Recourse refers to the act of the holder requesting the previous endorser or drawer to repay the amount and expenses of the bill when the bill is refused to be paid. The holder or endorser must exercise his right of recourse within the statutory period, otherwise he will lose his right of recourse. The British “Bills of Exchange Act” stipulates that the period for retaining the right of recourse is 6 years, while the “Geneva Uniform Law” stipulates that the period for the holder to exercise the right of recourse against the previous endorser or drawer is 1 year, and the period for the endorser to exercise the right of recourse against his previous endorser is half a year.
The holder must meet the following conditions to exercise the right of recourse: ① The holder holds a qualified bill, that is, the record of the bill and the continuity of the endorsement are qualified; ② The holder must present the bill within the prescribed time and be refused; ③ The holder makes a rejection certificate and a notice of refusal within the prescribed time and notifies the previous holder.
The holder can pursue the bill debtors one by one in the order of their order, or exercise the right of recourse against any one, several or all of them in any order.