Filing a claim in civil court

An individual may file a claim in civil court personally, conduct the case without a lawyer, or appoint a representative. Before filing, identify whether the demand is civil, choose the correct level and territorial venue, check limitation, calculate the state duty, and organize the evidence. The claim may be delivered on paper, by post, or electronically.

In brief:

• A claim is used for a dispute concerning a civil, family, employment, housing, land, or other private right; an uncontested demand or fact-establishment matter may follow another procedure.
• An ordinary claim is filed where the defendant permanently resides, but alimony, personal injury, certain employment or housing claims, and other listed cases give the claimant a venue choice.
• The general limitation period is three years, but the court applies it only on a party’s request and cannot reject filing merely because the period expired.
• A property claim carries a duty of 4% of claim value, subject to a minimum of 440.000 soums; statutory exemptions cover several socially significant claims.
• A lawyer is not compulsory: the claimant can act personally, use an eligible non-lawyer representative, and file through the court information system.

Updated: 05 September 2026

What counts as a civil claim

A claim asks a court to resolve a dispute arising from civil-law relations. An application for a court order, special proceedings, or establishment of a legal fact is a different form of submission. This distinction follows from the forms of court submission (Article 4 CPC).

Civil courts hear civil, family, employment, housing, land, and similar disputes where at least one party is an individual, unless legislation assigns the matter elsewhere. The civil-court jurisdiction rule (Article 26 CPC) covers, for example, recovery under an IOU, return of property, damages, divorce, alimony, reinstatement, and protection of honor.

If inseparable connected demands fall within civil and economic procedure, the civil court hears all of them. Civil and administrative demands may not be joined; that is the joinder rule (Article 27 CPC). An ordinary commercial dispute between companies or individual entrepreneurs follows another procedure, explained in filing an economic claim.

Most first-instance cases start in a district, interdistrict, or city civil court. A different level is used only where a special rule applies, because the ordinary allocation (Article 28 CPC) assigns standard civil cases to those courts.

How to determine venue

First identify the type and level of court, and then its territory. Normally, a claim against an individual is filed at the place of permanent residence or predominant occupation; a claim against an organization is filed at its state-registration address. This is the general venue rule (Article 33 CPC).

The table shows common exceptions. The complete list of alternative venues is longer, so an unusual case should be checked against the full claimant-choice provision (Article 34 CPC).

Claims concerning rights to buildings, release of property from attachment, and land-use arrangements have exclusive venue (Article 35 CPC). An agreement may vary ordinary territorial venue but not exclusive venue under the venue-agreement rule (Article 36 CPC). Check a contract for both the parties’ addresses and any valid venue clause.

How to check limitation

The general period is three years (Article 150 Civil Code), although legislation may prescribe a shorter or longer special period. Parties cannot alter a limitation period or its calculation by agreement under the mandatory-period rule (Article 152 Civil Code).

Time usually starts when the claimant knew or should have known of the violation. A fixed-date obligation runs from the end of the performance date, while on-demand and recourse obligations have separate rules. They appear in the starting-date provision (Article 154 Civil Code). Prepare a chronology showing when the obligation arose, when performance was due, when refusal occurred, and which document proves each date.

Expiry does not prevent filing. The court must accept the claim and applies limitation only if a party invokes it before judgment; a valid objection then leads to dismissal. This follows from the application of limitation (Article 153 Civil Code).

A duly filed claim and acts by the debtor acknowledging the debt interrupt limitation, after which time starts again. The grounds are stated in the interruption rule (Article 157 Civil Code). A part payment, letter, or reconciliation statement may matter, but its wording and the signatory’s authority must be checked. If the claim is left without consideration, limitation generally continues to run (Article 158 Civil Code).

