NATURE AND EFFECTS OF OBLIGATIONS

(Articles 1163-1178)
1. Concomitant or Accompanying Obligations
a) OBLIGATION TO GIVE (Real Obligation)
i. Difference from Obligation to Do (Personal Obligation)
means that there is a "thing or object" that is to be transferred from one person
to another; if there is none, the act involved is an act of doing and not an act
of giving. pay or to deliver are obligations to give while to construct or to r
epair are obligations to do.
specific pifonnance ( a suit to compel performance of the obligation in court )
is an available legal remedy in obligation to GIVE but not in obligation to DO.
REASON: Constitutional prohibition against involuntary servitude (sec. 18, par.2
,Art.III, Bill of Rihts,1987 Const.)
ii. Object of Obligation to GIVE (Real Obligation)
GENERIC or INDETERMINATE
refers to a class genus
cannot he singled out with particularity
Cannot be destroyed nor lost (Art. 1263)
[Genus Nunquam perit- Generic thing never perishes]
can be replaced
Examples:
a Car
a Doberman dog
a house
P1,ooo
SPECIFIC or DETERMINATE
refers o a definite member of a class or genus
can be singled out with particularity
can be destroyed or lost
irreplaceab1e
Examples:
a Ford Cortina with plate no. NHV 529
the Doberman dog of my neighhbor named "Nightamare"
the house at No.711 Samson Road Caloocan Metro Manila
iii. Concomittant Obligations of Obligation to GIVE if the object is Specif or D
eterminate
aa. To Take Care of to Preserve the object prior to its delivery (Art 1163)
(1) Standard of care required
a. As a Rule - the proper diligence of a good father of a family
Exceptions: (i) If the law so provides; ("extraordinary diligence of a v
ery cautious person for common carriers" - De Leon p.28)
bb. To be 1iable for damages in case of fraud, negligence or delay in the perfo
rmance of the obligation or contravention of the tenor thereof
b) OBLIGATION TO DO (Positive Personal Obligation)
i. To do exactly what was agreed upon
ii. To bear the expenses of doing the obligation if he fails to perform (Art. 11
67)
iii. To undo what was poorly done (Art. 1167)
iv. To pay damages in case of fraud, negligence, delay or contravention of the t
enor of obligation (Art. 1170)
c) OBLIGATION NOT TO DO (Negative Personal Obligation)
i. To abstain from doing the act prohibited to be done
ii. To pay damages in case of fraud, negligence or contravention of the tenor of
obligation (Art. 1170)
(NOTE: There is no delay in obligation not to do)
2. Instances when a party is liable to pay damages (Art. 1170) (FNDC)
a) FRAUD ("DOLO") (Deceit)
i. Meaning of Fraud
- the deliberate or intentional evasion of the normal fulfilment of an obligatio
n (De Leon)
the voluntary and deliberate act to evade the fulfilment of an obligation (Torr
es)
ii. Kinds of Fraud
a. As to manner of commission
(1) Incidental Fraud ("Dolo Incidente") - fraud committed in the perform
ance of the obligation
-contract remains perfectly valid
(2) Casual Fraud ("Dolo Causante") - fraud committed in the execution o
f a contractual obligation (Art. 1338). This kind of fraud "vitiates" consent
-contract becomes voidable
-done before making the contract
SIGNIFICANCE OF DISTINCTION:
If fraud is casual in character, 2 remedies are available - to annul the
contract recover damages. If incidental, only 1 - to recover damages
b. As to Time of Commission
(1) Past Fraud fraud which already happened
(2) Future Fraud fraud which is yet to happen
SIGNIFICANCE OF DISTINCTION:
Waiver for action of future fraud is void (Art. 1171) but not of past fr
aud.
iii. Difference from Negligence
FRAUD ("DOLO")
- Intentional and malicious
- Waiver of action for future fraud is void (Art. 1171)
- Must be clearly proved
- Liability arising from fraud CANNOT BE REDUCED.
