Commercial Executive Action Mexico (Demanda Ejecutiva Mercantil)

A Commercial Executive Action Mexico (Juicio Ejecutivo Mercantil) is a judicial enforcement proceeding governed by Articles 1391 through 1414 of the Código de Comercio (CCom), published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación with its most recent comprehensive reform in 2014, designed to provide an expedited mechanism for collecting liquidated, certain, and immediately payable commercial debts evidenced by an executive title (título ejecutivo). The fundamental characteristic distinguishing the juicio ejecutivo mercantil from ordinary commercial litigation is that the plaintiff (actor) presents an instrument that itself constitutes prima facie proof of the debt — the court issues an auto de exequendo ordering immediate attachment (embargo) of the defendant's assets without prior hearing, reversing the ordinary litigation sequence where trial precedes execution.

Article 1391 CCom establishes the exhaustive list of executive titles (títulos ejecutivos) that can found a commercial executive action: pagarés (promissory notes) governed by Articles 170 through 174 of the Ley General de Títulos y Operaciones de Crédito (LGTOC); cheques returned for insufficient funds under Articles 175 through 207 LGTOC; letras de cambio (bills of exchange) under Articles 76 through 169 LGTOC; testimonios de escrituras públicas (notarised deed transcripts) certified by a Notario Público; pólizas de seguros vencidas (matured insurance policies); and sentencias ejecutoriadas de tribunales y laudos arbitrales (final court judgments and arbitration awards). Commercial invoices (facturas) and supply agreements do not constitute executive titles in themselves and must be enforced through the ordinary juicio ordinario mercantil unless accompanied by a recognised acknowledgment of debt signed before a Notario Público.

The jurisdictional framework for commercial executive actions depends on the amount in controversy. Under the Ley Orgánica del Poder Judicial de la Federación and the Acuerdo General Plenario 14/2021 of the Consejo de la Judicatura Federal (CJF), the Juzgados de Distrito en Materia Civil (with jurisdiction over mercantile matters) hear cases where federal jurisdiction applies. State courts — Juzgados de lo Civil with mercantile jurisdiction or specialised Juzgados de lo Mercantil in states with mercantile court specialisation — handle the majority of executive commercial actions where parties are domiciled in the same state or the obligation arose locally.

The procedural mechanics of the juicio ejecutivo mercantil begin when the actor files the demanda with the executive title attached. The judge examines the title to verify it meets the formal requirements (requisitos de fondo y forma) of the relevant commercial statute — a pagaré must contain all elements required by Article 170 LGTOC including unconditional promise to pay, fixed sum, maturity date, name of payee, and signature of the obligor (suscriptor). If the title is formally sufficient, the court issues the auto de exequendo simultaneously: (i) requiring the debtor to pay or provide cause why not to pay (requerir de pago); and (ii) ordering embargo precautorio (precautionary attachment) of sufficient debtor assets to cover principal, interest, and procedural costs.

Attachment (embargo) in the juicio ejecutivo mercantil is executed by the court-appointed executor (actuario) who physically attends the debtor's domicile or commercial premises, identifies attachable assets, records them in the acta de embargo, and appoints a depositario (custodian) — often the debtor themselves or a qualified third party. The Código de Comercio Articles 1392 through 1400 establish the order of attachment preference: cash and bank accounts first, then commercial paper, then real property, then other movable assets. The 2014 reform introduced electronic attachment (embargo de cuentas bancarias) through the Sistema de Interconexión Bancaria para Embargos (SIBE) operated by the Banco de México, allowing courts to electronically freeze bank accounts held at CNBV-supervised institutions.

The Reforma Procesal Mercantil of 2011 introduced oralidad into Mexican commercial litigation, creating the juicio oral mercantil for amounts under 600,000 UDIS (approximately MXN 4 million at current UDI values). The juicio ejecutivo mercantil was retained as a separate proceeding for executive titles regardless of amount, maintaining its attachment-first, defence-second structure as codified in Articles 1391 through 1414 CCom. The defendant may oppose execution through excepciones (defences) within five working days of service under Article 1403 CCom — recognised defences include payment (pago), novation (novación), prescripción (limitation), and forgery (falsedad del título) — after which the court schedules an audiencia for hearing evidence on the exceptions before rendering judgment.

A Commercial Executive Action Mexico (Juicio Ejecutivo Mercantil) is required when a commercial creditor holds an executive title (título ejecutivo) under Article 1391 CCom evidencing a liquidated, certain, and immediately payable commercial obligation that the debtor has failed to honour after demand.

The juicio ejecutivo mercantil is the appropriate vehicle when a creditor holds a pagaré (promissory note) under Articles 170–174 LGTOC that has matured without payment — the pagaré must bear the debtor's original signature, state an unconditional promise to pay a fixed sum, and have reached its maturity date (fecha de vencimiento). Mexican businesses frequently use pagarés as credit instruments precisely because their formal perfection under the LGTOC makes them immediately executable without additional proof of the underlying transaction.

