The 4th Panel of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) ruled that the amount expressly recognized by the debtor during the liquidation of a judgment is considered a net part of the debt (i.e. it is determined precisely, without the need for additional calculations or adjustments) and can be collected even if the remaining balance is still to be calculated.
In the case in question, the creditor began the liquidation phase of a final judgment, which ordered the debtors to pay compensation in an amount to be determined in liquidation proceedings. The creditor presented the amount it considered due (R$264,615,500.93), but the debtors disagreed and claimed that the correct amount was R$15,026,260.99.
The court of first instance ruled that the amount declared by the debtors was uncontroversial and authorized the enforcement of the judgment on that amount, with liquidation proceeding on the disputed amount.
After the debtors filed an appeal, the São Paulo Court of Justice upheld the decision. A special appeal was lodged with the STJ against this ruling (REsp 2067458/SP), on the grounds that it is not possible to begin the enforcement phase of the judgment while the liquidation of the judgment on the remaining balance is pending.
In his vote, the reporting judge, Antônio Carlos Ferreira, ensured that if the appellants recognized the amount of R$15,026,260.99 as being due, this is the minimum they are owed and, up to this amount, the debt is net. The rapporteur also recalled that art. 509, § 1, CPC, expressly authorizes the net amount to be immediately demanded by the creditor, and this understanding is followed by the prevailing case law of the STJ.
Thus, the 4th Panel dismissed the special appeal filed by the debtors and authorized the immediate collection of the amount recognized by them in the liquidation phase of the sentence.
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