Suspension may apply to force majeure, a moratorium, specified military-service circumstances, absence of a representative for an incapable person, suspension of the governing act, or a mediation agreement. The event must meet the final six-month condition and other calculation rules in the suspension provision (Article 156 Civil Code). A court may restore an individual’s period for a valid personal reason if the statutory timing condition for restoration (Article 159 Civil Code) is met. Medical and other proof should support the motion.

How to calculate the state duty and use relief

For a money demand, claim value is the amount sought; for recovery of property, it is the property value; independent monetary demands are added together. Alimony, recurring payments, leases, and buildings have special claim-value rules (Article 129 CPC).

The principal individual rates appear in the schedule to the State Duty Law:

Example. An individual claims 10,000,000 soums. Four percent is 400,000 soums, below the current one BRV of 440.000 soums. The duty under the general rate is therefore 440.000 soums. If the pleading also contains a separate non-property demand, check that demand’s rate instead of treating the entire case as property-only.

Check exemptions before paying. They include claimants seeking wages and other employment relief, alimony, damages for occupational injury, harm to health or death of a breadwinner, damages from unlawful criminal prosecution, material loss caused by a crime, and consumer-rights relief. These examples come from the longer statutory exemption list (Article 8).

If no exemption applies but the claimant cannot pay at once, attach a reasoned motion for deferral, installments, or reduction. The court may grant relief based on financial circumstances under the court-cost relief rule (Article 133 CPC). Attach income, bank-funds, family-composition, low-income-status, or comparable proof. The Supreme Court explains that inability to pay must be proved and that postal expenses cannot be deferred or reduced under this cost guidance.

The duty is normally paid before filing. A bank or other payment document, including an electronic record, proves payment under the payment rule (Article 17). Verify the purpose, payer, amount, and court details before attaching the receipt.

What evidence to attach

Each party proves the facts supporting its claims or objections. If a document is difficult to obtain, the claimant may ask the court to obtain it, identifying the document, the fact it proves, and its holder. The burden-of-proof rule (Article 72 CPC) allows the court to assist on a reasoned motion.

Build a connected evidentiary chain:

• the instrument creating the right: contract, IOU, certificate, order, or other act;
• proof of the claimant’s performance: payments, acceptance records, correspondence, or delivery;
• proof of breach: delay, refusal, notice, medical record, or damage calculation;
• a calculation of each monetary demand linked to documents;
• proof of a mandatory pre-action claim or mediation where required by law or contract;
• the witness’s details and the fact that person can confirm.

The court accepts only relevant evidence, and a fact requiring a particular statutory form of proof cannot be established another way. These filters appear in the relevance and admissibility rules (Articles 73–74 CPC). Written evidence includes contracts, acts, certificates, and correspondence. A foreign document needs a certified translation and normally legalization unless a treaty provides an exception under the document rules (Article 84 CPC).

Keep originals. Written evidence is normally filed as an original or duly certified copy, and the court may require the original under the copy requirements (Article 87 CPC). Supreme Court guidance requires assessment of relevance, admissibility, authenticity, and overall sufficiency; no item has predetermined weight. Electronic correspondence and recordings are assessed with the rest of the case under the evidence guidance.

Electronic files, audio, video, and Internet data may be digital evidence. Preserve the source file, device or medium, sender information, time, and method of receipt. A copy may be filed, but the court can inspect the original medium under the electronic-data rule (Article 89-1 CPC). A basic printout does not become written evidence without the prescribed notarization; integrity and identity of the digital original (Article 89-2 CPC) remain important.

If a recording may be deleted, correspondence lost, an object altered, or a witness later unavailable, seek preservation of evidence. Before proceedings a notary performs it; after filing, the court does so under the preservation rule (Article 76 CPC).

Can a non-lawyer act as representative

Yes. An individual may conduct the case personally or through a representative, and personal attendance does not remove the right to a representative under the participation rule (Article 65 CPC).

