CHAPTER 1: GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1156. An obligation is a juridical necessity to give, to do, or not to do.

Obligation- derived from the Latin Word obligatio, which means tying or binding
-a judicial necessity (to give, to do, or not to do) because failure or refusal to perform the obligation gives rise to a right of action.
-obligations are under our civil code. The civil code is the basis/make up of our civil law.
-Civil law is the greater umbrella, in that umbrella 80-90 composes the civil code.
The constitution is the higher one over the civil law
Why is it a juridical necessity?
In case of non-compliance, one of the parties can sue the other in the courts of law.

Natural Obligation- Obligations that do not grant a right of action to enforce their performance although incase of voluntary
fulfillment by the debtor, the latter may not recover what has been delivered or rendered by reason thereof.
-Civil obligation is not the same as Natural Obligation, or Moral Obligation
• Natural obligations are formerly Civil Obligations which due to prescription are no longer enforceable.
• Moral obligation are not enforceable from the very beginning but because of human relationship and consideration, they maybe
complied.

Essential Requisites of an Obligation

Passive Subject (debtor or obligor)- has a duty
Active Subject (creditor or obligee) -has a right
Object or Prestation (subject matter of the obligation) - without it, nothing to perform
Juridical or Legal Tie (Efficient Cause)- agreement or contract

Obligation vs. Right vs. Wrong

Obligation is the act or performance that the law will enforce.
Right is the power that a person has under the law, to demand from another any prestation.
Wrong (cause of action) is an act or omission in violation of the legal right or rights of another.

Kinds of Obligations
According to Subject Matter
•Real Obligation (obligation to give) – the subject matter is a thing that the obligor must deliver to the obligee.
→Generic Real Obligation (GRO) – to give a generic or indeterminate object.
→Specific Real Obligation (SRO) – to give a specific or determinate object.
• Personal Obligation (obligation to do or not to do) – the subject matter is an act to be done or not be done.
→Positive Personal Obligation – obligation to do or to render service.
→Negative Personal Obligation – obligation not to do.

Art. 1157. Obligations arise from: law, contracts, quasi-contracts, acts or omissions punished by law, and quasi-delicts
Sources of Obligations
Law; - obligations imposed by law itself.
Example: Obligation to pay taxes
Contracts; - obligations arising from the stipulations of the parties (Art. 1306)
Quasi-contracts; - obligations arising from lawful, voluntary, and unilateral acts that are enforceable so that no person shall be
unjustly enriched or benefited at the expense of another (Art. 2142)
(Crimes or) Acts or omissions punished by law;
– obligations arising from civil liability as a consequence of a criminal offense (Art. 1161)
Quasi-delicts (or torts) – obligations arising from damaged caused to another through an act or omission, there being fault or
negligence, but no contractual relation exist between the parties (Art. 2176)

Art. 1158 - Obligations derived from law are not presumed. Only those expressly determined in this Code or in special
laws are demandable.

Why is law a source of an obligation?

-Because it is the law, and what the law says must be complied with by all the persons residing in the territory or jurisdiction
covered by the law

Obligations derived from Law are not presumed (even if the law states that, there should be no presumption in regards to that).
Only those expressly stated therein can be demandable.
Regards presumption:
premefatchi(?)/ disputable presumption - resumption that is disputable but a person can adduce evidence to prove otherwise
Conclusive presumption- true from the point of view of the law and cant adduce evidence to prove otherwise since it is what the
law said so

The Philippine Tax Laws provide for the payment of taxes for all Filipino Citizens. You are Filipino citizens. Are you
already obliged to pay your taxes?
• No, since you are not yet gainfully employed. The provision of the law is targeted at those Filipinos who are gainfully employed
since obligations derived from Law are not presumed and only those expressly stated therein can be demandable.

Special laws are those not contained in the Civil Code.

-Examples: Revised Penal Code, National Internal Revenue Code, Securities Regulation Code, Revised Corporation Code,
Negotiable Instruments Law, Insurance Code, Labor Code

Art. 1159 - Obligations arising from contracts have the force of law between the contracting parties and should be
complied with in good faith.

