If a counterclaim is filed in violation of this requirement, it shall be returned to the applicant by a court order.

We remind that according to the frequent 8 Art. 165 of the Code of Civil Procedure of Ukraine, the reference shall be filed within the time limit set by the court, which may not be less than 15 days from the date of the order to open the proceedings. At the same time, according to Art. 116 of the Code of Civil Procedure of Ukraine, the running of the procedural deadline begins on the next day after the corresponding calendar date or occurrence of the event, with which its beginning starts.

If the expiration of the term falls on the weekend, festive or other non-working day, the last day of the term is the first working day following it.

The last day of the period lasts up to 24 hours, but when during this time it was necessary to perform procedural action only in the court, where the working time expires earlier, the term expires at the time of the end of this time.

The term is not considered to be missed if, before its expiration, the application, the complaint, other documents or materials or funds are put in the mail or transferred by other appropriate means of communication.

At the same time, the prefix "to" with a calendar date in the Ukrainian language is used to denote a final calendar entry into force or execution of something. In particular, such a position is contained in the Supreme Court judgments of 25.04.2018 in the case No. 803/350/17 and in the case No. 815/4720/16, dated June 13, 2018 in the case No. 815/1298/17, dated August 14, 2018 in the case № 803/1387/17, dated 08/28/2018 in case number 814/4170/15).

In view of the foregoing, the Supreme Court in the case No. 927/490/18, in a ruling of October 8, 2018, concluded that there was no ground for the return of the defendant counterclaim. Moreover, in the opinion of the Supreme Court, the filing of a counterclaim is not a procedural act that can take place only in court within the working hours, as required by the norms of Part 6 of Article 116 of the Code of Civil Procedure. A counterclaim may be filed by lodging an application to the post office on the day that determines the expiration of the term. And such a term may not be less than 15 days from the date of the order to open the proceedings.