INTRODUCTION TO LAW Sanction:
• LAW – any rule of action or any system of
uniformity
- determines the movements or motions
of all objects of creation whether
animate of inanimate
General Divisions of Law
• STATE LAW – law in the strict legal sense
which is promulgated and
enforced by the state
• DIVINE LAW – law in the non-legal sense
which is not promulgated and
enforced by the state
- includes divine law, natural law,
moral law, and physical law
Subjects of Law
• Apply to men as rational beings ONLY
- State law, natural law and moral law
• PHYSICAL LAW (Law only on figuratively
speaking)
- Operates on all things, including men,
without regard to the latter’s use of
their will power and intelligence
• DIVINE LAW – law of religion and faith with
the concern of the concept of
sin and salvation
Source:
- it is formally promulgated by God and
revealed to mankind by means of
direct revelation
- embodied in Ten Commandments;
believed to be formally given by God
through Moses, the great Hebrew
prophet and leader
- embodied in the Muslim Quoran
(Mohammedans)
- lies in the assurance of certain rewards
and punishments in the present or
future life
• NATURAL LAW – divine inspiration in man of
the sense of justice, fairness, and
righteousness, not by divine
revelation of formal promulgation
but by internal dictates of reason
alone
Binding Force:
- present and binding on all men
everywhere and at all times
Compared to divine law
- natural law is said to be impressed in
man as the core of his higher self at
the very moment of being or, perhaps,
even before that.
• MORAL LAW – totality of the norms of good
and right conduct and influences
or shapes state law
Sanction:
- no definite legal sanction (punishment
imposed by law)
- disregarding moral norms create
spontaneous social reaction like public
displeasure, contempt or even
indignation
Binding Force:
- not absolute and varies with the
changing times, conditions or
convictions of the people
• PHYSICAL LAW – uniformities of actions and
orders of sequence which are the
physical phenomena that we
sense and feel
* Order or regularity in nature – a law of
physical science, being
addressed to objects which have
no power to disobey of which
certain results follow certain
causes
* Called law only by analogy – law of
gravitation and chemical combination
• STATE LAW – law that is promulgated and
enforced by the state
- also called positive, municipal,
civil or imperative law
- the law connected with
obligations and contracts,
marriage, administration of
justice, conduct of elections
and entire governmental
process itself
- enforced by the state
- does not concern itself with
violations of the latter rules of
actions unless they also
constitute violations of its
commands
CONCEPT OF STATE LAW
• GENERAL SENSE
- term refers to all the laws taken
together
- maybe defined as the mass of
obligatory rules established for the
purpose of governing the relations of
persons in society
- examples are “law of the land”, “rule of
law and not of men”, “equality before
the law” & “enforcement of the law”
• SPECIFIC SENSE
- defined as a rule of conduct, just,
obligatory, promulgated by legitimate
authority, and of common observance
and benefit (e.g. law on Oblicon)
CHARACTERISTICS OF LAW
• IT IS A RULE OF CONDUCT – law tells us
what should be done and what
shall not and takes cognizance of
external acts only
• IT IS OBLIGATORY – considered as a
positive command imposing a
duty to obey of which it sanction
forces obedience
• IT IS PROMULGATED BY LEGITIMATE
AUTHORITY – legitimate authority is the
legislature under a democratic
country
- under Constitution, laws called
“statutes” are enacted by
Congress
* Congress – the name of the legislative
branch of our government
• IT IS OF COMMON OBSERVANCE AND
BENEFIT – intended by man to serve man
- regulates relations of men to
maintain harmony in society and
make order and co-existence
possible
NECESSITY AND FUNCTIONS OF LAW
• Life without law would be the same as
it is now but no society can be stable in
which either of the requirements in
internal order or external defense fails
to be provided for
• Law secures justice, resolves social conflict,
orders society, protects interests, control
social relations. Life without basic laws (theft,
violence and destruction) would be solitary,
nasty, brutish, and short. Life without other
laws (traffic, sanitation, and business) would
be less orderly, less healthful, and etc.
• Every citizen should have some
understanding of law and observe it for the
common good
SOURCES OF LAW • JUDICIAL DECISIONS OR JURISPUDENCE
– the decision of the Supreme
• CONSTITUTION – the written instrument by
Court, applying or interpreting
which the fundamental powers of
the laws or the Constitution
the government are established,
form part of the legal system of
limited, and defined
the Philippines
- these powers are distributed
- decisions of a superior court on
among the several departments
a point of law are binding on all
for their safe and useful exercise
subordinate courts which is
for the benefit of the people
called the doctrine of precedent
- often referred to as the or stare decisis
fundamental law or supreme law
- Supreme Court may reverse or
of the land because it I s
modify any of its previous
promulgated by the people
rulings
themselves, binding on all
individual citizens and all • CUSTOM – consists of those habits and
agencies of the government practices which through long and
uninterrupted usage have
- all laws enacted by legislature
become acknowledged and
must conform
