Short answer. Not from the person you paid. If they acted in good faith when they destroyed the evidence or let the action prescribe, they are exempt from returning the money. Your claim is redirected to the actual debtor or the guarantors whose liability has not yet prescribed.
What the law says
He shall be exempt from the obligation to restore who, believing in good faith that the payment was being made of a legitimate and subsisting claim, destroyed the document, or allowed the action to prescribe, or gave up the pledges, or cancelled the guaranties for his right.
Civil Code, Article 2162 — Payee Who Destroyed His Evidence. Read the full provision →
When the payee is protected from having to return the money
Article 2162 of the Civil Code creates a good-faith defense for payees. He shall be exempt from the obligation to restore who, believing in good faith that the payment was being made of a legitimate and subsisting claim, destroyed the document, or allowed the action to prescribe, or gave up the pledges, or cancelled the guaranties for his right. The core idea is that someone who received your payment, honestly believed it was a valid payment of a real debt, and then relied on that belief by releasing their evidence or collateral, should not be punished for your error.
Where your claim goes instead
The protection for the payee does not leave you without a remedy entirely. Article 2162 directs that he who paid unduly may proceed only against the true debtor or the guarantors with regard to whom the action is still effective. Your claim is redirected to the person who actually owed the debt that you mistakenly paid, or to any guarantors whose liability has not yet prescribed. You have a claim against the real debtor — even if you paid the wrong person — because the real debtor was unjustly enriched when your payment satisfied their obligation.
Why good faith matters
The exemption applies only when the payee acted in good faith — believing that the payment was being made on a real, valid, and still-existing claim. A payee who knew the debt had already been paid, or who knew the payment was not actually owed to them, cannot rely on this protection. If the payee was aware that the debt did not exist or had been extinguished, they cannot claim good faith when they then destroyed the evidence. Proving or disproving the payee's good faith is often the central issue in disputes about this provision.
What this means practically
If the payee genuinely acted in good faith — they received what they thought was a valid payment, they cancelled or destroyed the underlying documents believing the matter was settled, and they can demonstrate that reasonably — pursuing them for return of the payment is unlikely to succeed. Your path forward is to go after the true debtor. Identify who actually owed the debt that your payment satisfied, and pursue them for reimbursement. The real debtor cannot complain: your mistaken payment relieved them of an obligation they were supposed to fulfill.