Article 151 of the Saudi Civil Transactions Law
المادة 151 من نظام المعاملات المدنية · الفرع الثاني: الفضالة
Voluntary agency exists even if the volunteer agent, while handling his own affair, also handled another's, where the two affairs are so linked that one cannot be done separately from the other.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
تتحقق الفضالة ولو كان الفضولي أثناء توليه شأنًا لنفسه قد تولى شأن غيره لما بين الشأنين من ارتباطٍ يمنع من القيام بأحدهما منفصلًا عن الآخر.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 151 explained in plain English
Article 150 defines voluntary agency (fudala) as a person intentionally undertaking an urgent matter for another without being obliged to do so. Article 151 deals with a case that may raise doubt: what if the person is at the same time acting for his own benefit?
The article answers that voluntary agency exists nevertheless, provided there is a link between his affair and the other's affair that prevents doing one separately from the other. That is, the volunteer agent's own personal interest does not remove his status as a volunteer agent where he cannot complete his own affair except by completing the other person's affair with it.
It follows that:
- Someone who handled both affairs together is not deprived of the rules of voluntary agency merely because he too benefited.
- The decisive condition is the link between the two affairs; if they could be separated and the person completed the other's affair by choice, the conditions of Article 150 are examined on their own.
- The conditions of Article 150 remain necessary: intent, the matter being urgent, and no prior obligation to do it.
If the beneficiary approves what the volunteer agent did, the rules of agency apply under Article 152. To assess whether the link exists in a particular case, you may consult a lawyer who specializes in civil and compensation cases.
Practical example
Ahmed and his neighbor share a single water tank on top of a building in Jeddah, and the neighbor traveled. A pipe of the shared tank burst, and Ahmed repaired it immediately because he could not get water to his apartment without repairing the pipe that feeds both apartments together. Here Ahmed handled his own affair and his neighbor's in one inseparable job, so voluntary agency exists as to what he did for his neighbor's benefit.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 151 of the Saudi Civil Transactions Law
Does voluntary agency fall away if the volunteer agent also benefits?
No. Article 151 provides that voluntary agency exists even if the volunteer agent is handling his own affair, if his affair is linked to another's affair in a way that prevents separating them.
What is the definition of voluntary agency in the Civil Transactions Law?
Under Article 150, it is a person intentionally undertaking an urgent matter for another without being obliged to do so.
What condition does Article 151 add?
That there be a link between the two affairs that prevents doing one separately from the other.
More articles on Unjust Enrichment
- Article 144
Anyone, even without discernment, who is enriched without lawful cause at another's expense must compensate him for his loss to the extent of his enrichment, and the obligation remains even if the enrichment later disappears.
كل شخص -ولو غير مميز- يثري دون سبب مشروع على حساب شخص آخر يلزمه في حدود ما أثرى به تعويض هذا الشخص عما لحقه من خسارة، ويبقى هذا الالتزام قائمًا ولو زال الإثراء
- Article 145
Whoever received in payment what he was not entitled to must return it, unless the payer knew he was paying what was not due, unless he was of limited capacity or under compulsion.
1- كل من تسلَّم على سبيل الوفاء ما ليس مستحقًّا له وجب عليه ردُّه. 2- لا محلَّ للرد إذا كان من قام بالوفاء يعلم أنه يدفع ما ليس مستحقًا، إلا أن يكون ناقص الأهلي
- Article 146
Recovery of what was not due is valid if the payment was made in performance of an obligation whose cause did not materialize or ceased after materializing, or of an obligation not yet due where the payer was unaware of the term.
يصح استرداد غير المستحق إذا كان الوفاء تنفيذًا لالتزامٍ لم يتحقَّق سببه أو زال بعد تحقُّقه، أو كان الوفاء تنفيذًا لالتزامٍ لم يحل أجله وكان الموفي جاهلًا قيام ا
- Article 147
What a non-debtor paid cannot be recovered if, as a result, a good-faith creditor lost the debt instrument or its guarantees or abandoned his claim until its period expired, and the payer may have recourse against the original debtor.
لا محل لاسترداد غير المستحق إذا حصل الوفاء من غير المدين وترتب عليه أن الدائن وهو حسن النية قد تجرد من سند الدين أو مما حصل عليه من الضمانات أو ترك دعواه قِبَل
- Article 148
A good-faith recipient of what was not due returns only what he received; a bad-faith recipient returns what he received plus the fruits he collected or failed to collect, from the day he became in bad faith.
إذا كان من تسلَّم غير المستحق حسن النيَّة فلا يُلزم بأن يرد إلا ما تسلَّم، وإذا كان سيء النيَّة فإنه يُلزم بردِّ ما تسلَّم وثماره التي قبضها والتي قصَّر في قبضه
- Article 149
Whoever received what was not due and lacks capacity to contract is bound only to the extent he was enriched.
إذا لم تتوفر أهلية التعاقد فيمن تسلَّم غير المستحق فلا يكون مُلزمًا إلا بالقدر الذي أثرى به.
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.