Public vs. Private Legal Instruments: Types and Legal Effects

Summary

This text explains the difference between public documents and private instruments in law. It lists the kinds of public documents drafted with an official's intervention and their greater legal weight. It also describes private instruments, their signature requirement, and how their date can be established to produce legal effects.

Key points

Public documents are drafted under legal requirements with the intervention of a public official and carry greater legal weight.
Public documents include notarial deeds, court records, government-accepted letters, public debt inscriptions, and marriage entries in official registers.
Private instruments are documents issued privately between parties and are not subject to specific formalities.
The essential condition for a private instrument is the signature of a private party.
Judicial recognition of a signature implies recognition of the document's authenticity.
A private instrument's date must be established to have legal effect against the parties and third parties.
The date of a private instrument can be fixed by court presentation, recognition before a notary and two witnesses, transcription into a public record, or the death of the signatory or witness.

Test yourself

Public Documents

These documents are drafted in accordance with legal requirements and with the intervention of a public official, thereby carrying greater legal weight and effectiveness than common documents.

Public documents pertaining to legal acts include:

Deeds executed by public notaries in their protocol books, or by other officials with similar powers, and copies of those books taken as prescribed by law.
Any other instrument issued by clerks or civil servants in the manner prescribed by law.
Entries in brokers' books, in cases and as determined by the Commercial Code.
Court papers made in records and signed by the parties, in cases and ways established by procedural law, and copies of such records issued by order of the presiding judge.
Letters accepted by the government or its delegate, notes receivable or any instruments issued by the Treasury, and tax accounts taken from books and approved by the manager.
Letters from individuals given in payment of customs duties or with corresponding entries belonging to the Treasury.
Inscriptions on the public debt, both national and provincial.
Shares of specially authorized companies, issued in accordance with their statutes.
Notes, notebooks, and other financial instruments issued by banks authorized for such emissions.
Marriage entries in parish or municipal registers, and copies taken from those books or records.

Private Instruments

This term refers to documents issued privately between parties.

Private instruments are not subject to specific formalities; the essential condition for their existence is the signature of a private party. Judicial recognition of a signature implies recognition of the document's authenticity.

However, even if a private instrument's signature is recognized, its exact date must be established to have legal effect in relation to both the parties involved and third parties. This date is determined by:

The date of its presentation in court or any public agency for any purpose, if officially recorded.
Its recognition before a notary and two witnesses.
Its transcription into any public record.
The death of the signatory, or of the person who wrote it and signed as a witness.

FAQ

What is a public document in law?

A public document is drafted in accordance with legal requirements with the intervention of a public official. It has greater legal weight and effectiveness than common documents.

What is a private instrument?

A private instrument is a document issued privately between parties. It is not subject to specific formalities, and the essential condition for its existence is the signature of a private party.

How is the date of a private instrument established?

The date can be determined by its presentation in court or a public agency if officially recorded, its recognition before a notary and two witnesses, its transcription into a public record, or the death of the signatory or of the person who wrote it and signed as a witness.