Lecture 6

Lecture 7

Part 2
Theory of rights

Chapter1: definition and classification of rights

Definition of right: it is an interest or a power r
recognized by and protected by the law.
Rights may be divided into:
political: enjoyed by citizens only to enable them to to participate in governing the country. Ex: right to be candidate in the elections and to vote in it.

Non- political: not related to participation in the administration of state and divided to public and private rights

A- public rights

Enjoyed by all persons existing in the society, foreigners or citizens (public freedoms).
Ex: right to work, travel, freedom of religion.
Not evaluated by money but if harmed it will be compensated by money.


B- private rights
Enjoyed by definite people: they are in corporal, family and pecuniary rights.
1 - in caporal rights:
rights over in corporal thing. Ex: rights of authors on his thoughts expressed in the book, right of inventor on his invention.
It has two aspects:
- intellectual (it owner attribute the object of right to himself, decide to publish it or not, make modifications)…these rights are personal, canot be transfers to another person.
- pecuniary: exploitation of this right ex: by publishing the book . It is transferable.

2- family rights

Enjoyed between wives and husbands and their children, some of them could be evaluated by money. (rights of co- inhabitation, mutual sincerity, alimony).
3- pecuniary rights : rights evaluated by money ( personal and real):

A- personal rights: which is a legal relation between two persons according to which one of them ( the debtor) is obliged to do something or not to do something to the other party ( the creditor)
So the personal rights is the obligation of the other person

Ex: of obligation not to: obligation not to compete the other party commercially, and not to declare or use his commercial secrets.

B- real rights:

It is a power given for certain person over certain thing.

Ex1: ownership as a real right it give its holder three powers

- enjoyment: to use the owned thing .
- exploitation : to get the benefit of that things ( fruits if land, rent if apartment).
- disposition: to sell it.


Ex2: usufruct
Entitles its holder the use of a thing belonging to another.

Ex 3: servitude

Burden imposed upon an immovable (of servient) for the benefit of another immovable belonging to different owner.(the dominant)… the owner of a land have the rights to pass over the land of another

Ch 2: the elements of the right

1- a holder of the right.
2- an object which is either an act or a thing.
3- the protection of the law

Section 1: holders of rights : persons

Holders of persons are either natural ( humans) or juristic ( companies and associations ).

A – natural persons

1- commencement and extinction of personality (ability to acquire rights and bear obligations):
Personality of human being starts by birth and extinguish by death.
Status of conceived child: ( not born yet.the rule he has no personality) but law recognized limited personality to him to acquire rights by inheritance.


Missing person: no body knows if he is dead or alive. Can be declared dead by a judgment after certain time. so his wife becomes widow, and his property is divided between heirs .

Proof of birth and death: usually authentic records but may be proved by all means of evidence.

2- characteristics of personality

Each person should have a name, domicile, status, capacity and patrimony.
A- Name
Necessary to distinguish people, obliged by law, given by birth and registered in records.
It is protected by law in case of infringements , you can ask preventing them and damages for any harm cause.

B- Domicile

Domicile ( the general one): is the place where the person habitually resides.
A hotel is not a domicile (temporary residence).
A person can have two domiciles ( ex: married to 2 wives). Or even have no domicile.
Minors domicile is the domicile of their legal representative (mandatory domicile )

Also a person may have special domicile:

1- domicile of business: the place where a person exercise his profession is the domicile for matters related to that business.

2- chosen domicile: a domicile chosen for all matters related to certain legal act.

Ex: electing the lawyer office for all matters related to sale contract.


C- status
It is the condition of being member in certain group family, state or religion which gives the person certain rights and duties ex: parents and sons.
The family of a person : composed of relatives of common ascendant.
Nationality: is the membership of a state, makes the person citizen enjoying certain rights (political rights) and bearing certain duties( military service).
Religion: in Egypt matrimonial relations between Muslims governed by Islamic law while between Christian governed Christian rules