The legal status of a bill of exchange that has expired and the possibility of the bill creditor on applying the primary debt relationship

Bills of exchange, as a rule, are issued for purposes such as facilitating or securing the performance of the basic debt relationship that already exists between the parties. Moreover, these securities are independent and creative, so they enable the formation of two separate legal relations parallel to each other among the persons. These legal relations, which are called an exchange relationship and a primary debt relationship, are independent from each other within the scope of the principle of abstraction, but they are in interaction. At this point, we encounter the concepts of performance for the sake of performance, performance instead of performance, guarantee or renewal. As a rule, a negotiable instrument is an act for the sake of performance. However, there is no legal obstacle to explicitly agreeing or interpreting the concrete case differently in the opposite direction. In the event that the bill of exchange is an act for the sake of performance, the primary debt does not expire unless the creditor is satisfied with the promissory note. Also, although the dominant view in the literature is different, in order for the creditor to apply to the principal debt, he/she must try to collect the bill of exchange or at least the statute of limitations on the bond/policy and the presentation period on the check must expire. In terms of default, a distinction should be made according to whether the person to be applied under the bill of exchange is the debtor of the main debt relationship or not. According to this distinction, the default will occur when the bill of exchange is demanded, or a notice of default is issued, or a lawsuit/enforcement proceeding is initiated. The nature of these documents as proof of the primary debt relationship is also quite important. Bills of exchange are essentially prima facie evidence of the primary debt relationship. However, optional clauses may cause this nature to change.