EXAM ON THE LAW ON OBLIGATIONS AND CONTRACTS

By: Atty. Pearlito B. Campanilla

1. Why are obligations under the Civil Code a juridical necessity? Explain.

Obligations under the Civil Code a juridical necessity because it's a tie which
connects us to pay or to do something agreeably to the laws and customs of the
country (ART.1156). An obligation can be right and wrong, first, obligor has
the power to demand the fulfillment of the obligation just in case someone
violated his rights. Also, wrong or cause of action incurred by acts or omission
of violating legal rights or someone rights. The debtor then, may possibly be
liable for the damages it has done to the obligee. The obligor should do the
same damages as compensating its expenses he had done whether he likes it or
not, he must comply or otherwise he will be compensated by the legal
consequences arises by the Civil Code.

2. May a person incur obligations even without entering into any contract or
voluntary agreement? Explain.

Yes, a person may incur obligations even without entering into any contract
or voluntary agreement since an obligations do not only arises from contracts.
Under the ART.1157, an obligation may also arises into (5); law, contracts,
quasi-contract, crimes, quasidelicts or torts. Hence, theree are only three of the
arises obligations can be classified here. They can be imposed by the law itself,
arises from quasi-contracts in which this areas divided into two; the negotiorium
Gestio and the Solutio indebiti. Also, a person may incur obligations when
he/she arises a crimes or omission punished by the law and when they arise from
damage due to negligence or fault among one of the parties.

3. Suppose the obligation of the debtor is to do something and he fails to do it

or performs it in contravention of the agreement, what are the remedies
available to the creditor?

If the debtor fails to do or performs the said obligation, it may be ordered by

court that it be undone or if still possible to undo what was done. On the other
hand, the remedies available to the creditor are as follows; (1) exact fulfillment
or specific performance with the right to damages; (2) pursue the leviable (not
exempt from attachment under the law) property of the debtor; and (3) “after
having pursued the property in possession of the debtor,’’ exercise all the rights
and bring all the actions of the debtor except those inherent in or personal to the
person of the latter.

4. Give the rules as to the liability of a person for loss or damage resulting from
a fortuitous event. 100 words.

Fortuitous events can be categorizes into two; Fortuitous Per Se known as the
acts of man and Force Majeure or the acts of Gods or natural occurrences such
as floods or typhoons, or an act of man such as riots, strikes or wars. Regardless
of how, when the loss is found to be partly the result of a person’s participation
whether by active intervention, neglect or failure to act the whole occurrence is
humanized and removed from the rules applicable to a fortuitous event. Thus, in
the fortuitous event in the acts of man, we can look at the Civil Code as the
general guiding law to compensate for the damages and loss of a person’s liable
to it. Hence, according to ART.1174 when the nature of the obligation requires
the assumption of risk, no person shall be responsible for those events which
could not be foreseen, or which, though foreseen, were inevitable.

5. Can a debtor be put in delay and consequently, incur liability even without
demand from creditor? Explain.

No, because according to the ART. 1169, those obliged to deliver or to do

something incur in delay from the time the obligee demands from them the
fulfillment of their obligation. This simply means that, if there’s no demand
from the creditor there will be no delay to be considered in the latter part of the
parties between their things to be delivered upon the given agreement of time.
Therefore, we can put it up when there’s no demand from the creditor then, we
can presumed that he is giving the debtor an extension of time and the latter in
not liable for damages.

6. May an obligator be liable under an obligation subject to a suspensive

condition although the condition has not yet been fulfilled? Explain.

No, if the condition has not yet been fulfilled, then there’s no contract comes
into its existence. Because a suspensive condition known to be as a condition
which suspends the operation or effect of one, or some, or all, of the obligations
under a contract until the condition is fulfilled. If the condition is not yet been
fulfilled, the obligation or contract might not be possible to arises. For example,
Rico obliged to promised to give Anna a diamond ring, if Ana will graduate. In
this situation, the contract will only be arises if the condition has been already
fulfilled, and that is when Anna graduated.
7. In an obligation to give a parcel of land subject to a suspensive condition,
who is entitled to the fruits that accrued during the pendency of the condition
once said condition is fulfilled?

In this case, when the condition is fulfilled, the obligation to give a parcel of
land subject to a suspensive condition is that the debtor is entitled to the
fruits of the land unless their stipulations clearly states otherwise. Hence, the
land will be entitled already to the creditor as when the time or obligations once
their condition is fulfilled.

8. State the rules in case the thing to be delivered:

(a) is lost with the debtor’s fault; without his fault; The rules in case
the things to be delivered is lost with the debtor’s fault, without his
fault, then the obligation is extinguished and the debtors is
absolutely not liable to the obligee. To sum it up, according to the
general rule, if it the lost happened because of the fortuitous
events, then, the person is not liable to any damages, lost of the
thing to be delivered.

(b) deteriorates with the debtor’s fault; without his fault. The rule in
case the things to be delivered is deteriorates with the debtor’s
fault without his fault, the impairment is to be borne by the creditor
because the debtor’s is not at fault to the said deterioration of
things to be delivered.
9. If there are two (2) or more debtors in one and the same obligation, is their
liability joint or solidary? Explain.

When there are two or more debtors in one and the same obligation, the
assumption is that the obligation is joint, because in joint obligation, it said that
the creditors is entitled to demand from any one of the debtors but the creditor
cannot demand to full payment of the consideration and that
the debtors is liable only for the proportionate share of the debt not the full
amount of payment. This simply means that each obligor answers only for a
part of the whole liability and vice versa to the obligee.

10.A owes B and C, solidary creditors, the sum of Php20,000:

(a) Can C condone the debt without the consent of B? Yes, because in
solidary obligation, it says that each of the solidary creditors may
demand the full payment of the debt from any one of the debtors.
Yet, the creditor who received the full payment is responsible to
divide the credits to the rest of the creditors.

(b) Can C assign his rights without the consent of B? No, C cannot
assign his rights without the consent of B’s consent. However, if
there are three creditors, for example creditors B,C and D, C can
assign his rights to D even without B’s consent.