Catungal vs. Rodriguez Facts: Agapita Catungal owned a parcel of land in her name situated in Talamban, Cebu city.

Said property was allegedly the exclusive paraphernal property of Agapita. Agapita, with the consent of her husband Jose, entered into a Contract to Sell with respondent Rodriguez. Subsequently, the Contract to Sell was upgraded into a Conditional Deed of Sale between the same parties. In accordance with the Conditional Deed of Sale, Rodriguez actively negotiated for the road right of way. Spouses Catungal requested an advance of P5,000,000.00 on the purchase price for personal reasons. However, Rodriguez refused on the ground that the amount was not due under the terms of their agreement. Further, he learned that the Catungals were offering the property for sale to third parties. Rodriguez then received letters signed by Atty. Jose Catungal demanding that the former to make up his mind about buying the land or exercising his option to buy because the Catungals received other offers and they needed money to pay personal obligations, and that should Rodriguez fail to exercise his option to buy the land, the Catungals warned that they would consider the contract cancelled and that they were free to look for other buyers On the other other hand, respondent Rodriguez contended that the Catungals unilateral rescission of the Conditional Deed of Sale was unjustified. Spouses Catungal alleged that they have the right to rescind the contract in view of respondents failure to negotiate the road right of way and his refusal to pay the additional P5,000,000.00. Catungal likewise contended that respondent Rodriquez did not have right to rescind contract and that the contract being reciprocal, meant both parties had the right to rescind.

Held: A provision in a Conditional Deed of Sale stating that the vendee shall pay the balance of the purchase price when he has successfully negotiated and secured a road right of way is not a condition on the perfection of the contract nor on the validity of the entire contract or its compliance as contemplated by Article 1308 of the Civil Code- such condition is not purely potestative- such a condition is likewise dependent on chance as there is no guarantee that the vendee and the third-party landowners would come to an agreement regarding the road right of way, a type mixed condition expressly allowed under Article 1182 of the Civil Code. Where the so-called potestative condition is imposed not on the birth of the obligation but on its fulfillment, only the condition is avoided, leaving unaffected the obligation itself.