NOVATION IN IRANIAN LAW A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF ROMAN AND FRENCH LAW

Novation is originally a Roman Law institution which has influenced the legal system of Western countries. In Roman Law the obligation was a legal personal relationship that changing one of its element resulted in dissolution of obligation and consequently, the transmission of obligation became impossible; therefore, the Novation, seeking to achieve the transmission of debt and credit, was established. Despite the revolution of the personal concept of obligation, the transmission of debt is still not accepted. In addition, with changing the subject of obligation, the Novation enjoys considerable advantages and is of great importance in different legal systems yet. The Iranian Civil Code, borrowing from French Civil Code, has allocated two articles to the Novation that their interpretation has created a lot of controversies. Some consider it the result of an error in translation but some believe that it is a superfluous institution. Accordingly, the comprehensive study of Novation in Roman and French Law is very useful for explaining its effects and conditions in Iranian Law.