approved by society as binding
• LEGISLATION – consists of the declaration of rules of conduct
the legal rules by a competent
- must be proved as a fact
authority
according to the rules of
- the preponderant source of law evidence
in the Philippines
- acts passed by legislature are
RULE IN CASE OF DOUBT IN
so-called enacted law or statute
INTERPRETATION OR APPLICATION OF
law
LAWS
- it includes ordinances enacted
• No judge or court shall decline to render
by local government units
judgment by reason of silence, obscurity or
• ADMINISTRATIVE OR EXECUTIVE insufficiency of the laws
ORDERS, REGULATIONS AND RULINGS –
• In case of doubt, it is presumed that the
issued by administrative officials
lawmaking body intended right and justice to
under legislative authority
prevail
- intended to clarify or explain the
ORGANS OF SOCIAL CONTROL
law and carry it into effect its
general provisions • SOCIAL CONTROL – the control of social
behavior that affects others
- Administrative acts are valid
only when they are not contrary • Organs of social controls include churches,
to the laws and Constitution corporations, schools, trade associations,
labor unions and etc.
LAW COMPARED WITH OTHER MEANS OF
SOCIAL CONTROL
• Laws are made and administered by the only
institutions in society authorized to act in
behalf of the entire citizenry. SC act only for
their members.
• Only the legal institutions within the society
can make rules, regulations and orders with
which the entire citizenry must comply. SC
govern only limited numbers.
• People associated with an organization can
ordinarily terminate their relationship and
thereby free themselves from the impact of its
rules and regulations. SC – citizens of the
state cannot do this unless they leave the
geographical area.
• The sanctions or techniques of control
through law are more varied and complex
than the techniques available to
organizations. A sanction is remedial if the
object is the indemnification of the person
who has suffered damages or injury from a
violation of law and penal if the object is the
punishment of the violator
• Before the law operates against an individual,
various procedural steps are required.
Individual must ordinarily be given a hearing
and a fair opportunity which is commonly
referred to as due process of law
ORGANIZATION OF COURTS
• REGULAR COURTS – in a resemblance of a
pyramid: Supreme Court at the apex
and the other courts are Court of
Appeals, Regional Trial Court and
Metropolitan Trial Courts in cities not
forming part of a metropolitan area and
in municipalities; and Municipal Circuit
Trial Courts in areas defined as
municipal circuits
- Circuit Courts exercise
jurisdiction over two or more cities
and/or municipalities
- Supreme Court, Court of Appeals and
RTC are considered courts of general
or superior jurisdiction
• SPECIAL COURTS – Sandiganbayan which
forms part of the judicial hierarchy
together with the Court of Tax Appeals –
a special tax court created by law on the
same level as the Court of Appeals
• QUASI-JUDICIAL AGENCIES – involve the
settlement or adjudication of
controversies or disputes
CLASSIFICATIONS OF LAW
• As to its purpose
* SUBSTANTIVE LAW – the portion of
the body of law creating, defining, and
regulating rights and duties which may
be either public or private in character
such as law of obligation and contracts
* ADJECTIVE LAW – portion of the body
prescribing the manner or procedure by
which rights may be enforced or their
violations redressed. Sometimes called
remedial or procedural law
• As to its subject matter
* PUBLIC LAW – body of legal rules
which regulates the rights and
duties arising from the
relationship of the state to the
people (examples are below)
- Criminal Law – defines crimes and
provides for their punishment
- International Law – governs the
relations among nations or states
- Constitutional Law – governs the
relations between the state and
its citizens which establishes the
fundamental powers of the
government
 - Administrative Law – governs the
methods by which the functions
CONCLUSIVE PRESUMPTION OF
of administrative authorities are
KNOWLEDGE OF LAW
to be performed
- Art. 3 of Civil Code “Ignorance of law
- Criminal Procedure – branch of private
excuses no one from compliance
law which governs the methods
therewith”
of trial and punishment in criminal
cases Everyone is conclusively presumed to know
the law for the following reasons:
• if laws are not binding, social life will
* PRIVATE LAW – the body of rules which
be impossible – laws cannot be
regulates the relations of
enforced due to their being unknown to
individuals with one another for
many
purely private ends (civil law,
commercial law or civil • It is almost impossible to prove the
procedure) contrary when a person claims
ignorance of the law
- state is an arbiter and not as a
party in a private law • It is absurd to absolve those who do
not know the law and increase the
- Civil Procedure – the branch of private law
obligations of those who know it
which provides for the means by
which private rights may be
enforced

LAW ON OBLIGATIONS AND CONTRACTS

DEFINED
- body of rules which deals with the
nature and sources of obligations and
the rights and duties arising from
agreements and the particular
contracts

CIVIL CODE OF THE PHILIPPINES

- Oblicon is fouond in RA No. 386 (Civil
Code of the Philippines) which is
based mainly on the Civil Code of the
Spain which took effect on December
7, 1889.
- Approved as RA No. 386 on June 18,
1949 and took effect on August 30,
1950
-- divided into 4 books (Oblicon is Book
IV)