An agreed representative may be an advocate, a lineal or collateral relative, a spouse or the spouse’s relative, a co-party authorized by other co-parties, or another individual admitted by the court for a natural person. Only an advocate may provide court-representation services on a continuing basis under the representative list (Article 67 CPC). The court therefore decides whether another non-lawyer is admitted.

For a relative, prepare proof of kinship and a power of attorney. An individual’s power of attorney must be notarized or certified by another person authorized by law under the certification rule (Article 68 CPC). The Plenum confirms the power of attorney, kinship proof, and judicial admission requirements for relevant non-lawyer representatives.

Ordinary authority covers case conduct, but special acts must be stated expressly: signing submissions, withdrawing all or part of the claim, changing its basis or subject, increasing or reducing the amount, admitting a demand, settlement or mediation, delegation, appeal, submitting an enforcement document, and receiving awarded property or money. The full list is in the special-authority rule (Article 69 CPC).

What to put in the claim

A claim may be filed directly, by post, or as an electronic document under the filing methods (Article 188 CPC). It must state the court, parties and addresses, representative details, precise relief, claim value, facts and evidence, mandatory pre-action compliance, and annexes. The claimant or authorized representative signs it under the content requirements (Article 189 CPC).

Sample statement of claim

To: [name of the district, interdistrict, or city civil court]

Claimant: [full name, address, contact details]
Defendant: [full name or organization name, address]
Representative: [full name and address, if any]

Claim value: [amount] soums
State duty: [amount] soums

STATEMENT OF CLAIM
for [brief description of relief]

[When and how the relationship between the parties arose.]
[Which right was violated and by which act or omission.]
[Which document proves each material fact.]
[How the monetary amount was calculated.]
[How a mandatory pre-action process was completed, if required.]

I ask the court to:
- [state the principal relief precisely];
- [state any additional relief];
- recover court costs from the defendant.

Annexes:
- documents proving the facts and calculation;
- proof of the pre-action process, where mandatory;
- proof of state duty and postal expenses, or a relief motion;
- power of attorney and special authority where a representative signs;
- copies for each defendant when filing on paper.

[Date]                     [Signature]

Annex evidence of the facts, mandatory pre-action process, payment of duty and postal expenses, and the representative’s signing authority. This package is required by the annex rule (Article 191 CPC). A paper claim needs copies for each defendant; an electronic claim is excepted, although the court may request annex copies under the copy rule (Article 190 CPC).

How to file electronically

The CPC permits electronic filing through the court information system. The practical entry point is the Supreme Court interactive-services portal, my.sud.uz. Interface labels may change, so confirm the relevant option in the personal account. The state program provides for electronic payments, a duty calculator, E-signature filing, and generation of submissions in the digitalization plan.

Follow this sequence:

• enter the personal account and select a civil-court submission;
• choose the court under the venue rules, rather than merely selecting the nearest court;
• transfer every required detail and item of relief from the prepared claim;
• attach readable evidence, calculation, payment proof, power of attorney, and motions;
• sign and send through the method offered by the system, then save the receipt, date, number, and complete submitted package.

Electronic filing does not relax content or evidence rules. An electronic claim is an accepted form of application (Article 188 CPC). Providing an email address in the claim constitutes consent to electronic notices and judicial acts under the claim-content rule (Article 189 CPC). Keep source files after upload because the court may request an original or medium.

When to seek interim relief

If the defendant may sell property, move funds, or otherwise impede enforcement, file an interim-relief motion with the claim. Identify the particular risk, requested measure, and connection to the demand. Relief is available after proceedings begin, at any stage where omission may impede or prevent enforcement, under the basis for relief (Article 105 CPC).

The court may attach property or funds, prohibit acts by the defendant or third persons, suspend sale or enforcement, and order preservation of disputed property. A measure must be proportionate, and combined monetary restrictions may not exceed the claim value under the available measures (Article 106 CPC).

