del Proceso (CGP): a written claim, a 30 day answer, then oral hearings before the judge, who must attempt conciliation and takes the evidence personally. Appeals against final judgments must be filed within 15 days; cassation before the Supreme Court is limited to points of law and to cases above 4,000 UR (about UYU 7.76 million or US$193,000). The loser does not automatically pay the winner's lawyers: the court may award costs and fees only for culpable or malicious litigation, except in executive (debt collection) proceedings, where the debtor bears them.

USD figures use UYU 40.214 per US dollar, the BCU quotation for DLS. USA BILLETE on 26 October 2026, retrieved from the BCU quotations service on 27 October 2026. Amounts set in UR use UYU 1,940.77, the latest published UR value (September 2026, Decreto 229/026, IMPO values table); amounts in UI use UYU 6.6792 per UI (BCU, 27 October 2026). Conversions are rounded and for orientation only.

Key facts

Term to answer an ordinary claim	30 daysCGP art. 338.1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Term to appear for a defendant served abroad	60 to 90 daysCGP art. 126, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Deadline to appeal a final judgment	15 daysCGP art. 253.1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Minimum value for cassation	4,000 URCGP art. 269 numeral 3, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Deadline to file cassation	15 daysCGP art. 271, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Loser pays the winner's lawyers by default	No, only for malicious litigation (except executive proceedings) CC art. 688; CGP art. 56, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Pre suit interim measure lapses if claim not filed within	30 daysCGP art. 311.2, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Lawyer mandatory in court	Yes, except small claims under 20 UR before Juzgados de Paz or Conciliación and listed cases CGP art. 37, as of 2026-10-27 · in force

The rule

1. Most civil and commercial claims follow the ordinary process. It is preceded by the pre suit conciliation hearing and begins with a written claim that must state the facts in numbered chapters, the legal grounds, all the evidence and the value of the case. The court checks the claim, orders service and gives the defendant 30 days to answer; a counterclaim gets the claimant 30 days, and preliminary objections 10 days. Claims that have no special procedure are processed as ordinary cases.
Cost to do it: No court fee is set in these articles; the main cost is counsel, since a lawyer's signature is mandatory on every filing (art. 37), and certified translations of foreign documents.
Example: A Montevideo distributor sues a supplier for UYU 8,000,000 of lost margin: after conciliation fails, it files a claim with all its documents attached and the supplier has 30 days to answer. / A US parent suing a Uruguayan customer for about US$198,936 (UYU 8,000,000) must offer all its evidence with the claim; documents not attached then can generally not be added later.Código General del Proceso (Ley Nº 15.982), wording by Ley Nº 19.090, art. 117, 337, 338 and 348, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

2. If a defendant served at its domicile does not answer, the claimant can ask for a declaration of default: the court then treats the facts alleged by the claimant as admitted, unless contradicted by the evidence or the rights are not disposable, and may order an attachment of the defendant's assets to secure the result. A defendant located abroad is served by letter rogatory and gets a term set by the court between 60 and 90 days to appear.
Cost to do it: Serving a defendant abroad requires a letter rogatory and translations; the cost is translation and counsel time, plus the extra 60 to 90 days.
Example: A Uruguayan S.A. that ignores a claim served at its registered address is declared in default and may have its bank balances attached. / A claim against a defendant domiciled in Spain needs a letter rogatory and gives that defendant at least 60 and at most 90 days to appear, against 30 days for a local defendant.Código General del Proceso, wording by Ley Nº 19.090, art. 126 and 339, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

