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Last year, judicial officers recovered 14.3 percent more debts to creditors

Last year, judicial officers recovered 14.3 percent more debts to creditors

With the assistance of judicial officers, 18.2 thousand creditors recovered at least a portion of their claimed debts in 2024. This group included 5 thousand legal entities and 12.8 thousand natural persons. Additionally, an ongoing collection of periodic maintenance payments (so-called alimony) benefited nearly 39.5 thousand creditors.

The total amount of debts recovered to creditors last year exceeded 320.3 million euros representing a 14.3 percent increase compared to 2023. The largest debt recovered in 2024 was 3.4 million euros, collected on behalf of a private limited liability company. The highest amount recovered for a natural was nearly 2.4 million euros. Both large debts were recovered through the auctioning of mortgaged real estate.

During the year, 263.4 million euros in debts were recovered to private natural persons, marking a 16.2 percent increase compared to 2023. This amount includes unpaid wages, child support payments (so-called alimony), loans under bills of exchange, and other monetary debts. Additionally, 198.4 million euros were recovered for private legal entities, covering fees for communication and utility services, consumer credits, loans, and more.

In 2024, the state budget received additional 56.9 million euros in recovered debts, representing a 6.4 percent increase compared to 2023. Most of the debts claimed by the state comprised unpaid taxes, fines for administrative and civil law violations, and penalties imposed in criminal cases.

In total, judicial officers executed 262.1 thousand court and institutional decisions last year. The vast majority (96 percent) involved the recovery of monetary amounts. The remaining 4 percent consisted of non-monetary decisions, including requests to impose interim protective measures, oblige the debtor to perform or refrain from specific actions, confiscate property, regulate child visitation arrangements, evict individuals from premises, and more.

Although the total amount recovered for creditors increased last year, the proportion of successfully completed recovery processes declined. In 2024, 54.3 percent of creditors’ claims were fully satisfied, which is 3.1 percent less than in 2023. One contributing factor to the reduced success rate in debt collection appears to be legislative changes favouring debtors, which have slowed down the recovery process.

In 2024, judicial officers initiated 256.8 thousand new processes at the request of creditors, reflecting a 13 percent increase compared to 2023. This rise is attributed to creditors who had postponed debt collection during the COVID-19 pandemic becoming more active in pursuing claims through the courts in recent years. However, the volume of new debt cases has not yet returned to pre-pandemic levels. Between 2014 and 2018, judicial officers received an average of 281.8 thousand enforcement requests annually, which is 9 percent higher than the number recorded in 2024.

At the same time, the number of new claims for the recovery of maintenance payments (so-called alimony) decreased slightly by 1.2 percent last year. This decline is linked to the consumer price index used to recalculate maintenance payments, which dropped to 101.2 in 2024. As a result, the recalculation no longer resulted in double-digit percentage increases, as had been the case in 2022 and 2023.

Last year, creditors applied to judicial officers regarding obligations that 114.7 thousand debtors failed to fulfil on time. This included 107.2 thousand natural persons and 7.5 thousand legal entities, including budgetary institutions and organizations.

In 2024, a total of 1.7 million compulsory enforcement proceedings were conducted across all judicial officers’ offices in Lithuania. Of these, 867.7 thousand were initiated at the request of state institutions, while 839.7 thousand were initiated by private natural persons and legal entities.

Currently, the enforcement system of the Republic of Lithuania employs 106 judicial officers and approximately 500 staff members. This system includes 95 judicial officers’ offices and 6 branches. Each year, judicial officers contribute more than 12 million euros in taxes, including personal income tax, value-added tax, and contributions to the State Social Insurance Fund (SODRA).

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