NELIGENCE ("CULPA")
- Unintentional and without malice
- Waiver of action for future negligence is VALID (Art. 1171)
- PRESUMED in case of breach of contract
- Liability arising from negligence CAN BE REDUCED
(See Contributory Negligence Rule)
b) NEGLIGENCE ("CULPA")
i. Meaning of Negligence
- Any voluntary act or omission, there rbeing no malice which prevents the norma
l fulfillment of an obligation (De Leon)
- The omission of that diligence which is required by the nature of the obligati
on and corresponds with the circumstances of the person, of the time and of the
place. (Art.1173)
ii. Kinds of Negligence
a. CONTRACTUAL NEGLIGENCE ("Culpa Contractual")
- negligence in the fulfilment of a contract (NOTE: This is not a source of obli
gation)
b.CIVIL NEGLIGENCE (Culpa Aquilania)
- negligence in the doing or omission of an act independent of contract (NOTE: T
his is a source of obligation. It is commonly referred to as "quasi-delict" or
"torts")
c. CRIMINAL NEGLIGENCE (Culpa Criminal)
negligence resulting in the commission of a crime or delict. This form of negli
gence results in 2 kinds of obligation (1) Civil obligation and (2) Criminal ob
ligation
iii. General Principles and Concepts
aa.Damages arising from negligence is recoverable in all kinds of obligations.
bb. Waiver of future negligence is a VALID. (Esception: Where the nature of the
obligation requires the exercise of extraordinary diligence as in the case of co
mmon carriers.) (De Leon p.48)
cc.When negligence show bad faith, it is considered equivalent to fraud. (De Le
on p.48)
dd. Contributory negligence reduces the amount of damages to be recovered by the
injured party. (See Contributory Negligence Doctrine)
ee. If the negligence of the injured party is the immediate and proximate cause
of his inury, no damages may be recovered (Proximate Cause Doctrine)
ff. Factors to consider in determining whether or not a party is negligent:
(i) nature of the obligation
(2) circumstance of person
(3) circumstance of place
(4) circumstance of time
c) LEGAL DELAY ("MORA" or "DEFAULT")
i. Meaning of Legal Delay
- Non performance of the obligation which is already due despite demantd made by
the creditor
ii. Kinds of Legal Delay (Torres)
a. MORA SOLVENDI delay on the part of the debtor to fulfil his obligation to giv
e or tod
(1) Mora Solvendi Ex Re - delay in the giving or delivering of a thing
(2) Mora Solvendi Ex Persona - delay in obligation to do or perform personal s
ervices
b. MORA ACCIPIENDI delay in accepting the delivery of the thing due
c. COMPENSATIO MORAE delay in reciprocal obligation
iii. Requisites for LocaI Delay to Exist
a.There must be non-performance of the obligalion on time (Ordinary Delay)
b.There must be DEMAND either extra judicially or judicially made by the credito
r requiring the debtor to perform his obligation
c.There must be non-performance of the obligation despite the demand made by the
creditor
iv. General Principles and Concepts
a. There is no legal delay in obligation not to do
b. An obligor who delays the performance of his obligation to give shall be resp
onsible for an fortuitous event until he has effected the delivery of the determ
inate thing (Last par. of Art. 1165)
c. Demand is no longer necessary to put the obligor in legal delay in the follow
ing instances; (NOTE: Here ordinary delay is already equivalent to legal delay)
(PLUTO)
(1) P-erformance of a party is undertaking in reciprocal obligation
(2) L-
(3) U-selessness of the Demand
(4) T-ime is of the essence
(5) O-bligation so provides (Art. 1169)
v. Effects of Legal Delay (De Leon pp.40-41)
MORA SOLVENDI
- Debtor is guilty of breach of obligation
- Liable for interest or damages.
- He is liable for a fortuitous event the obligation is to deIiver a determinate
thing
MORA ACCIPIENDI
- Creditor is guiity of breach of obligation
- He is liable for damages
- He bears the risk of loss of the thing due
- Where the obligation is to pay money, the debtor is not liable for interest fr
om the time of creditor's delay
- The debtor may release himself from
obligation by the consignation of the thing or sum due.
COMPENSATIO MORAE
- The delay of the obligor CANCELS the delay of the obligee and visa versa. The
net result is that there is no actionable default on the part of both parties. I
f the delay of one party is followed by that of the other, the
liability of the first infractor shall be equitably tempered by the courts. It c
annot be determined which of the parties is guilty of delay, the contract shall
be deemed extinguished and each shall bear his own negligence.
d) CONCEPT OF FORTUITOUS EVENT
i. Meaning of Fortuitous Event
An event which cannot be foreseen or which though foreseen is inevitable. (Art.
1174)
ii. Kinds cf Fortuitous Event
a. As to Manner 0f Occurrence
(1) Totally unexpected (Unforeseen)
Ex: Earthquakes, Robbery
(2) Expected but cannot he prevented (Foreseen but inevitable)
Ex: volcanic, eruption, typhoon, etc.
b. As to its Nature
(1) Acts of Man - an event independent of the wills of the obligor but not of ot
her human wills
Ex: War, Coup d'etat, crime, arson
(2) Acts of God (Force Majure) - an event which totally independent of the will
of every human being.
