Acceptance is one of the central institutions of bill-of-exchange circulation: it is through acceptance that the drawee assumes the obligation to pay the bill independently at maturity, and it is precisely the refusal to accept, or its defective formalization, that often becomes the subject of dispute. The rules connected with acceptance are strict — the form of the entry, the signature, the date and the immutability of the content each carry legal significance. Within this service we help you with the correct formalization of acceptance, the recording of a refusal to accept and the enforcement of claims against the acceptor.
In practice, disputes arise most often where the acceptance is defectively formalized, is partial or modifies the content of the bill. That is why every step connected with a bill should be taken with an exact knowledge of the requirements of the law.
Formalization of Acceptance
Acceptance is written on the bill. It is expressed by the word „accepted“ or another analogous word, which the drawee signs. The drawee's signature on the front of the bill is deemed to be an acceptance — that is, even a signature left without the word is sufficient for an acceptance to exist, provided it is on the face of the bill and is not the signature of another person.
The rule on dating also matters: where a bill is payable at a fixed period after presentation or must be presented for acceptance within a prescribed period, the date of acceptance is the day on which the entry was actually made, unless the holder of the bill requests that the date of presentation be recorded. If the date is not indicated, the holder is obliged, in order to preserve his rights against the indorser and the issuer of the bill, to certify this defect by a timely protest. Omitting the protest may in this case become the reason for the loss of rights.