Acceleration is defined in law as a shortening of the time period in which something is to take place. The concept of acceleration most often arises within the context of contract law. An acceleration clause, also known as an acceleration covenant, may be included within a contract, so as to fully mature the performance due from a party upon a breach of the contract, such as by requiring payment in full upon the contract if a borrower materially breaches a loan agreement. Acceleration clauses are most prevalent in

mortgages A mortgage loan or simply mortgage (), in civil law jurisdicions known also as a hypothec loan, is a loan used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or by existing property owners to raise funds for any pu ...

and similar contracts to purchase

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

in installments. In a mortgage contract, activation of an acceleration clause may operate as a precursor to a foreclosure action through which a lender may legally compel the sale of the property that the borrower acquired by using the mortgage loan. Proceeds from any subsequent sale of the property may be taken by the lender to recover any amount that the borrower still owes under the loan. An acceleration clause was examined in the 1971 Rhode Island Supreme Court case of ''Scullian v. Petrucci'', in which the clause stated: The court found that the language of the clause caused the

statute of limitations A statute of limitations, known in civil law systems as a prescriptive period, is a law passed by a legislative body to set the maximum time after an event within which legal proceedings may be initiated. ("Time for commencing proceedings") In m ...

for the debt owed under the contract be start to run on the date of default, not the date the final payment would otherwise have been due. For lease contracts, without the inclusion of an acceleration clause in a lease, a landlord's right to sue for damages for breach of a lease may accrue on the date the termination date of the lease. With an acceleration clause a landlord may be able to sue for damages when a breach of the lease agreement occurs.

References

{{law-term-stub Legal terminology