---
title: Collecting Debts and Contract Disputes in Rosarito
url: https://rosaritolegal.com/guides/collections-contract-disputes
description: How a Rosarito business collects unpaid invoices: demand letters, free mediation, pagarés, the juicio ejecutivo mercantil, 2026 thresholds and deadlines.
---

# Collecting unpaid invoices and contract disputes in Rosarito

Most unpaid business debts in Rosarito are collected under the federal Código de Comercio, not the state civil code. If the debtor signed a pagaré (promissory note), you can usually file an executive claim that starts with a court order to pay or have assets seized. Without one, you prove the debt with the contract, the CFDI invoices and signed delivery receipts, so keep them from day one.

**Estimates only.** Every fee, tax, cost and total on this page is an estimate; the final amounts are set by each office, bank, notary or provider when paid. Rosarito Legal confirms figures only in a written quote.

## Is my claim commercial (mercantil) or civil?

The Código de Comercio lists the acts of commerce (Art. 75): buying goods to resell them, supply contracts, títulos de crédito (negotiable instruments such as the pagaré and the cheque) and others. Disputes arising from them are commercial trials (Art. 1049). When a deal is commercial for one side and civil for the other, such as a store selling to a household, commercial law governs (Art. 1050). Commercial cases follow the federal Código de Comercio. Civil cases filed in Playas de Rosarito since 1 March 2026 follow the new oral Código Nacional de Procedimientos Civiles y Familiares (CNPCF). For a commercial claim between private parties, the creditor may choose the state or the federal courts (Constitution, Art. 104, fr. II). Unpaid invoices between businesses, supply contracts, pagarés and bounced cheques are usually commercial; a personal loan between friends usually is not. The firm confirms the route before filing, because the wrong one can cost months.

## Before you sue: demand letters and free mediation

A written demand often decides when the debtor is legally late. If the contract has a due date, default starts the next day; if it has none, default starts when the creditor demands payment in court, or out of court before a notary or witnesses (Código de Comercio Art. 85). A good demand letter states the invoices, dates and principal, the clause or pagaré behind the claim, a deadline, and your own account for payment. Send it so you can prove receipt, or as a notarial demand (requerimiento ante notario) when the date of default matters. Avoid threats; they can backfire in court. Baja California's public mediation service is the Centro Estatal de Justicia Alternativa of the state judiciary, governed by the Ley de Justicia Alternativa para el Estado de Baja California (Periódico Oficial, 13 February 2026). The law lists a regional office in Playas de Rosarito (Art. 21, fr. IV), and its services are free (Art. 19). Confirm the office's address and hours with the state judiciary (pjbc.gob.mx) before you go. Mediation is voluntary. A signed agreement (convenio), once registered, has the effect of a final judgment (cosa juzgada) between the parties (Art. 124), so if the debtor breaks it you enforce the agreement instead of proving the debt again.

## Why a pagaré is the fastest route

The Ley General de Títulos y Operaciones de Crédito (LGTOC) governs the pagaré. A claim on it is executive: the debtor's signature does not have to be recognized first (Art. 167, applied by Art. 174), and the defenses are limited to the list in Art. 8, such as forgery or a missing requirement. When the claim is admitted, the judge orders the debtor to pay and, if not, to have enough assets seized (embargo) to cover the debt and costs (Código de Comercio Art. 1392). A pagaré must contain (LGTOC Art. 170):

- The word pagaré in the text, and an unconditional promise to pay a set sum of money.
- The name of the person to be paid.
- When and where it is payable. Without a due date it is payable on sight; without a place, at the signer's domicile (Art. 171).
- The date and place of signing, and the signature of the debtor or of whoever signs for them.
- Optionally, an aval: a guarantor who signs the note and answers for it (aval rules apply through Art. 174).
- Cheques also qualify. A bounced cheque, if the drawer is to blame, owes damages of no less than 20% of its value (Art. 193).