The action is needed when a cheque has been returned by the drawee bank (banco librado) for insufficient funds (fondos insuficientes) and the payee holds the original cheque with the bank's return notation — Article 193 LGTOC preserves the cheque's status as an executive title for 6 months from the return date, after which only ordinary commercial litigation is available. The Comisión Nacional Bancaria y de Valores (CNBV) supervises the banking system and the Banco de México operates the clearing system through which cheque dishonour is formally documented.

The demanda ejecutiva mercantil is required when a notarised credit agreement (crédito documentado en escritura pública) or a recognised acknowledgment of commercial debt executed before a Notario Público has gone into default — the notarial transcript (testimonio) constitutes a perfected executive title under Article 1391 fraction III CCom, allowing immediate attachment without ordinary trial.

When a party holds a final and binding judgment (sentencia ejecutoriada) or a commercial arbitration award (laudo arbitral) from an arbitral tribunal constituted under the Ley de Arbitraje Comercial Internacional or Chapter XI of the CCom, and the losing party refuses to voluntarily comply, the juicio ejecutivo mercantil is the enforcement mechanism.

The action is also necessary after a creditor has exhausted extrajudicial collection efforts — formal demand letters (cartas de reclamación or cartas de cobro), attempted conciliation through the Procuraduría Federal del Consumidor (PROFECO) for consumer commercial disputes, or negotiation — without achieving payment. The Código de Comercio does not require pre-litigation demand as a condition precedent for commercial executive actions, but a documented demand history strengthens the plaintiff's position on interest and costs.

A valid Commercial Executive Action Mexico under the Código de Comercio Articles 1391–1414 must contain the following elements to be admitted and the auto de exequendo issued.

Identification of Parties and Standing: Full legal name, RFC (Registro Federal de Contribuyentes), domicilio fiscal, and Registro Público de Comercio inscription data of the actor (plaintiff creditor). For legal entities, the name and credentials of the representante legal with poder notarial. For the demandado (defendant debtor), full name, last known commercial domicile for service of process, and RFC if available. The attorney's cédula profesional number from the Dirección General de Profesiones.

The Executive Title (Título Ejecutivo): The original or certified copy of the executive title forming the basis of the action must be attached as the primary exhibit. For a pagaré: the original instrument must contain all elements of Article 170 LGTOC — unconditional promise to pay, specific sum in MXN or foreign currency with applicable exchange rate, maturity date or presentment basis, place of payment, name of beneficiary (tomador), and original signature of the suscriptor. The pagaré must be presented within the limitation period — 3 years from maturity under Article 174 LGTOC for pagaré actions.

Liquidated Amount (Cantidad Líquida): The demanda must state the principal amount owed (suerte principal), interest accrued (intereses moratorios or compensatorios), and a calculation of the total sum claimed as of the filing date. Commercial interest rates must be supported by the agreement or the TIIE (Tasa de Interés Interlibancaria de Equilibrio) published by Banco de México if no contractual rate was agreed.

Request for Auto de Exequendo and Embargo: The petition must explicitly request (i) issuance of the auto de exequendo under Article 1392 CCom ordering the debtor to pay or give cause; and (ii) precautionary attachment (embargo precautorio) of specific debtor assets sufficient to cover principal, interest, and costs. The actor should identify specific assets for attachment — bank accounts (with CLABE numbers if known), real property (with Registro Público de la Propiedad folio number), or commercial inventory at the debtor's registered address.

Request for Electronic Bank Account Attachment (SIBE): Where the debtor's banking institution is known, the demanda should request the court activate the Sistema de Interconexión Bancaria para Embargos (SIBE) to electronically freeze accounts, introduced by the 2014 CCom reform. This avoids the debtor having advance notice and dissipating assets.

Jurisdiction and Venue: Statement of the jurisdictional basis — whether federal or state court — and the territorial connection to the chosen court: place of performance of the obligation, the defendant's commercial domicile, or agreement of the parties under Article 1104 CCom.

Exhibits: Original executive title; protest certificate (acta de protesto) for letra de cambio if applicable; bank return notation for cheques; demand letter and proof of delivery showing the debtor's default; corporate authority documents for both parties.

Forms-legal.com provides this Commercial Executive Action Mexico template as a practical drafting reference for credit recovery proceedings. Juicio ejecutivo mercantil proceedings require representation by a licensed Licenciado en Derecho with experience in commercial litigation. Title formalities under the LGTOC are strictly interpreted by Mexican courts — a pagaré missing any required element under Article 170 LGTOC loses its executive character and the plaintiff must refile under ordinary commercial procedure.

Post-Judgment Execution: If the defendant exceptions are rejected and judgment is entered for the plaintiff, the court orders remate (judicial auction) of attached assets to satisfy the debt plus interest and costs. The 2014 CCom reform introduced electronic auction (remate electronico) through Poder Judicial digital platforms, improving transparency and broadening bidder access. Related documents include the Commercial Lawsuit Filing Mexico (mx-demanda-mercantil) for ordinary commercial disputes without an executive title, the Demand Letter (mx-carta-demanda-pago) as the recommended pre-litigation collection step, and the Promissory Note (mx-pagare-a-la-vista) as the most commonly used executive title in Mexican business-to-business transactions governed by the LGTOC.