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Definition

accion in rem verso is an action for the recovery of something that has been paid or delivered without just cause or legal ground. It is based on the principle that no one should unjustly enrich himself at the expense of another.

Nature and Purpose

• It is considered an auxiliary action.
• Its purpose is to prevent unjust enrichment. It seeks to recover a benefit received by one person at the expense of another without legal basis.

Requisites

For an accion in rem verso to prosper, the following essential elements must be present:

1. The defendant has been enriched.
2. The plaintiff has suffered a loss or damage.
3. The enrichment of the defendant is without just or legal ground.
4. The plaintiff has no other action based on contract, quasi-contract, crime, or quasi-delict.

Subsidiary Character

accion in rem verso is available only when there is no other remedy available based on contract, quasi-contract, delict, or quasi-delict. If an obtainable action exists under any other institution of positive law, that action must be pursued, and an action based on unjust enrichment (accion in rem verso) will not lie.

Distinction from Solutio Indebiti

While both stem from the principle of unjust enrichment, a key distinction is that solutio indebiti essentially requires a mistake in payment. In accion in rem verso, it is not necessary that there was a mistake in the payment.