Civil Law: Persons, Transactions, Representation, and Obligations
Persons and capacity
Distinguish legal capacity (enjoyment of rights, from birth to death) from capacity to act (ability to transact). Know the gradations: full capacity on majority; limited capacity of minors (with the statutory age bands and the role of parental/guardian consent and court authorisation for major dealings); incapacity declared by court. A notary must verify identity and capacity at the moment of the act - a transaction certified for a person later declared incapable is a classic exam scenario, and the answer turns on the date of the court decision, not the date of diagnosis.
Transactions
Master validity elements: capacity, conformity of will and declaration, lawful and possible object, prescribed form. Cover void vs voidable, sham and simulated transactions, error/fraud/threat as defects of consent, and the consequences of invalidity (restitution, and the rule that an invalid transaction confers no rights on third parties acting in good faith unless statutory protection applies). Form rules are central to notarial practice: which transactions require notarial certification and what happens when it is omitted.
Representation
Distinguish representation by law (parents, guardians), by contract (power of attorney), and commercial representation. Know the requirements for a power of attorney - form, scope, sub-delegation, termination, and the fate of acts done after the principal's death or after revocation when the third party did not know. Excess of authority and apparent authority are frequent traps.
Obligations
Understand performance, impossibility, delay, penalty, security (suretyship, pledge, guarantee), and assignment of claims. For notarial practice, focus on obligations that are certified or enforced through notarial instruments.
Rule of thumb
Before certifying, run the 'C-F-C-O' check: Capacity, Form, Consent (free and informed), Object (lawful and possible). Any missing element means refusal or a documented clarification.
Worked example: A power of attorney authorises sale of 'the apartment'. The agent sells and keeps the price. The act is valid as to the third party; the agent's misuse of proceeds is a separate claim - the scope of authority, not the destination of money, governs validity.