incombances - What is the English translation? English translators help legal English translators with the translation of incombances

Conges terminology question

7 days ago

Kate (a guest user) asked this question:

Language pair:	French > English
Subject:	Law / Certificates
Level of diffculty:	Easy / medium
Word or term in question:	incombances
Context:	Obligations et incombances du client This is the heading of a section of a Swiss agreement. I keep coming up with "incumbencies" which doesn't sound quite right to me. It's just the section heading, this particular word isn't even used within the body of that section. This isn't a lease so I don't think it's "encumbrances".
Keywords:	tia = thx in advance

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Answers on this question

7 days ago

elvis wrote:

Responsibilities

My comment:

I am not sure

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6 days ago

exegete wrote:

Dear Elvis, "Responsibility" is CLOSE, but it has a very special meaning in law. As I had mentioned at the end of my (long) explanation: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incumbency : "Definition of incumbency: 1 : something that is incumbent : duty" "Synonyms for incumbency: burden, charge, commitment, devoir, do [archaic], duty, imperative, need, obligation, office, responsibility" Which shows that "responsibility" (and "duty", also erroneously given as an answer by someone else) is an APPROXIMATE SYNONYM, but not the correct translation. It is a SPECIAL NOTION, which exists only in German and Swiss law. So it has to be translated by a very specific word too.

7 days ago

CMD wrote:

duties

My comment:

http://www.cours-de-droit.net/droit-suisse-des-obligations-c28782044
https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-01664949/document

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6 days ago

exegete wrote:

Dear CMD, Your first link explains what an "incombance" is in French (I had already done it in my answer...) and does not prove that the English translation is "duty"... Your second link proves that the translation of "incombance" is NOT "duty", as the title of your linked document is: "Devoir (= "duty"!!) et incombance (!) en matière contractuelle"! On page 22, the author explains that "incombance" comes from the German word "Obliegenheit", which is different from "Pflicht" ("devoir" in French, "duty" in English)! --- I had a long justification, but it ended with: "https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incumbency "Definition of incumbency: 1 : something that is incumbent : duty" "Synonyms for incumbency: burden, charge, commitment, devoir, do [archaic], duty, imperative, need, obligation, office, responsibility"" Which shows that "duty" (and "responsibility", also erroneously given as an answer by someone else) is an APPROXIMATE SYNONYM, but not the correct translation. As page 22 of your second document explains, it is a special notion, which exists only in German and Swiss law. So it has to be translated by a very special word too.

7 days ago

exegete wrote:

incumbencies

My references:

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/incumbency#English :

"incumbency (countable and uncountable, plural incumbencies)

1. The state of being incumbent.
2. ***An obligation or duty***
3. A tenure
4. (figuratively) benefice, lucrative position or possession"

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https://cdn.uclouvain.be/public/Exports%20reddot/drt/documents/Thesed_Doctorat-Les_incombances.pdf :

"LES INCOMBANCES
RÉSUMÉ

Il faut trouver l’origine du concept d’ « incombance » en droit allemand, où se sont développées, aux côtés des obligations naturelles et des obligations civiles, les Obliegenheiten.

Récemment introduit dans le Vocabulaire juridique de l’Association Henri Capita
nt, le concept qui nous occupe y est défini comme ***« une charge, un devoir dont l’inobservation expose son auteur non à une condamnation, mais à la perte des avantages attachés à l’accomplissement du devoir »***.

Un auteur français, F. LUXEMBOURG, précise utilement que ***« l’incombance désigne l’exigence de diligence ou de probité imposée pour conserver le bénéfice d’un droit, dont le seul non-respect, bien que ne pouvant faire l’objet d’une exécution forcée ni d’une action en réparation, est toutefois juridiquement sanctionné. Elle se distingue ainsi de l’obligation civile en ce que sa méconnaissance ne peut justifie
r une action en exécution forcée et ne donne pas lieu, en principe, à réparation »***1."

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"Vocabulaire juridique", Gérard Cornu, incomber:

Du latin "incumbere": peser sur.

"2. Se dit d'une mission ou d'une fonction dont est chargée une personne."

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"Dahl's Law Dictionary EN><FR": incomber: to be ***incumbent*** upon someone.

---

The noun corresponding to the adjective "incumbent" is "incumbency", it's logical...

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Many Web hits of "Les incombances du client" further explain the notion.

So it's a sort of obligation, but not with the same consequences as an obligation: it's non-respect cannot lead to a damage claim or a forced execution, for example. It's non-respect only leads to the loss of a right or of an advantage.

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http://www.cnrtl.fr/definition/incomber

"A. − Incomber à qqn (pers. ou coll.).[En parlant d'une charge, ***d'un devoir, d'une responsabilité ou d'un acte impliquant une responsabilité ou une obligation***] : Être imposé, appartenir, revenir à.

Ex.: Dépenses, frais, ***fonction, mission, soin, tâche incombant à*** une personne."

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https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incumbency

"Definition of incumbency:

1 : something that is incumbent : duty"

"Synonyms for incumbency:

burden, charge, commitment, devoir, do [archaic], duty, imperative, need, obligation, office, responsibility"
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