Negotiorum gestio

Negotiorum gestio (Latin for "management of business"), or agency without specific authorisation (German: Geschäftsführung ohne Auftrag) under the German Civil Code^[1], undertaking formed without agreement (French: engagement formé sans convention) under the French Civil Code^[2] or management of business of another (Japanese: 事務管理) under the Japanese Civil Code^[3], is a form of spontaneous agency in which an agent, the gestor, acts on behalf and for the benefit of a principal, but without his or her consent. The gestor is only entitled to reimbursement for expenses and not to remuneration, the underlying principle being that negotiorum gestio is intended as an act of generosity and friendship and not to allow the gestor to profit from his agency. This form of agency is found in civil law countries and in Scots law and South African law, both of which are mixed legal systems.

For example, while you are traveling abroad, a typhoon hits your home town and the roofing of your house is in danger. To avoid the catastrophic situation, your neighbor does something urgently necessary. You are the 'principal' and your neighbor here is the 'gestor", the act of which saved your house is the 'negotiorum gestio.'

It originated as a Roman legal institution in which an individual acted on behalf of another, without his asking and without remuneration. It was considered a part of officium (duty), for instance, to defend a friend's or neighbour's interests while the friend or neighbor was away.^[4]

The principal, or dominus, more fully dominus negotiorum dominus rei gestae, is bound to indemnify the gestor for the expenses and liabilities incurred.

Negotiorum gestio could be compared with a quasi-contract in Common Law system.

References

1. ^ See BGB - Book 2 - Title 13
2. ^ See FCC - Book 3 - Title 4
3. ^ See JCC - Article 697
4. ^ J.A. Crook, Law and Life of Rome (Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press), 236–37.

See also

Roman Law