Título XIII. Reposicion de protocolos

The Notary, upon learning of the loss, destruction or deterioration of the protocol, shall give notice to the judge of First Instance of his domicile for purposes of the replacement. Persons who, according to the Code of Criminal Procedure, may report a public crime, also have the right to bring to the attention of the judge the fact that makes replacement of the protocol necessary.

The judge shall conduct the corresponding inquiry, and upon its completion shall decide declaring the restoration warranted, and in case of crime, shall order that criminal procedure be opened against the alleged culprits.

Once the reconstitution is declared admissible, the judge shall request from the Supreme Court of Justice copies of the certified copies sent by the notary corresponding to the protocol to be reconstituted, which shall serve for the reconstitution. In the event that such certified copies are not on file in the Protocol Archive for any reason, the copies on file in the Registry of Immovable Property shall be requested, and the executing parties and interested persons shall be summoned, requiring them to present the certified copies or copies in their possession. The summons shall be effected by notices to be published three times during one month in the Official Gazette and in another newspaper of greatest circulation in the locality. If the certified copy of the index of the protocol to be reconstituted exists, the notices shall contain the list of the executing parties.

If presentation of testimonios or legalized copies is not possible, and the deeds have been registered, the judge shall request certification of the entries of the Immovable Property Register or of the duplicates existing therein.

If any instruments still remain to be restored, the Judge shall again summon the interested parties, to record in a record the points that such instruments contained.

In case of disagreement among the grantors, or if their appearance should not be possible, the interested parties shall enforce their rights in ordinary proceedings.

With the copies of the testimonios and legalized copies presented, with the certifications of the registries, or with due record of the points on which the grantors are in agreement, the lost or rendered-unusable protocol shall be reconstituted.

When the following formal errors are incurred in the protocol: altering the cardinal numbering of the instruments, that of the foliation or the order of the series; leaving a blank page or rendering useless a sheet or sheets of the protocol, the notary shall apply to a judge of First Instance of the civil order, who, upon verifying the error and in view of the reasons stated by the notary, may order the amendment, a record being drawn up for that purpose, a certification of which shall be added among the supporting documents of the protocol.

The expenses occasioned by the replacement of the protocol shall be borne by the Notary, who, in turn, may claim the value of such expenses from the person found to be at fault.