Summary

Subsection 2 of section 370 of the Code of Civil Procedure enables a plaintiff who is not sure that he or she has understood his or her rights correctly and/or who is uncertain of which facts he or she would be able to prove in court to improve the chances that the action will be satisfied by filing several alternative claims with the court. It is also reasonable to file claims this way because, if necessary, the plaintiff can obtain clarification about all the alternatively filed claims but he or she has to pay the state fee only based on the value of the biggest alternative claim.

The article explains several issues related to alternative claims, including problems not addressed in judicial practice to date (e.g. the principles of the division of procedural expenses in the case of alternative claims). The discussion of the types of alternative claims takes up an important part of the article, where examples of judicial practice are analysed side by side with hypothetical examples. Issues related to the amendment and supplementation of an action, acceptance of an action or petition by court, and rejection of the proceedings, as well as the obligation of the court to clarify, are discussed in the article.