## Which trial applies in 2026?

The route depends on whether you hold an executive document (Código de Comercio Art. 1391 lists them: títulos de crédito, final judgments, public instruments with a liquid and due debt, and invoices or contracts signed by the debtor and recognized in court) and on the principal claimed, without interest. The Article 1339 amount for 2026, MXN 924,300.58, was set by the Secretaría de Economía agreement published in the DOF on 18 February 2026.

| Route | When it applies | Principal claimed, MXN 2026 (estimate) | What to expect | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Juicio ejecutivo mercantil (written) | Pagaré, cheque or other executive document | Below 924,300.58, or above the Art. 1390 Ter 1 cap | Order to pay or seize assets; 8 days to pay or answer; no appeal below 924,300.58 | Código de Comercio Arts. 1339, 1392, 1396 |
| Juicio ejecutivo mercantil oral | Same documents | 924,300.58 up to the cap (MXN 4,000,000 as written in Art. 1390 Ter 1; no updated 2026 figure has been published) | Oral hearings; no ordinary appeal | Arts. 1390 Ter 1, 1390 Ter 2 |
| Juicio oral mercantil | Commercial claims without an executive document | Any amount | Oral hearings; no ordinary appeal; not for undetermined amounts or special procedures | Arts. 1390 Bis, 1390 Bis 1 |
| Juicio ordinario mercantil | Appealable claims with no special procedure, such as undetermined amounts | Not set by amount | Written, with appeal | Art. 1377 |
| Civil claim (oral CNPCF) | Civil debts filed in Rosarito since 1 March 2026 | Not set by amount | Oral civil procedure | State Congress declaratoria, Periódico Oficial, 30-Jan-2026 |

*Estimates only. Final amounts are set by each office, bank, notary or provider at the time of payment. The Art. 1339 amount is the 2026 figure published in the DOF. The Art. 1390 Ter 1 cap is the figure written in the Code, because no updated amount has been published; your lawyer confirms the route before filing.*

## What evidence wins a collection case?

The Código de Comercio admits any evidence that can convince the judge, including documents, photographs and data messages (Art. 1205), and weighs emails and other data messages by how reliably they were created and kept (Art. 1298-A). If you hold a signed private document with a liquid, overdue debt, you can ask the judge, before trial, to have the debtor recognize the signature, amount and cause (Art. 1165); once recognized, it can support an executive claim. Gather:

- The signed contract or purchase order, with price, payment term and delivery terms.
- CFDI invoices with their XML. A CFDI proves you issued the invoice through SAT; it does not prove the client received the goods, so pair it with the next item.
- Signed delivery receipts (acuse de recibo, remisión), with name, date and stamp.
- Partial payments and acknowledgments. An acknowledgment of the debt interrupts prescription (Art. 1041) and restarts the period from that day (Art. 1042).
- Emails and WhatsApp messages where the debtor admits the amount or asks for time, complete and dated.

## How long do I have? Prescription periods

Prescription is the deadline after which a claim is lost. Do not wait for the last month.

| Claim | Period | Counted from | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Pagaré | 3 years | Its due date | LGTOC Arts. 165, 174 |
| Cheque, last holder | 6 months | End of the presentation period | LGTOC Art. 192 |
| Retailers' sales on credit (ventas al fiado) | 1 year | Each sale, unless there is a current account | Código de Comercio Art. 1043, fr. I |
| Partners and company, under the company contract | 5 years | When the claim could be filed | Arts. 1040, 1045, fr. I |
| Other commercial claims | 10 years | When the claim could be filed | Arts. 1040, 1047 |

## Interest and penalties

A late commercial debtor owes, from the day after the due date, the default interest agreed or, if none, 6% a year, the interés legal mercantil (Código de Comercio Art. 362). On a pagaré, default interest runs at the rate stated for it, otherwise the note's ordinary rate, otherwise the legal rate (LGTOC Art. 174). On a pagaré the parties may agree the rate, but Mexico's Supreme Court has held that the agreed interest must not be usurious, and that a judge who finds a rate notoriously usurious may reduce it on its own initiative (Primera Sala jurisprudence 1a./J. 46/2014 and 1a./J. 47/2014). Choose a rate you could defend. With a penalty clause, the creditor claims either performance or the penalty, not both (Código de Comercio Art. 88). A fixed percentage per month of delay is easier to defend than a large lump sum.

