REFRESHER IN LAW IN GENERAL

1. Give the definition of law

Law means any rule of action or any system of uniformity. Law, in general,
determines not only the activities of men as rational beings but also the movements or
motions of all objects of creation, whether animate or inanimate.
2. What are the different kinds of law?
 Divine Law – the law of religion and faith which concerns itself with the concept of
sin (as contrasted with the crime) and salvation.
 Natural Law – the divine inspiration in man of the sense of justice, fairness, and
righteousness, not by divine revelation or formal promulgation, but by internal
dictates of reason alone.
 Moral Law - the totality of the norms of good and right conduct growing out of the
collective sense of right and wrong of every community.
 Physical Law – the uniformities of actions and orders of sequence which are the
physical phenomena that we sense and feel.
 State Law – the law which is promulgated and enforced by the state.
3. Elements of a valid law
 Rule of Conduct – Law tells us what shall be done and what shall not be done. As a
rule of human conduct, law takes cognizance of external acts only.
 Obligatory – Law is considered a positive command imposing a duty to obey and
involving a sanction which forces obedience.
 Promulgated by Legitimate Authority – Under the Constitution, laws called statutes
are enacted by Congress which is the name of the legislative branch of our
government; local government units are also empowered to enact ordinances which
have the binding force of law.
 Common observance and benefit – Law is intended by man to serve man. It
regulates the relation of men to maintain harmony in society and to make order and
co-existence possible.
4. Give the purposes of law
  To structure the government
 To protect citizens from the Government
 To protect minorities from majorities
 Setting standards of conduct behavior
 To create orderly change
 To resolve disputes peacefully
 To punish wrong doers
 To compensate victims
5. Give the effects of law upon humanity and social relationships
 Laws are made and administered by the only institutions in society authorized to act
in behalf of the entire citizenry.
 Only the legal institutions within the society can make rules, regulations and orders
with which the entire citizenry must comply.
 People associated with an organization can ordinarily terminate their relationship
and thereby free themselves from the impact of its rules and regulations.
 The sanctions or techniques of control through law are more varied and complex
than the techniques available to organizations such as churches, labor unions, and
political parties.
 Before the law operates against an individual, various procedural steps are required.
OBLIGATION, DEFINITION, SOURCES
1. Memorize Article 1156
Article 1156. An obligation is a juridical necessity to give, to do, or not to do.
2. Define juridical necessity
Juridical Necessity connotes that in case of noncompliance, the courts of justice
may be called upon by the aggrieved party to enforce its fulfillment or, in default
thereof, the economic value that it represents.
3. Essential requisites of an obligation
 Passive subject (called debtor or obligor) or the person who is bound to the
fulfillment of the obligation; he who has a duty
  Active subject (called creditor or obligee) or the person who is entitled to demand
the fulfillment of the obligation; he who has a right;
 Object or prestation (subject matter of the obligation) or the con- duct required to
be observed by the debtor.

 Juridical or legal tie (also called efficient cause) or that which binds or connects the
parties to the obligation. The tie in an obligation can easily be determined by
knowing the source of the obligation.
4. Give 3 examples each obligation of to give, to do and not to do.
To give
 A agrees to give her puppy to B for the consideration of 500 pesos.
 X binds himself to give her daughter Y a car on her 18th birthday
 Z pays Y her driver 10,000 pesos for his advance remuneration.
To do
 A drives B to her work in exchange of 500 pesos
 X paints the wall of Y for a fee of 1000 pesos
 Z repairs the watch of Y in consideration of 800 pesos
Not to do
 A obliges himself not to build a fence on a certain portion of his lot in favor of Y
who is entitled to a right of way over said lot.
 X binds himself not to litter in observance of the city ordinance
 Z agrees not to return the video console of Y in exchange of her laptop.
5. Memorize Article 1157
Article 1157. Obligations arise from:
1) Law
2) Contracts
3) Quasi-Contracts
4) Acts or ommissions punished by law, and
5) Quasi-delicts
6. Define each source of law and give an example each
 Law – imposed by law itself
Employers’ obligation to pay 13th Month Pay to employees in accordance to
Presidential Decree No. 851
Contracts – meeting of minds between two persons whereby one binds himself, with
respect to the other, to give something or to render some service.
The obligation to repay a loan or indebtedness by virtue of agreement.
Quasi-contracts – 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 benefited at the expense of another.
A went to Olongapo with his family without leaving somebody to look after his
house in Tarlac. While in Olongapo, a big fire broke out near the house of A. Through
the effort of B, a neighbor, the house of A was saved from being burned. However, B
incurred expenses.
Crime – an offence against a public law.
A stole the motorcycle of B. If A is convicted, the court will order A to return the
car or to pay its value if it was lost or destroyed, to pay for any damage caused to the
motorcycle and to pay other damages suffered by B as a consequence of the crime.
Quasi-delict – 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 fault or negligence but there is no pre-existing contractual relation between
parties.
While playing basketball with his siblings, A broke the window glass of B, his
neighbor. The accident would not have happened had they played a little farther from
the house of B. In the case, A is under obligation to pay the damage caused to B by his
act.

7. Read and analyze all the articles related to Article 1157

8. Define
Culpa or Negligence – is any involuntary act or omission, there being no malice, which
prevents the normal fulfillment of an obligation.
Dolo or Fraud – the deliberate or intentional evasion of the normal fulfillment of an
obligation
Culpa Aquiliana or Civil Negligence – source of an obligation between parties not
fomally bound by any pre-existing contract.
Delicto – an act or omission that is culpable in nature
Negotiorum Gestio – the voluntary management of the property or affairs of another
without the knowledge or consent of the latter.
Solutio Indebiti – the juridical relation which is created when something is received
when there is no right to demand it and it was unduly delivered through mistake.
Culpa Contractual or Contractual Negligence – makes the debtor liable for damages in
view of negligence in the fulfillment of a pre-existing obligation resulting in its breach or
non-fulfillment
Prestation – the conduct required to be observed by the debtor.
Movable Properties – the location of which can be changed, including things growing
on, affixed to, or found in land, and documents although the rights represented thereby
have no physical location.
Immovable Properties – property that cannot be moved, such as land or buildings.
Good Father of the Family – the diligence which an average or a reasonably prudent
person exercises over his own property.