Indian Contract Act, 1872 · Chapter X: Agency · Appointment and authority of agents
Section 187: Definitions of express and implied authority
In plain words
Authority is express when given by spoken or written words. It is implied when it can be inferred from the circumstances, including things said or written and the ordinary course of dealing.
Example: A owns a shop managed by B, who regularly orders goods from C in A's name and pays from A's funds with A's knowledge. B has implied authority to order goods from C.
A simplified explanation, prepared with AI assistance from the official text below and checked automatically against it for numbers and cross-references. The official text is the law and prevails over this summary. Not legal advice.
Official text
An authority is said to be express when it is given by words spoken or written. An authority is said to be implied when it is to be inferred from the circumstances of the case; and things spoken or written, or the ordinary course of dealing, may be accounted circumstances of the case.
Illustration
A owns a shop in Serampore, living himself in Calcutta, and visiting the shop occasionally. The shop is managed by B, and he is in the habit of ordering goods from C in the name of A for the purposes of the shop, and of paying for them out of A's funds with A's knowledge. B has an implied authority from A to order goods from C in the name of A for the purposes of the shop
Source: India Code (indiacode.gov.in), the consolidated text published by the Legislative Department, Government of India. Text as updated on India Code on 15 October 2026. Words in square brackets [ ] were inserted or substituted by later amending Acts, and *** marks words omitted by an amendment. The amendment footnotes are not reproduced here. Official text on India Code.