Obligations and Contracts

Module 3 Different Kinds of Obligations

Classification of Obligation

a. Pure and Conditional Obligations (Art. 1179-1192)

- Pure Obligation – one which does not contain any condition or term
upon which its fulfillment is made to depend. Therefore, it is
immediately demandable.
- Condition – future and uncertain event upon which the existence or
extinguishments of an obligation is made to depend.

Art. 1779. In a universal partnership of all present property, the property

which belongs to each of the partners at the time of the constitution of
the partnership, becomes the common property of all the partners, as
well as all the profits which they may acquire therewith.

Art. 1192. In case both parties have committed a breach of the

obligation, the liability of the first infractor shall be equitably tempered
by the courts. If it cannot be determined which of the parties first
violated the contract, the same shall be deemed extinguished, and each
shall bear his own damages. (n)

b. With a Period or a Term (Art. 1193-1198)

- An obligation with a period is one whose consequences are subjected
in one way or another to the expiration of said period or term. (8
Manresa 158; see Lirag Textiles, Inc. vs. Court of Appeals, 63 SCRA
374 [1975].)
A period is a future and certain event upon the arrival of which
the obligation (or right) subject to it either arises or is terminated. It
is a day certain which must necessarily come (like the year 2005; next
Christmas), although it may not be known when, like the death of a
person. (Art. 1193, par. 3.)

Art. 1193. Obligations for whose fulfillment a day certain has been
fixed, shall be demandable
only when that day comes.

Art. 1198. The debtor shall lose every right to make use of the period:
(1) When after the obligation has been contracted, he becomes insolvent,
unless he gives a guaranty
or security for the debt;
(2) When he does not furnish to the creditor the guaranties or securities
which he has promised;
(3) When by his own acts he has impaired said guaranties or securities
after their establishment,
and when through a fortuitous event they disappear, unless he
immediately gives new ones equally
satisfactory;
(4) When the debtor violates any undertaking, in consideration of which
the creditor agreed to the
period;
(5) When the debtor attempts to abscond. (1129a)

c. Alternative and Facultative (Art. 1199-1206)

- An alternative obligation is one wherein various prestations are due
but the performance of one of them is suffifi ciently determined by the
choice which, as a general rule, belongs to the debtor. (8 Manresa 176;
Art. 1200.)

- A facultative obligation is one where only one prestation has been

agreed upon but the obligor may render another in substitution.

Art. 1199. A person alternatively bound by different prestations shall

completely perform one of
them.

The creditor cannot be compelled to receive part of one and part of the
other undertaking. (1131)

Art. 1206. When only one prestation has been agreed upon, but the
obligor may render another in
substitution, the obligation is called facultative.
The loss or deterioration of the thing intended as a substitute, through
the negligence of the obligor,
does not render him liable. But once the substitution has been made, the
obligor is liable for the
loss of the substitute on account of his delay, negligence or fraud. (n)

d. Joint and Solidary (Art. 1207-1222)

- A joint obligation is one where the whole obligation is to be
paid or fulfifi lled proportionately by the different debtors and/or is to
be demanded proportionately by the different creditors.

- A solidary obligation is one where each one of the debtors is

bound to render, and/or each one of the creditors has a right to demand
entire compliance with the prestation.

Art. 1207. The concurrence of two or more creditors or of two or more

debtors in one and the same obligation does not imply that each one of
the former has a right to demand, or that each one of the latter is bound
to render, entire compliance with the prestation. There is a solidary
liability only when the obligation expressly so states, or when the law or
the nature of the obligation requires solidarity. (1137a)
Art. 1222. A solidary debtor may, in actions filed by the creditor, avail
himself of all defenses which are derived from the nature of the
obligation and of those which are personal to him, or pertain to his own
share. With respect to those which personally belong to the others, he
may avail himself thereof only as regards that part of the debt for which
the latter are responsible.

e. Divisible and Indivisible (Art. 1223-1225)

- A divisible obligation is one the object of which, in its delivery or
performance, is capable of partial fulfillment.

- An indivisible obligation is one the object of which, in its delivery

or performance, is not capable of partial fulfillment.

Art. 1223. The divisibility or indivisibility of the things that are the
object of obligations in which there is only one debtor and only one
creditor does not alter or modify the provisions of Chapter 2 of this
Title.

Art. 1225. For the purposes of the preceding articles, obligations to give
definite things and those which are not susceptible of partial
performance shall be deemed to be indivisible.

f. With a Penal Clause (Art. 1226-1230)

- A penal clause is an accessory undertaking attached to an obligation
to assume greater liability on the part of the obligor in case of breach
of the obligation, i.e., the obligation is not fulfilled, or is partly or
irregularly complied with.

Art. 1226. In obligations with a penal clause, the penalty shall substitute
the indemnity for damages and the payment of interests in case of
noncompliance, if there is no stipulation to the contrary. Nevertheless,
damages shall be paid if the obligor refuses to pay the penalty or is
guilty of fraud in the fulfillment of the obligation.

Art. 1230. The nullity of the penal clause does not carry with it that of
the principal obligation.

The nullity of the principal obligation carries with it that of the penal
clause.

LESSON 6. Divisible and Indivisible Obligations

a. Divisible Obligations - A divisible obligation is one the object of

which, in its delivery or performance, is capable of partial fulfillment.

Concept

- In determining whether an obligation is divisible or not, the

controlling circumstance is not the possibility or impossibility of
partial prestation but the purpose of the obligation or the intention of
the parties. Hence, even though the object or service may be physically
divisible, an obligation is indivisible if so provided by law or intended
by the parties. (Art. 1225, par. 3.)

