The word ‘Quasi’ means pseudo. Hence, a Quasi contract is a pseudo-contract.There are cases where the law implies a promise and imposes obligations on one party while conferring rights to the other even when the basic elements of a contract are not present. These promises are not legal contracts, but the Court recognizes them as relations resembling a contract and enforces them like a contract.

These promises/ relations are Quasi contracts. These obligations can also arise due to different social relationships .The core principles behind a Quasi Contract are justice, equity and good conscience. It is based on the maxim: “No man must grow rich out of another persons’ loss.

example of a Quasi contract: Peter and Oliver enter a contract under which Peter agrees to deliver a basket of fruits at Oliver’s residence and Oliver promises to pay Rs 1,500 after consuming all the fruits. However, Peter erroneously delivers a basket of fruits at John’s residence instead of Oliver’s. When John gets home he assumes that the fruit basket is a birthday gift and consumes them.

Although there is no contract between Peter and John, the Court treats this as a Quasi-contract and orders John to either return the basket of fruits or pay Peter.

Features of a Quasi Contract

1. It is usually a right to money and is generally (not always) to a liquidated sum of money.
2. The right is not an outcome of an agreement but is imposed by law.
3. The right is not available against everyone in the world but only against a specific person(s). Hence it resembles a contractual right.

Kinds of Quasi Contracts –

Section 68 to Section 72 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 deals with Five Kinds of Quasi-Contract which are as follows –

1) Claim for necessaries supplied to person incapable of contracting, or on his account (Section 68):

If the “necessaries” for a person, who is incapable of contracting (for example, a minor or a mentally disabled person) or of the dependents of such a person are taken care of by someone, he has the right to be reimbursed from the property of such incapable person. Although the word “necessaries” has not specifically been defined in the Act, it is impliedly clear that it means the necessaries to sustain life, basic things like food, clothing, education, etc. These are things without which a person cannot reasonably exist. In simple terms, if a person A supplies another person B (who is incapable of entering into a contract) or his family or anybody else who is dependant on him, with necessaries for life, he is entitled to take his due return from the property of person B. He is entitled only to such a reasonable amount as the value of the goods or services he may have supplied hold.

2. Reimbursement of person paying money due by another, in payment of which he is interested (Section 69):

If a person A pays something in someone’s (a person B’s) place, that which person B is himself ‘bound by law’ to pay, A will be reimbursed by B. Please note that the person A should be ‘interested’ in this payment. It is a case of implied Indeminity.

For instance, Joe is a Zamindar. Annie holds one of his lands on lease in Punjab. The revenue of Joe’s land is payable to the government in arrears. So, the land ends up being advertised for sale by the government. According to the Revenue Law, if the land is sold, it will end Annie’s lease. To prevent this sale, Annie pays Joe’s dues to the government. Joe is bound to pay back to Annie.

The aforementioned illustration satisfies the following conditions-

1. The party paying the other party’s dues is interested in the payment.
2. The party whose payment is due was in fact bound by law to pay.

3. Obligation of person enjoying the benefit of the non-gratuitous Act (Section 70)

When a person lawfully does something for another person (for example, delivers a good or a service) without intending to do so ‘gratuitously’, and the other person enjoys the benefit of the delivery of that good or service, the latter is bound to pay back to the former.

A gratuitous act is one that is done for a person by another without the expectation of a return. For example, giving someone a gift is a gratuitous act. Here comes your Amazon package delivered to the wrong address. A pack of chocolate chip cookies that you ate as soon as they arrived. You are liable to compensate the actual owner of the package. The illustration of a shoe-shiner unsolicitedly polishing one’s shoes or that of the coolie picking up one’s goods will lie under Section 70. Such acts and services are not done gratuitously and therefore a liability to pay back arises on the part of the person on the receiving end.

4. Responsibility of finder of goods (Section 71)

Simply, a person who finds goods that belong to another person shall be treated as a bailee. A bailee is essentially a safe keeper of the goods, who is supposed to return the goods to the actual owner or dispose of them in the manner in which the actual owner may want them to. The bailee has certain duties and rights as the ‘possessor’ or ‘custodian’ of the goods for the time being. For example, Sarah finds a diamond lying on the floor in a shop. She picks it up and keeps it in her safe possession. Sarah makes all reasonable efforts to find the true owner of the diamond. The diamond actually belonged to Nadia. Sarah has the right to hold the possession of the diamond against all the world except Nadia, and is supposed to make reasonable efforts to find her, and return it to her. In this case, Nadia will have to pay the compensation for all the loss suffered by Sarah in finding her.

Duties of the finder of goods

1. The finder has a duty to take reasonable care.
2. He/she has a duty not to use the goods for his personal purposes.
3. He/she has a duty not to mix the found goods with his own goods.
4. He/she has a duty to make reasonable efforts to find the actual owner of the goods.

Rights of the finder of goods

1. Right to Lien– The right to retain the goods found until he receives compensation for all the expenses suffered in finding the owner.
2. Right to Sue– If the owner had announced a reward for whoever finds the good, the finder has the right to sue the owner for such reward or retain the goods until he is compensated.
3. Right to Sell– The finder of goods has the right to sell the goods in certain specific circumstances, for example:

i) If the owner could not be found even after reasonable efforts.

ii) If the owner is found but refuses to pay compensation or the lawful charges of the finder.

iii) If the goods are in immediate danger of perishing if not used.iv) If the lawful charges of the finder amount to two-thirds of the value of goods.

5. Liability of person to whom money is paid or thing delivered by mistake or under coercion(Section 72)

As the heading suggests, if something is delivered to a person by ‘mistake’ or under ‘coercion’, he is liable to pay it back. For instance, Aristotle and Dante share a flat and contribute in half for the rent to be paid.  Aristotle, without knowing that Dante has already paid the due rent to the landlord in whole, pays again to the landlord. The landlord, in this case, is liable to give back the money delivered to him by mistake. The term mistake here can mean both a mistake of fact or mistake of law.

The section also uses the term ‘coercion’. Here is an example of something delivered under coercion-  A railway company refuses to deliver goods to a certain consignee except upon the payment of a certain illegal sum of money. The consignee pays the sum to obtain his goods. The company is liable to return the sum of money illegally charged.

Conclusion

A contract has certain elements, like the offer, and its acceptance, that give rise to an agreement. The agreement, if it is legally enforceable becomes a contract, that is, it can be taken care of in a court of law in case it is not performed by either of the parties involved. Yet, there are certain situations where even in the absence of an ‘agreement’ as such, one or the other party is obliged to perform something. Such obligations are called quasi-contractual obligations.