## Collecting from a debtor who lives abroad

Many Rosarito businesses sell to clients in the U.S. or Canada. A Mexican court can hear the case when the contract or the law gives it jurisdiction, but serving a debtor abroad takes time: notices go by exhorto (a request to another court), and diligences abroad can go through Mexico's foreign service (Código de Comercio Arts. 1071, 1073). A Mexican judgment is enforced most directly against assets in Mexico: real estate, vehicles, bank accounts, a business. If the debtor starts moving them, the Code lists precautionary measures the judge can order (Art. 1168). If the only assets are abroad, the judgment must be recognized under that country's rules; ask a lawyer licensed there, since Rosarito Legal practises Mexican law only.

## Protect your business: contract clauses that make collection easier

Most collection problems are decided before the sale. These clauses cost little and help if you ever sue.

| Clause | What it does | Tip | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Payment terms | A due date makes default start the next day | Use a calendar date or days from delivery | Código de Comercio Arts. 83, 85 |
| Default interest | Avoids the 6% legal rate | Fixed, reasonable annual rate | Art. 362 |
| Penalty (pena convencional) | Sets damages for breach in advance | You claim the penalty or performance, not both | Art. 88 |
| Jurisdiction in Baja California | Names the courts for disputes | Valid only if it points to a party's domicile, the place of performance or where the goods are | Arts. 1092, 1093 |
| Pagaré with an aval | Executive document plus a second person who answers | Complete every requirement; one note per installment is common | LGTOC Arts. 170, 174 |
| Guarantees | Deposit, joint obligor (obligado solidario), fianza or pledge | Match it to the size of the credit | Contract terms |
| Notices and mediation | An address in Mexico for notices; a first step at the Centro Estatal de Justicia Alternativa | Short time limit so it cannot delay you | Ley de Justicia Alternativa de B.C. |

*Estimates only. Final amounts are set by each office, bank, notary or provider at the time of payment.*

## How Rosarito Legal can help

Rosarito Legal, the Rosarito office of Galarza Legal, reviews your documents, tells you which route and deadline apply, sends the demand or notarial demand, represents you in mediation, and files and runs the claim in Baja California. It also drafts sales contracts, pagarés and guarantee clauses. The debtor pays into your own account, never through the firm. Send the contract, invoices and a short timeline to info@rosaritolegal.com, call +1 619-568-2424, use the contact page or book a consultation with Lic. Pati Claudia Galarza (Cédula Profesional 15176510), in English or Spanish, at Blvd. Popotla 3009, Playa Encantada, Playas de Rosarito, B.C. 22713.

## Frequently asked questions

### How long do I have to sue on a pagaré?

Three years from its due date (LGTOC Art. 165, applied by Art. 174). After that, a claim on the underlying deal may remain, but it is slower.

### Can I collect an unpaid invoice without a pagaré?

Yes, through a commercial claim proved with the contract, CFDI, delivery receipts and messages. A signed document with a liquid, overdue debt can first be recognized in court (Código de Comercio Art. 1165).

### What interest can I charge a client who pays late?

The agreed rate, or 6% a year if none was agreed (Código de Comercio Art. 362). A judge can reduce a rate it finds notoriously usurious.

### Can I appeal if I lose a small commercial case?

Not if the principal is below MXN 924,300.58 in 2026 (Código de Comercio Art. 1339). Oral commercial trials have no ordinary appeal either, so prepare well the first time.

### My client lives in the U.S. Can I sue in Rosarito?

Often yes, if the contract or the law gives Mexican courts jurisdiction. Service abroad takes longer, and enforcement is easiest against assets in Mexico.

Rosarito Legal (the Rosarito office of Galarza Legal) · Lic. Pati Claudia Galarza, Cédula Profesional 15176510 · Blvd Popotla 3009, Playa Encantada, Playas de Rosarito · +1 619-568-2424 · info@rosaritolegal.com