Announced reward: it binds from the moment the public learns of it

They are Articles 1528 to 1531 of the Civil Code of 2020: the obligation born of a unilateral declaration, when a publicly announced reward binds, who may demand it and how ties are resolved.

Whoever publicly promises a reward and whoever is in the situation, performs the act or meets the requirements announced, under the Puerto Rico Civil Code.

• That the declarant have capacity to bind themselves and that the prestation not be contrary to law, morals or public order.Verified against the official source
• That the promise be made by public announcements and offer a pecuniary reward or a distinction.Verified against the official source
• The promise binds from the moment it reaches the public’s knowledge.Verified against the official source
• It may be demanded by anyone in the foreseen situation, who meets the requirements or has performed the act contemplated.Verified against the official source

• The public announcement with its terms: the situation, act or requirements to be met come from there.
• The record of the reliable notice to the promisor and its date: Article 1531 rewards whoever notifies first.

1. 1

   Step 1: An obligation with no contract

   Article 1528: by the unilateral declaration of will, whoever issues it is bound to perform a determined prestation in favour of another person. No acceptance and no contract are needed: the obligation is born of the declaration.

2. 2

   Step 2: With two conditions

   The same article: provided the declarant has capacity to bind themselves and if the prestation is not contrary to law, morals or public order.

3. 3

   Step 3: An announced reward binds

   Article 1529: whoever by public announcements unilaterally promises a pecuniary reward or a distinction is bound by their promise. The Code admits both forms: money or a distinction.

4. 4

   Step 4: From when it binds

   The same article fixes it: from the moment it reaches the public’s knowledge. Not from when someone sees it, nor from when someone acts: from when it reaches the public.

5. 5

   Step 5: To whom it may be promised

   Article 1529 names three cases: whoever finds themselves in a certain situation, performs a determined act or meets determined requirements. All three count, and the person need not have been identified beforehand.

6. 6

   Step 6: Anyone who complies may demand it

   Article 1530: anyone in the foreseen situation, who meets the requirements or has performed the act contemplated may demand the prestation offered. The word is "anyone".

7. 7

   Step 7: If several evidence separately: whoever notifies first wins

   First paragraph of 1531: if several persons separately evidence compliance, the reward corresponds to whoever first notifies the promisor reliably of it. Notifying, and notifying reliably, decides.

8. 8

   Step 8: If several perform the act: whoever acts first wins

   Subsection (a) of the second paragraph: the person who is first in the foreseen situation, performs the act or meets the requirements. Here the measure is the action, not the notice.

9. 9

   Step 9: Two criteria the Code does not reconcile

   The first paragraph rewards whoever notifies first; subsection (a) of the second, whoever acts first. The Code carries both and does not say how they relate. This guide prints both and merges neither.

10. 10

    Step 10: If it was simultaneous: equal shares

    Subsection (b): if performance is simultaneous, or several persons meet the condition at the same time, the reward is split in equal parts.

11. 11

    Step 11: And if it cannot be split: a draw

    Subsection (c): if the reward is indivisible by nature, or if by the promise’s terms only one person may receive it, it is decided by lot. The Code does not say who runs it or how, and this guide does not describe it.

12. 12

    Step 12: What these articles do not carry

    They do not define what makes a notification reliable, do not say what counts as a public announcement or through which channels, fix no amount, describe no draw and set no claiming period. None of that is here.

13. 13

    Step 13: What this guide does not cover

    How long the promise lasts, how it is revoked, the contest prize and the extension of these rules to other unilateral declarations are in the next four articles, with their own guide.

The claim runs against whoever made the promise; the Code names no agency for this chapter. It is decided by the Court of First Instance. The draw of Article 1531(c) is ordered by the Code without describing who runs it.

• Believing the promise binds only if someone accepted it: it is born of the unilateral declaration.
• Counting the obligation from when someone acts: Article 1529 counts it from when it reaches the public’s knowledge.
• Complying and not notifying: the first paragraph of Article 1531 rewards whoever notifies first, reliably.
• Not recording the date of the notice to the promisor.
• Assuming one must be identified beforehand: 1530 says "anyone".
• Forgetting the reward may be pecuniary or a distinction.
• Expecting a proportional split where performance was simultaneous: the Code splits in equal parts.
• Thinking an indivisible reward is split: the Code decides it by lot.
• Confusing this figure with government agency reward programmes, which have their own rules.

These are the government pages this guide is based on.

• Poder Judicial de Puerto Rico

  Poder Judicial

  bvirtualogp.pr.gov