Response to 12 Year rule?

I am trying to get my head round this whole thorny question of the Limitations Act and the rights or otherwise of Lenders to pursue shortfall claims beyond six years. As far as I can make out from the various postings and the numerous articles and legal stuff I have read, the position is currently the following: 1) The 1980 Limitations Act sets an absolute 6 or 12 year deadline for commencing proceedings for recovering either a simple debt or specialty debt respectively. 2) Proceedings means court action to recover the debt, not writing letters to repossessed borrowers. 3) No definitive court ruling has yet been given on whether or not Mortgage Shortfalls are specialty or simple debts. 4) No definitive court ruling has yet been given on whether or not monies claimed as a result of MIG payouts are specialty or simple debts. 5) No definitive court ruling has yet been given on whether or not waiting years to commence recovery action is contrary to civil rights accorded to us by the Human Riaghts Act 1998. 6) The Council of Mortgage Lenders has agreed a voluntary code of practice not to begin recovery action for shortfall claims beyond six years after the sale of the property. This may mean that the CML has been advised by lawyers that they risk losing a case on the question of simple v specialty debt for mortgage shortfalls, otherwise why would they bother? 7) The CML claims that the six year period starts from the moment the shortfall can be quantified absolutely, in their terms this is the sale date of the property. 8) The Limitations Act sets the starting point at the time where the loss can be reasonably identified. In realistic terms this would in most cases be much earlier, since the lender will already be aware of the likely selling price of a repossessed property even before repossession and will thus know if a loss is likely.

It seems to me that what needs to happen in order for clarity to be brought to the situation, is for a sound legal opinion to be sought from a top property rights barrister, and depending on that advice, a test case or class action be brought arguing that Mortgage Shortfall is a simple debt and as such claims are statute barred after six years unless COURT proceedings have been started.

I am personally willing to contribute to a Home-Repo.org fund to pay for legal advice on this question and would also be willing to contribute to a fighting fund to bring a test case. With appeals to civil rights organisations and others perhaps enough money could be raised to clarify the existing law in this area.

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