But a contract is not a law but a source of obligation and enforceable?

•Because it has the force of law between the contracting parties

Contractual Obligations
Contract – a meeting of minds between two persons whereby one binds himself with respect to the other to give something or to
render some service (Art. 1305)
Binding force of a contract
-Obligations arising from contracts have the force of law between the contracting parties and should be complied with in good
faith. As a source of enforceable obligation, a contract must be valid and it cannot be valid if it is against the law.
Compliance in Good Faith
-Compliance or performance of an obligation strictly in accordance with the stipulations of terms or conditions as provided in the
contract or agreement.

Art. 1160. Obligations derived from quasi-contracts shall be subject to the provisions of Chapter 1.

Quasi-Contract - is that juridical relation resulting from lawful, voluntary, and unilateral acts by virtue of which the parties
become bound to each other to the end that no one will be unjustly enriched or benefit at the suspense of another
-No agreement was made but the law is trying to avoid in the unfairness of the situation

• In a quasi-contract, there is no consent between the parties. How does it become an obligation in the absence of such?
-Consent is actually supplied by the fiction of law so that there will be fairness

Two kinds of quasi-contracts?

Negotiorum gesto - voluntary management without the consent of the latter
-Ex: you left the dog during the vacation. The neighbor fed it with his voluntarily. Through that, the owner was obliged to pay
back the expenses of feeding the dog.
Solutio idebiti - payment by mistake, where something is received but there is no right to demand and it was unduly delivered
through mistake
-no one shall enrich himself unjustly at the expense of another

Art. 1161. Obligations arising from criminal offenses shall be governed by the penal laws, subject to the provisions of
Article 2177, and Chapter 2.

Delicts - crimes or offenses punishable by our penal laws. Hence, it is with intention.
Kinds of liabilities associated with delicts: civil liabilities and criminal liabilities
Hence a person charged with delicts has them both: civil and criminal obligations
(Our group of laws punishing crimes and offenses is called criminal law. Majority of criminal law is made up of Revised Penal
Code)

What are the kinds of civil liabilities associated with delicts?

•Civil liability in addition to criminal liability
•Criminal liability without civil liability
•Civil liability without criminal liability
The rule is a person who is criminally liable is also civilly liable.

Scope of Civil Liability arising from crime:

•Restitution
• Reparation for damaged caused
• Indemnification for the consequential damages

Example: A stole B’s cellphone. If A is convicted, his civil liability will include:
•The obligation to return the phone or pay its value if it was lost or destroyed;
• Pay for any damage caused to the phone; and
• Pay such other damages B may have suffered as a consequence of A’s crime

Art. 1162- Obligations arising from quasi-delict shall be governed by the provisions of Chap 2

Quasi-delict (tort) - is an act or omission by a person which causes damage to another in his person, property, or rights giving
rise to an obligation to pay for the damage done there being no pre-existing contractual relation between the parties
-A person committing a tort is called a tortfeasor
-No intention but has an act in damaging other people

A person broke the car window of his neighbor. Is that a delict or a quasi-delict?
-Depends. If there is an intention, a delict. If there is none, a quasi-delict.

Situation: A person driving slowly on a lonely provincial road, engrossed and mesmerized listening to a Taylor Swift song,
suddenly lost control of the wheel and crashed his car into the fence of a resident. Since he was driving slowly, he escaped
relatively unharmed from the incident, but there was a slight damage to his car and substantial damage to the fence. Is he still
liable for anything considering that he acted properly and with no malicious intent?
•Yes, since there was still negligence on his part which he caused damage to the property of another. However, there was no
intention so this is an example of a quasi-delict. Furthermore, the resident won't be held liable for the damage to his car since it
was his own fault.

Requisites of Quasi-delict:
• There must be an act or omission;
• There must be fault or negligence;
•.There must be damaged caused;
•There must be a direct relation or connection of cause and effect between the act or omission and the damage; and
•.There is no pre-existing contractual relation between the parties.