3. The preliminary hearing is the core of the case. The parties must attend in person (companies through their representatives) together with counsel. An unjustified absence of the claimant counts as withdrawal of the claim; an unjustified absence of the defendant means the facts alleged by the claimant are taken as true, save proof to the contrary. At the hearing the judge ratifies the pleadings, attempts conciliation, rules on procedural objections, fixes the object of the case and of the evidence, and schedules a complementary hearing for evidence not taken on the day. After the complementary hearing the parties plead orally for ten minutes each and the court gives judgment.
Cost to do it: Attendance of a company representative with authority to settle; travel for foreign executives or a duly justified representative.
Example: A Montevideo SRL whose manager misses the preliminary hearing without a justified reason faces the claimant's facts being taken as true. / A foreign claimant that does not appear, in person or through an authorized representative, at the preliminary hearing loses its claim as withdrawn, which can waste the whole first stage of a US$500,000 case.Código General del Proceso, wording by Ley Nº 19.090, art. 340, 341 and 343, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

4. Possession, alimony, certain family matters and adverse possession, among others, follow the extraordinary process, which concentrates conciliation, evidence, pleadings and judgment in a single hearing and allows a counterclaim only on the same cause and object.
Cost to do it: Same counsel costs as an ordinary case but usually fewer hearings.
Example: A landowner seeking to recover possession of a rural plot from an occupier uses the extraordinary process with a single hearing. / A foreign owner recovering possession of a Punta del Este property worth US$400,000 files in the extraordinary process, so all evidence must be ready for one hearing.Código General del Proceso, wording by Ley Nº 19.090 and Ley Nº 19.889, art. 346 and 349, 2020-07-09 official text · verified 2026-10-27

5. A final judgment can be appealed in a reasoned written appeal filed within 15 days; the other side has 15 days to answer and may join with its own grievances. Interlocutory decisions issued outside a hearing are appealed within 6 days. When a final judgment ordering payment is appealed, the winner may request provisional enforcement within its term to answer the appeal, by giving sufficient security; instead, it may ask for interim measures.
Cost to do it: Provisional enforcement requires security sufficient to cover costs and damages if the judgment is reversed (art. 260.1).
Example: A supplier awarded UYU 2,000,000 at first instance can start provisional enforcement while the debtor's appeal is pending by posting security. / A winner of about US$49,734 (UYU 2,000,000) who wants to collect before the appeal is decided must post security; the debtor may in turn ask to suspend enforcement for serious harm by posting its own security (art. 260.3).Código General del Proceso, wording by Ley Nº 19.090, art. 250, 253, 254 and 260, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

6. Cassation before the Suprema Corte de Justicia lies against second instance judgments only for breach or wrong application of a rule of law, including rules on admissibility or weighing of evidence, and procedural rules essential to due process. It must be filed in writing within 15 days of notification. It is not available against interim measures, in cases that allow a later process on the same issue, in cases worth 4,000 UR or less, or when the second instance fully confirms the first without dissent, except in cases against the State and other public bodies worth more than 6,000 UR.
Cost to do it: Counsel for a written appeal on points of law; costs of cassation follow the general rule of art. 56.1 (art. 279).
Example: A UYU 10,000,000 commercial judgment that the appellate court confirmed in full and unanimously cannot go to cassation, even though the amount exceeds the 4,000 UR floor (about UYU 7,763,080). / With UR at UYU 1,940.77, the cassation floor of 4,000 UR is about US$193,044 and the 6,000 UR threshold for confirmed judgments against public bodies is about US$289,566.Código General del Proceso, art. 268 wording by Ley Nº 18.172 and art. 269 numeral 3 by Ley Nº 17.243, art. 268, 269, 270 and 271, 2007-08-31 official text · verified 2026-10-27

7. Costs follow the Civil Code: the judge may make no special order, order the loser to pay court costs (taxes, experts and other expenses), or also order it to pay the other side's lawyers' fees, depending on whether the loser litigated with some reason, with culpable lightness or with malice. This general rule does not apply to executive proceedings, enforcement, delivery of goods, cassation, review and unconstitutionality proceedings, where special rules apply; in executive proceedings the defendant bears costs and fees.
Cost to do it: Budget for own counsel fees in full: recovery from the loser is the exception in ordinary cases, not the rule.
Example: A company that wins a UYU 1,200,000 contract claim usually bears its own lawyers' fees unless the court finds the loser acted with malice. / A foreign company winning a US$100,000 (about UYU 4,021,400) claim should not price in recovery of its legal fees, unlike in cost shifting systems.Código Civil art. 688; Código General del Proceso art. 56 and 358.4, wording by Ley Nº 19.090, CC art. 688; CGP art. 56.1, 56.2 and 358.4, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

