Concept of promise - Definition

The etymological origin of the word promise, we find in the Latin "promissus", integrated by "pro" that indicates "what precedes or is before" and by "missus" which means "sent" or "thrown".

A promise is a voluntary unilateral or synalagmatic (bilateral) expression whereby one of the parties in the first case, or both in the second, is willing to do something in favor of the other, or a third party.They can also be for the benefit of the same promising, for example: "I promise that I start my diet from next week" or "I promise that next year, I will be more studious" or "I promise to be less demanding with myself." Some of these promises only have a moral sense, and in the event of non-compliance there will only be an ethical sanction, such as remorse, or social, such as rejection.Certain promises where God or the saints are involved, have religious punishment.

Other promises have legal value and can engender legal actions, such as when someone makes a promise to another person for sale, and is accepting.In that case, the withdrawal can bring legal consequences, such as fines or bent refund of the signal.in a legal sense, they are pre-contracts, as is the case with the ticket for the sale of real estate.

In ancient Roman Law several promises were known that had broad legal value, such as the promise of dowry or "promissio dotis" which consisted of a promise to constitute a dowry through a solemn verbal contract.Another legal promise was mutual promise to marry in the future, or betrothal, today known as a marriage commitment.In Rome it was made through an oral and solemn contract called “sponsio” and hence the denomination of betrothal.In that act a formal agreement was made, sitting the economic bases that would govern the future marriage, such as the amount of the dowry, establishing a bond of fidelity between future spouses, especially from the bride to the bridegroom.The violation of the promise of marriage at the beginning of history Roman gave rise to an action for damages, but then, attentive to the freedom that began to recognize future partners to decide on their partner, this was without effect, although it was demanded before celebrating new betrothal or marrying another person, breaking the previous promise, under penalty of being declared infamous.At present, the legislation and jurisprudence that interprets the law have sanctioned who breaks a marriage promise at the time of the celebration of the marriage, accepting that in these cases there is a property damage that must be compensated, as for the expenses incurred in view of the link.The repair of the moral damage only proceeds in extraordinary circumstances, valued by the judges.