From the Latin usufructus, usufruct is the utility or benefit obtained from a thing. For example: “The usufruct granted by the company is very large, so there are so many interested in participating in the project.”
In the judicial sphere, usufruct is the right to enjoy the property of others with the obligation to preserve it. This means that the usufructuary owns the property in question (has possession), can use it and obtain its fruits, but is not the owner of it (not the owner). The usufructuary, therefore, does not have the right to alienate or diminish the property without the permission of the owner. Only he can dispose of the property, encumber it or sell it, according to his will.
The usufruct supposes the temporary dismemberment of the domain of a property, since its owner cannot enjoy it while the right to obtain its profits belongs to the usufructuary. That is, the owner’s benefit will occur in the future, when the usufruct ends. It is possible to distinguish between simple usufruct (when it is enjoyed by a single person) and multiple usufruct (the good is enjoyed by several people, successively or simultaneously). Another classification of usufruct allows us to distinguish between partial usufruct (the usufructuary can only make use of a part of the property) and total usufruct (affects the property in its entirety). Finally, the legal usufruct is imposed by law, while the voluntary usufruct is developed from an act of will (will) or a bilateral contract. The usufructuary has the right to: Use and enjoy the asset. As there are things that cannot be used without being consumed, it is common for different regulations to allow a moderate level of consumption;
* perceive the fruits generated by the thing. Note that even when the benefits of the usufruct begin to be generated before its constitution, they are the property of the usufructuary. Likewise, in the cases in which the aforementioned fruits begin to be produced in the usufruct but must be collected after consummating, they must be received by the owner;
* fully enjoy their right of usufruct, being able to dispose of it, lease it and encumber it;
* make the improvements you want in the property, provided that its form or essence is not altered, and knowing that you will not be compensated at the end of the usufruct. On the other hand, you are required to:
* preserve the form and substance of the property; that is, not to damage or destroy it, unless it is consumer goods, such as the land to be exploited. To achieve this objective, the usufructuary must comply with the maintenance tasks of the usufructuary property;
* take inventory before you start enjoying the thing;
* Deliver a deposit to guarantee the owner the fulfillment of its obligations. Testamentary usufruct is the only case in which this point is generally ignored;
* return the property as soon as the usufruct ends. The usufruct can be extinguished if: * the usufructuary dies. This occurs with the lifetime usufruct, which establishes that the beneficiaries may use the property as long as they live;
* the term expires (as if the usufruct expires) or if the resolutive condition is met (as established in the conditional usufruct);
* usufruct and ownership are consolidated under one owner;
* the usufructuary waives his rights and obligations;
* if lost or extinguished, except in cases where the property is replaced by compensation or other things;
* the right of the person who creates and establishes the usufruct is resolved;
* prescribe the treatment, when the usufructuary does not use it during the time that the law has established.
