Duty to Exercise Diligence
This article deals with the first effect of an
obligation to deliver a determinate thing (as
distinguished from a generic thing – or one of a
class) – namely- the duty to exercise proper
diligence. Unless diligence is exercised, there is a
danger that the property would be lost or
destroyed, thus rendering illusory the obligation.
Diligence Needed
• That which is required by the nature of the obligation and
corresponds with the circumstances of person, time, and place.
This is really diligence of a good father of a family.
• However, if the law or contract provides for a different standard
of care, said law or stipulation must prevail.
Ronquillo, et al. v. Singson
CA, L-22612-R, Apr. 22, 1959
FACTS: A man ordered a ten-year-old boy, Jose Ronquillo, to climb a
high and rather slippery santol tree, with a promise to give him part
of the fruits. The boy was killed in the act of climbing.
ISSUE: Is the person who ordered him liable?
HELD: Yes, in view of his negligent act in making the order. He did
not take due care to avoid a reasonably foreseeable injury to the
10y/o boy. The tree was a treacherous one, a veritable trap. His act
was clearly a departure from the standard of conduct required of a
prudent man. He should have desisted from making the order. Since
he failed to appreciate the predictable danger and aggravated
such negligence by offering part of the fruits as a reward, it is clear
that he should be made to respond in damages for the actionable
wrong committed by him.
Preserve the thing – In
obligations to give (real
obligations), the obligor has the
incidental duty to take care of
the thing due with the diligence
of a good father of a family
pending delivery.
Factors to be considered. – The
diligence required necessarily depends
upon the nature of the obligation and
corresponds with the circumstances of
the person, of the time, and of the
place. (Art. 1173, NCC.) It is not
necessarily the standard of care one
always uses in the protection of his
property. As a general rule, the debtor
is not liable if his failure to preserve the
thing is not due to his fault or negligence
but to fortuitous events or force
majeure.
A thing is said to be specific or determinate particularly
designated or physically segregated others of the same class.
Examples:
1. the watch I am wearing
2. The car sold by X
3. My dog named “Terror”
4. the house at the corner of Rizal and del Pilar
5. the Toyota car with Plate No. AAV 316
6. this cavan of rice
7. the money I gave you.
Specific thing and generic thing
distinguished.
• A determinate thing is identified by its individuality. The
debtor cannot substitute it with another although the
latter is of the same kind and quality without the
consent of the creditor.
• A generic thing is identified only by its specie. The
debtor can give anything of the same class as long as it
is of the same kind.
ART. 1164. The creditor has
a right to the fruits of the thing
from the time the obligation to
deliver it arises. However, he
shall acquire no real right over it
until the same has been
delivered to him. (Art. 1164,
NCC.)
Different Kind of fruits
The fruits mentioned by the law refer to natural, industrial,
and civil fruits.
1. Natural fruits are the spontaneous products of the soil, and the
young and other products of animals.
Example: Grass; all trees and plants on lands’ produced
without the intervention of human labor.
2. Industrial fruits are those produced by lands of any kind through
cultivation or labor.
Example: Sugar cane, vegetables; rice; and all products of
lands brought about by reason of human labor.
3. Civil fruits are those derived by virtue of a juridical relation.
Example: Rents of buildings, price of leases of lands and
other property and the amount of perpetual or life annuities or other
similar income. (Art. 442, NCC)
Right of creditor to the fruits
The creditor is entitled to the fruits of
the thing to be delivered from the time the
obligation to make delivery arises. The
intention of the law is to protect the interest
of the obligee should the obligor commit
delay, purposely or otherwise, in the
fulfillment of his obligation.