However, if the object is not physically divisible or the service is

not susceptible of partial performance (Art. 1225, par. 1.), the obligation
is always indivisible, the intention of the parties to the contrary
notwithstanding. This rule is absolute.

An obligation is presumed indivisible where there is only one

creditor and only one debtor. (see Art. 1248.)

Effects (Art. 1223, 1233)

While Article 1223 appears to be limited to real obligations because

it speaks of “things,” the word is used in its broad sense as referring to
the object or prestation of the obligation, which may be to deliver a thing
or to render some service.

Art. 1223. The divisibility or indivisibility of the things that are the
object of obligations in which there is only one debtor and only one
creditor does not alter or modify the provisions of Chapter 2 of this
Title. (1149)

Art. 1233. A debt shall not be understood to have been paid unless the
thing or service in which the obligation consists has been completely
delivered or rendered, as the case may be. (1157)

b. Indivisible Obligations

- An indivisible obligation is one the object of which, in its delivery

or performance, is not capable of partial fulfillment.

Concept: distinguished from solidary obligations

(1) Indivisibility refers to the prestation, while solidarity refers to

the juridical or legal tie that binds the parties;

(2) In indivisible obligations, only the debtor guilty of breach of

obligation is liable for damages (Arts. 1209, 1224.), thereby terminating
the agency, while in solidary obligations, all of the debtors are liable
for the breach of the obligation committed by a co-debtor (Art. 1221.),
for solidarity among them remains;

(3) Indivisibility can exist although there is only one debtor and
one creditor, while in solidarity, there must be at least two debtors or
two creditors (Arts. 1207, 1208.); and
(4) In indivisible obligations, the others are not liable in case of
insolvency of one debtor, while in solidary obligations, the others are
proportionately liable. (Art. 1217.)

Kinds

Natural indivisibility. — where the nature of the object or

prestation does not admit of division, e.g., to give a particular car, to
sing a song, etc. (Ibid., par. 1.)

Legal indivisibility.— where a specififi c provision of law declares

as indivisible, obligations which, by their nature, are divisible (Art.
1225, par. 3.);

Conventional indivisibility. — where the will of the parties

makes as indivisible, obligations which, by their nature, are divisible
(Ibid.);
Presumptions of divisibility and indivisibility (Art. 1225)

- Art. 1225. For the purposes of the preceding articles, obligations to

give definite things and those which are not susceptible of partial
performance shall be deemed to be indivisible

When the obligation has for its object the execution of a certain number
of days of work, the accomplishment of work by metrical units, or
analogous things which by their nature are susceptible of partial
performance, it shall be divisible.

However, even though the object or service may be physically divisible,

an obligation is indivisible if so provided by law or intended by the
parties.

In obligations not to do, divisibility or indivisibility shall be determined

by the character of the prestation in each particular case. (1151a)
What does the first paragraph mean?

The first paragraph tells us that if the thing to be given is something

definite and can only be delivered or given, wholly, totally or
completely, not partially, the same shall be deemed indivisible. The
author respectfully submits that this Paragraph will seem circular in
reasoning if not viewed as the Legislature’s attempt to define what an
indivisible obligation to give is. This is because indivisible thing is not
susceptible of partial performance regardless of its being definite or
indefinite.
What does the second paragraph mean?

The second paragraph tells us that if the thing to be done can be

measured by the number of days of work, by measurement by metrical
units or by other things which by the very nature of things establishes
the fact that it can be performed partially, the same shall be deemed
divisible. Again, the Paragraph will seem redundant if not viewed as a
definition. Nevertheless, it must be pointed out that the Paragraph also
put up some standards in determining with precision whether or not an
obligation is divisible or otherwise.

What does the third paragraph mean?

The third paragraph provides the exception to natural or absolute

indivisibility. We remember that if by the very nature of the object of the
obligation, it must be deemed divisible. However, according to this
Paragraph, the express provision of law or the express stipulation of the
parties may render what an otherwise physically divisible thing
indivisible.

What does the fourth paragraph mean?

If a person is obliged not to do something, whether or not the object of

the obligation not to do is divisible or indivisible shall be determined on
a case-to-case basis. The character of the prestation shall be
determinative of its divisibility or indivisibility.
Divisibility and indivisibility in obligations not to do (Art. 1225,
par.3 )

- In negative obligations not to do, the character of the prestation in

each particular case shall determine their divisibility or indivisibility.
(Ibid.)

Indivisible obligation. — X obliged himself to Y not to sell

cigarettes in his store for one year. Here, the obligation should be
fulfilled continuously during a certain period.

Divisible obligation. — If the obligation of X is not to sell cigarettes

in his stores only during Sundays and holidays, the obligation is
divisible because the forbearance is not continuous.

Art. 1225 par. 3

However, even though the object or service may be physically divisible,

an obligation is indivisible if so provided by law or intended by the
parties.

Effects (Art. 1223, 1223, 1224)

Art. 1223. The divisibility or indivisibility of the things that are the
object of obligations in which there is only one debtor and only one
creditor does not alter or modify the provisions of Chapter 2
of this Title. (1149)

Art. 1224. A joint indivisible obligation gives rise to indemnity for

damages from the time anyone of the debtors does not comply with his
undertaking. The debtors who may have been ready to fulfill their
promises shall not contribute to the indemnity beyond the corresponding
portion of the price of the thing or of the value of the service in which
the obligation consists. (1150)

Cessation of Indivisibility

- An obligation is divisible when the object of the performance is

susceptible of division.

- An obligation is indivisible when the object of the performance,

because of its nature or because of the intent of the parties, is not
susceptible of division.