Section First: Rights of the Agent

Article 776

Art. 776 - The power of attorney may be special or general.

Article 777

Art. 777 - The special mandate is one that is given for one or several specific matters, or which confers only special and limited powers. It grants the power to act only in the matters or for the acts that it specifies and their necessary consequences, in accordance with the nature of the matter and custom.

Article 778

Article 778 - The general mandate to manage the affairs of the mandant only authorizes the mandatary to accomplish acts of administration. For acts of alienation and to conclude transactions and compromises, an express mandate is always required.

Article 779

Art. 779 - The agent may not exceed the limits set by the mandate. However, he may deviate from the instructions he has received when it is impossible for him to give prior notice to the principal and when the circumstances are such that it should be presumed that the principal would have given his approval. The agent is required, in this case, to immediately notify the principal of the modifications he has made to the execution.

Article 780

Art. 780 - If the agent was able to carry out the transaction under more advantageous conditions than those specified in the mandate, the difference shall accrue to the benefit of the principal.

Article 781

Article 781 - When several mandataries are appointed by the same act and for the same affair, they cannot, unless expressly authorized, act separately: only one cannot accomplish any act of management in the absence of the other, even if the latter were unable to participate. The preceding provision does not apply: 1 - When it is a question of defending in court, of restituting a deposit, of paying a liquid and exigible debt, of taking a conservatory measure in the interest of the mandant, or of an urgent matter whose omission would be prejudicial to the latter; 2 - in the mandate given between merchants for commercial affairs. In these cases, one of the mandataries can act validly without the other, except for contrary stipulation.

Article 782

Art. 782 - The agent may not substitute another person for the execution of the mandate, unless: 1 - if this power has been expressly granted to him by the principal; 2 - if the grant of this power results from the nature of the matter or the circumstances; 3 - if the mandate is general with full powers.

Article 783

Article 783 - The mandatary is answerable for the person to whom he has improperly substituted himself in the same manner as he would be answerable for his own acts. If the substitution was authorized, the mandatary is only answerable if he has chosen a person who did not have the required qualities to exercise the mandate, or if, while having chosen well, he has given the substitute instructions which were the cause of the damage, or if he has failed to supervise him when such supervision was necessary.

Article 784

Art. 784 - In all cases, the substitute is directly liable to the principal, under the same conditions as the agent, and on the other hand, has the same rights as the latter.