The motion is decided on the day received without notifying the defendant under the decision rule (Article 107 CPC). Interim relief is not advance recovery; explain the enforcement risk. If the claim is finally dismissed, the defendant may bring a separate claim for losses caused by the measure, as confirmed in the loss guidance.

What happens after filing

Within ten days, the judge decides whether to accept, refuse, return, or transfer the application by subject-matter jurisdiction. If deficient materials arrived from an economic or administrative court, the claimant receives up to ten days to correct them. This special rule appears in the judge’s decision period (Article 192 CPC).

The court must accept a compliant claim. A deficient one can sometimes be accepted where an accompanying motion is within the judge’s authority and is granted; the conclusion must be reasoned under the acceptance rule (Article 193 CPC).

Return and refusal have different consequences:

• return may follow wrong territorial venue, lack of authority or required contents, unpaid duty or postal expenses, unrelated joined demands, or missing proof of mandatory mediation; correction permits refiling, and the order can be appealed under the return rules (Article 195 CPC);
• refusal applies where the demand falls outside all three court systems, or a final act or pending identical dispute already exists; it ordinarily bars the same claim under the refusal rules (Article 194 CPC).

Weak evidence and expired limitation are not independent reasons to reject filing. The Supreme Court confirms the exhaustive grounds and ten-day period in its first-instance guidance. Read the result, reasons, deadline, and appeal route in any order received.

What changed in 2025–2026

• Plenum Resolution No. 19 of 3 July 2026 consolidated interim-relief practice. A motion filed with the claim is decided at acceptance; an electronic motion received after working hours is decided by the next working day. The court tests necessity, connection, and proportionality.
• Decree UP-160 of 14 August 2026 approved a future single-window model: wrong territorial venue should lead to court transfer rather than return, and minor formal defects should be cured with court assistance. Current return rules remain until procedural legislation changes.
• The same strategy plans an upgrade of my.sud.uz by the end of 2027, including a new application and improved submission templates. This is a roadmap, not a waiver of current claim requirements; see the portal roadmap.

Final filing check

Before submission, confirm that:

• the demand belongs in civil claim proceedings;
• the proper defendant, court level, and territorial venue are selected;
• limitation is calculated and important dates and acknowledgments are proved;
• claim value and every monetary demand have a transparent calculation;
• the duty rate, exemption, and need for a relief motion have been checked;
• facts in the pleading match the annexes and originals are preserved;
• a mandatory pre-action claim or mediation is documented;
• the power of attorney contains every special authority the representative needs;
• electronic files are readable and submission confirmation is saved;
• the requested relief is precise enough to be enforced.

Frequently asked questions

Can I file a civil claim without a lawyer?

Yes. A claimant may conduct the case personally. A relative, co-party, or another person admitted by the court may also act if the power-of-attorney and status requirements are met. Only an advocate may provide court-representation services on a continuing basis. Withdrawal, settlement, appeal, receipt of money, and other special acts must be stated expressly in the authority.

Which court hears a claim against an individual?

Normally it is the district, interdistrict, or city civil court where the defendant permanently resides or is predominantly occupied. Then check alternative and exclusive venue. For example, alimony may also be claimed at the claimant’s residence, while a dispute over rights to a building must be filed only where the property is located.

Will an expired limitation period cause return?

No. Expiry alone is not a ground to return a claim or refuse acceptance. The court addresses limitation if a party invokes it before judgment. The claimant should explain the starting date, interruption, suspension, or restoration grounds and provide supporting documents.

Can the state duty be paid later?

Yes, where legislation exempts the claimant or the court grants a documented motion for deferral, installments, or reduction based on financial circumstances. A bare statement that funds are unavailable is not enough. Postal expenses remain payable and are not covered by this relief.

Is a screenshot of correspondence enough?

Not necessarily. A screenshot can show content, but the court assesses origin, integrity, and connection to the dispute. Keep the source chat or email, original file, device, metadata, and corroborating materials. A basic printout does not replace the digital original and is not written evidence without the prescribed certification.