mandante

Mandante is a legal term used in civil law traditions to denote the party that grants a mandate to another person, the mandatário, to act on the mandante’s behalf. The relationship is established by a mandato contract, which may be written or, in some contexts, formed by conduct. The mandante retains control and bears liability for acts performed by the mandatário within the scope of the authority granted.

In most jurisdictions where the term is used, the mandatário acts in the name of the mandante and within the powers conferred. If the mandatário operates within those limits, the resulting obligations bind the mandante toward third parties. The mandatário typically has duties of loyalty and care, must act in good faith, and must avoid exceeding the granted powers. If the mandatário acts beyond authority or commits wrongdoing, the mandante may not be bound by such acts, unless ratified, and the mandatário may incur personal liability to the mandante or to third parties.

The mandante–mandatário relationship is the basis of common agency structures such as powers of attorney and various forms of representation in business or legal matters. The term is used in Portuguese, Italian, Spanish, and other civil law languages with similar meaning: the mandante is the principal or client who delegates authority, while the mandatário is the agent who carries out acts on the mandante’s behalf. The concept highlights how one party entrusts another to perform actions in its name, under defined limits and responsibilities. Etymologically, it derives from the Latin mandare, meaning to order or entrust.