8. Interim measures may be requested in any process and even before filing: the applicant must show summarily the right and the danger that delay will harm it, and the court must require a sufficient counter guarantee save in exceptional cases. Measures include an order not to innovate, a registered notice of the claim, attachments, an auditor or an administrator. A measure granted before the claim lapses automatically if the claim is not filed within 30 days of execution, with the applicant liable for costs and damages.
Cost to do it: Counter guarantee fixed by the court, often a bank guarantee or insurance bond; registry fees for registering attachments of real estate or vehicles.
Example: A creditor obtains an attachment over a debtor's Montevideo apartment before suing and then has 30 days from registration to file its claim. / A US seller owed US$250,000 (about UYU 10,053,500) can attach the buyer's Uruguayan receivables before suing, but must post the counter guarantee the court sets and file within 30 days.Código General del Proceso, art. 311, 312, 313 and 316, 1988-10-18 official text · verified 2026-10-27

Step	Deadline	Source
Conciliation hearing notice	At least 3 days	CGP art. 295.1
Answer to claim or counterclaim	30 days	CGP art. 338
Answer to preliminary objections	10 days	CGP art. 338.2
Appear if served abroad	60 to 90 days, set by the court	CGP art. 126
Appeal of final judgment	15 days	CGP art. 253.1
Appeal of interlocutory decision outside hearing	6 days	CGP art. 254
Cassation	15 days, only above 4,000 UR	CGP art. 269 and 271
File claim after pre suit interim measure	30 days	CGP art. 311.2

Key deadlines in a Uruguayan commercial case

Worked example

A Brazilian manufacturer claims UYU 8,000,000 (about US$198,936) from a Montevideo distributor. It requests conciliation (CGP art. 293); after the hearing fails, it files a claim with all documents and offers witnesses and an accounting expert (art. 117). The distributor answers within 30 days. At the preliminary hearing the judge attempts conciliation, fixes the issues and orders the expert report, then holds a complementary hearing and gives judgment. Either party can appeal within 15 days; since the amount exceeds 4,000 UR (about UYU 7,763,080), cassation on points of law is possible unless the appellate court confirms in full without dissent. Unless the court finds malice, each side pays its own lawyers (CC art. 688).

Step by step

Request the pre suit conciliation hearing unless an exception applies (CGP art. 293 and 294).
Collect every document and identify every witness and expert before filing: the claim must offer all evidence (CGP art. 117 and 118).
Consider an attachment or other interim measure before filing, and calendar the 30 day term to sue (CGP art. 311).
Calendar the 30 day answer term on being served, and 60 to 90 days if served abroad (CGP art. 126 and 338).
Make sure a representative with authority attends the preliminary hearing in person (CGP art. 340).
On judgment, calendar 15 days to appeal and decide whether to seek provisional enforcement with security (CGP art. 253 and 260).

Common traps

Missing the preliminary hearing without justification is fatal: for the claimant it is withdrawal, for the defendant the claimant's facts are taken as true (CGP art. 340).
Deadlines set for the parties are peremptory and cannot be extended, though both parties may agree to suspend them (CGP art. 92).
Cassation is not a third instance on the facts and is closed below 4,000 UR (CGP art. 269 and 270).
Legal fees are rarely recovered from the loser in ordinary cases (CC art. 688).
A pre suit attachment lapses if the claim is not filed within 30 days, and the applicant pays the damages caused (CGP art. 311.2).

Sources

← Courts, arbitration and enforcement in UruguayPre suit conciliation in Uruguay →