Rights, duties in obligations to give a generic thing
An obligation is the juridical necessity to give, to do or not to do. Obligations to give may be over a specific thing or a generic thing. Provisions cited below are taken from the New Civil Code of the Philippines.
The following are obligations of the debtor in obligations to give a generic thing.
[1] To take care of the thing (Article 1163);
[2] To deliver a thing with the same quality intended by parties (Article 1246); and
[3] To pay damages in case of breach (Article 1170).
In determining whether the thing delivered is with the same quality as intended by the parties, the purpose of the obligation and other relevant circumstances must be taken into consideration. It must also be noted that the creditor cannot demand a thing of superior quality; neither can the debtor deliver a thing of inferior quality.
UNITED STATES CASE RE INTENDED QUALITY: The issue is, what is chicken? Plaintiff says "chicken" means a young chicken, suitable for broiling and frying. Defendant says "chicken" means any bird of that genus that meets contract specifications on weight and quality, including what it calls "stewing chicken" and plaintiff pejoratively terms "fowl". Dictionaries give both meanings, as well as some others not relevant here. To support its, plaintiff sends a number of volleys over the net; defendant essays to return them and adds a few serves of its own. Assuming that both parties were acting in good faith, the case nicely illustrates Holmes' remark "that the making of a contract depends not on the agreement of two minds in one intention, but on the agreement of two sets of external signsnot on the parties' having meant the same thing but on their having said the same thing." The Path of the Law, in Collected Legal Papers, p. 178. I have concluded that plaintiff has not sustained its burden of persuasion that the contract used "chicken" in the narrower sense. (Frigaliment Importing Co. v. B.N.S. International Sales Corp., 190 F. Supp. 116. S.D.N.Y. 1960)The following are rights of the creditor in obligations to give a generic thing
[1] To demand the debtor to comply with the obligation to deliver the thing (Article 1165);
The following are obligations of the debtor in obligations to give a generic thing.
[1] To take care of the thing (Article 1163);
[2] To deliver a thing with the same quality intended by parties (Article 1246); and
[3] To pay damages in case of breach (Article 1170).
In determining whether the thing delivered is with the same quality as intended by the parties, the purpose of the obligation and other relevant circumstances must be taken into consideration. It must also be noted that the creditor cannot demand a thing of superior quality; neither can the debtor deliver a thing of inferior quality.
UNITED STATES CASE RE INTENDED QUALITY: The issue is, what is chicken? Plaintiff says "chicken" means a young chicken, suitable for broiling and frying. Defendant says "chicken" means any bird of that genus that meets contract specifications on weight and quality, including what it calls "stewing chicken" and plaintiff pejoratively terms "fowl". Dictionaries give both meanings, as well as some others not relevant here. To support its, plaintiff sends a number of volleys over the net; defendant essays to return them and adds a few serves of its own. Assuming that both parties were acting in good faith, the case nicely illustrates Holmes' remark "that the making of a contract depends not on the agreement of two minds in one intention, but on the agreement of two sets of external signsnot on the parties' having meant the same thing but on their having said the same thing." The Path of the Law, in Collected Legal Papers, p. 178. I have concluded that plaintiff has not sustained its burden of persuasion that the contract used "chicken" in the narrower sense. (Frigaliment Importing Co. v. B.N.S. International Sales Corp., 190 F. Supp. 116. S.D.N.Y. 1960)The following are rights of the creditor in obligations to give a generic thing
[1] To demand the debtor to comply with the obligation to deliver the thing (Article 1165);
[2] To demand that the obligation be complied with by a third person at the expense of the debtor;
[3] To recover damages in case of breach (Article 1165); and
[4] To refuse delivery of a thing different in kind or quality, although of the same value as, or more valuable than that which is due (Article 1244).
