Civil Law: Legal Persons, Transactions, Representation, Limitation Periods, Property, Obligations, and Inheritance
What this domain tests
Civil-law foundations are the working toolkit of every notarial act: who is a legal person, who may sign, which form is required, whether authority has expired, and what property and inheritance rights are being certified.
Core rules
- Legal persons act through organs. Check the charter, state registration, the director’s appointment, and any approval required for a major transaction. A founder’s oral assurance is not authority.
- Transactions may be oral or written; the law requires notarization for specific acts, including wills, marriage contracts, alimony agreements, and powers of attorney for certain real-estate transactions. State registration and notarization are different steps.
- Representation rests on a power of attorney or law. The notary checks the grantor, the representative, the scope, the date, and revocation. A power to “manage” property does not imply a power to sell it.
- The general limitation period is three years. A notary does not adjudicate a disputed claim, but a limitation issue may signal that the underlying right is contested and that a court route is needed.
- Property law distinguishes ownership, joint property of spouses, and limited rights. Obligations require certainty of parties, subject, and performance. Inheritance is by will or law.
Worked example
A representative asks a notary to certify a sale of an apartment under a power of attorney that says “to manage and maintain” the flat. The notary reads the scope strictly: management does not include alienation. The act should be refused, with a written reason, unless a new power of attorney expressly authorises sale and the spouse’s consent is present where required.
Traps
Accepting a company seal as proof of authority; overlooking an expired power of attorney; treating notarization as a substitute for state registration; assuming the notary must decide a limitation-period dispute; missing spousal consent in common-property transactions.