Ex. Natural calamities such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, typhoons and tor
nados.
iii. Requisites for exemption from liability due to fortuitous event (FIRE)
(1) F ree from any participation in the aggravation of the creditors injury. Debt
or IIILISL not be guilty of concurrent negligence.
(2) I ndependent of human wiII or at least of the debtors will must be the chara
cter of the event
(3) R-enders it impossible for the debtor to comply with his obligation must be
the result of the event
(4) E-vent must be one which cannot be foreseen or if foreseen is inevitable to
happen
iv. Instances where the debtor remains liable although the non-performance of th
e obligation is due to fortuitous event (LAN)
(1) L aw so provides INSTANCES:
a. in case of FRAUD
b in case of NEGLIGENCE
c. in case of LEGAL DELAY
d. in case the debtor contravenes, in any manner, the tenor of the obligation
e. in case the debtor promised to deliver the same thing to 2 or more persons W
HO DO NOT HAVE THE SAME INTEREST (Last par. of Art. 1165)
f. in case the debtors obligation arises from crime (Art. 1268)
g. in cac.e the thing to be delivered is GENERIC (Art.1263)

(2) A greement in writing or stipulation of the parties so provides
(3) N ature of the obligation requires assumption of the risk
- determined by specific provisions of law applicable
PERSONAL RIGHT
- there is a definite active subject and a definite passive subject
- the right acquired is enforceable against a particular person (against the de
finite passive subject)
REAL RIGHT
- there is a definite active subject but NO passive subject
- the right acquired is enforceable against the whole world (against all persons
)
cc. To DELIVER all its ACCESSIONS and ACCESSORIES even though they may not
have been mentioned (Art. 1166)
ACCESSIONS
- fruits of a thing or additions to or improvements upon a thing (Dc Leon)
Examples:
- a house on a land
- a factory
- airconditioner of a car
- cover of a ballpen
- harvests of a land
- trees on a land
ACCESSORIES
- things joined to another as an ornament or to make it complete (Torres)
Examples:
- key to a house
- machineries of a factory
- wheels of a car
- ink of a ballpen
- lens of a telescope
- roofings of a house
dd. To DELIVER the thing itself (De Leon p.29)
(1) Significance of DeIivery" or "Tradicion"
- Ownership and other real rights over property are acquired and transmitted con
sequence of certain contracts by tradition or delivery. Mere agreement does aff
ect transfer of ownership (De Leon p.32)
ee. To answer for damages in the event of FRAUD, NEGLIGENCE, DELAY CONTRAVENTION
in any manner of the tenor of the obligation (Art.1170)

If the parties stipulate another standard of care (may be higher or lower standa
rd of care but NEVER absolute exemption, De Leon p.29)
b. Rules and Limitations (De Leon pp. 28-29)
(i) The diligence required depends upon the nature of the obligation, and the ci
rcumstances of person, time and place (Art.1173)
(ii) If the diligence required is not observed due to fortuitous event, the obli
gor is not liable (Art.1174) (NOTE: Exceptions De Leon pp. 54-56)
(iii) Parties may agree to a lower or higher standard of diligence but not to to
tal or absolute exemption from liability in case of negligence (De Leon p.29)
Reason: Against public policy
bb. To Deliver its FRUITS from the time the obligation to deliver the principal
thing arises (Art. 1164)
(1) Meaning of "FRUIT"
- any product of a thing of juridical relation
(2) Kinds of FRUITS
NATURAL FRUITS
spontaneous products of the soil and the young and other products of animals
Examples:
- wild trees
- eggs of chickens
- young of animals produced through normal breeding
- milk of cow
- uncultured fishes
INDUSTRIAL FRUITS
- those produced by lands of any kind through cultivation of labor.
Examples:
- grafted trees planted
- young of animals produced through artificial insemination
- cultured fishes
- vegetables
CIVIL FRUITS
those derived by virtue of juridcal relation
Examples:
- rentals of boarding houses
- interest of a loan
- dividends of stockholdings
- profits derived from sale
(3) Time when the obligation to deliver arises
a. As a rule (De Leon p.31)
-from the perfection of the contract (see De Leon pp.249-252)
Qualifications:
(i) If subject to a condition or period
- from the time of fulfilment of the condition or expiration of the period
(ii) If a contract of sale
-from the perfection of the contract
(iii) If obligation arising from law, quasi-contract, delicts or quasi-delicts