General Contractor Subcontracting Without Authorization and Contractual Nullity

A defendant, who had a general contractor license and was responsible for the execution of construction work, subcontracted the entirety of the work to another company without obtaining the requisite authorization, resulting in a claim by the client for nullity of the contract and restitution of payments. The Court of Cassation quashed the lower court's decision, reasoning that the absence of authorization for the general contractor to legally subcontract the entire work rendered the primary contract an administrative offense, which, under the relevant law, could only be sanctioned by criminal penalties and did not automatically invalidate the civil contract between the parties, meaning the client could not claim full restitution based on nullity.