Text of the provision
Art. 474. One who in good faith employs the material of another in whole or in part in order to make a thing of a different kind, shall appropriate the thing thus transformed as his own, indemnifying the owner of the material for its value. If the material is more precious than the transformed thing or is of more value, its owner may, at his option, appropriate the new thing to himself, after first paying indemnity for the value of the work, or demand indemnity for the material. If in the making of the thing bad faith intervened, the owner of the material shall have the right to appropriate the work to himself without paying anything to the maker, or to demand of the latter that he indemnify him for the value of the material and the damages he may have suffered. However, the owner of the material cannot appropriate the work in case the value of the latter, for artistic or scientific reasons, is considerably more than that of the material.
(383a)
Civil Code of the Philippines, Republic Act No. 386, approved June 18, 1949, effective August 30, 1950. Reproduced in full; verified verbatim against the LawPhil and ChanRobles official-text renderings.
What this article means
One who in good faith uses another's material to make a new thing (specification) keeps the new thing, paying for the material — unless the material is more precious, in which case its owner may take the new thing (paying for the work) or demand indemnity. Bad faith by the maker lets the material's owner take the work for free or demand value plus damages.
Related provisions
- Article 473 — Mixture by One Owner.
- Article 475 — Sentimental Value.
Cases interpreting this article
- Authorities on this article will be added here as each is verified against primary sources.