CIVIL LAW DOCTRINES - BUENAVENTURA

Question 1

When shall laws take effect?

Answer 1

Laws shall take effect after fifteen days following the completion of their publication in the Official Gazette, or

Question 2

What does procedural due process demand?

Answer 2

procedural due process demands that administrative rules and regulations, except those which are interpretative ones, should be published to be effective.

Question 3

What conditions must be met for the waiver of rights to be valid?

Answer 3

Waiver of rights is subject to the condition that it is not contrary to law, public order, public policy, morals, or good customs, or prejudicial to a third person with a right recognized by law.

Answer 4

The Administrative Code, being the latter law, prevails over the Civil Code in the computation of time.

Question 4

Why does a pro hac vice ruling violate Article 8 and the Constitution?

Answer 4

Pro hac vice ruling violates Article 8 and the Constitution. The decision of the Supreme Court cannot be pro hac vice because, by mandate of the law, every decision of the Supreme Court forms part of the legal system of the Philippines

Question 4

What is obiter dictum in the context of court opinions?

Answer 4

Obiter dictum is an opinion expressed by a court upon some question of law that is not necessary in the determination of the case before the court.

Answer 5

There is no specifically prescribed means to resolve a conflict of laws problem.

Question 6

Who has the burden of proving a foreign law in a dispute or case?

Answer 6

The party who wants to have a foreign law applied to a dispute or case has the burden of proving the foreign law.

Question 6

What are the three consecutive phases involved in the judicial resolution of conflicts problems?

Answer 6

The three consecutive phases involved in the judicial resolution of conflicts problems are jurisdiction, choice of law, and recognition and enforcement of judgments.

Question 7

Why are choice of law stipulations common in cross-border transactions?

Answer 7

Choice of law stipulations are very common in cross-border transactions because they help to ensure that contracts are interpreted and enforced in a consistent and predictable manner.

Question 8

What is the relationship between choice of law and the principle of autonomy of contracts, and how does forum non conveniens function in legal proceedings?

Answer 8

Choice of law is an offshoot of the fundamental principle of autonomy of contracts while forum non conveniens is designed to frustrate illicit means for securing advantages and vexing litigants that would otherwise be possible if the venue of litigation were left entirely to the whim of either party.

Question 9

What are the requisites under the doctrine of forum non conveniens that allow a Philippine court to assume jurisdiction over a conflict-of-laws case?

Answer 9

Under the doctrine of forum non conveniens, the Philippine court in a conflict-of-laws case may assume jurisdiction over a case if it chooses to do so, provided the requisites are present. The requisites are

(i) the Philippine court is one to which the parties may conveniently resort to,
(ii) the Philippine court is in a position to make an intelligent decision as to the law and the facts, and
(iii) the Philippine court has or is likely to have power to enforce its decision

Question 10

What rule does a court apply under to determine which state law to apply to a dispute, based on the most substantial connection to the occurrence and the parties?

Answer 10

Under the state of the most significant relationship rule, to ascertain what state law to apply to a dispute, the court should determine which state has the most substantial connection to the occurrence and the parties.

Question 11

Which laws exclusively govern real or immovable property, depending on its location?

Answer 11

Real or immovable property is exclusively subject to the laws of the country or state where it is located.

Question 12

How does lex loci celebrationis differ from lex loci contractus?

Answer 12

Lex loci celebrationis differs from lex loci contractus. Lex loci celebrationis relates to the law of the place of the ceremony or the law of the place where a contract is made. Lex contractus or lex loci contractus means the law of the place where a contract is executed or to be performed.

Question 13

Which law governs the extrinsic validity of a will, particularly in the initial stage of probate proceedings?

Answer 13

The extrinsic validity of the will, which is the preliminary issue in probate of wills, is governed by the law of the country where the will was executed and presented for probate.

Question 14

When does unjust enrichment occur, according to principles of justice, equity, and good conscience?

Answer 14

There is unjust enrichment when a person unjustly retains a benefit to the loss of another, or when a person retains money or property of another against the fundamental principles of justice, equity, and good conscience.

Question 15

What conditions must be met for an action of accion in rem verso, which applies the principle of unjust enrichment, to succeed?

Answer 15

Unjust enrichment has been applied to actions called accion in rem verso. In order that accion in rem verso may prosper, the following conditions must concur:

(i) the defendant has been enriched,
(ii) the plaintiff has suffered loss
(iii) the enrichment of the defendant is without just or legal ground
(iv) the plaintiff has no other action based on contract, quasi contract, crime, or quasi delict

Question 16

In what circumstances is accion in rem verso considered available as a legal remedy?

Answer 16

accion in rem verso is considered merely an auxiliary action, available only when there is no other remedy on contract, quasi-contract, crime and quasi-delict

Question 17

What obligation arises under the principle of solution indebiti when something is received mistakenly and there is no right to demand it?

Answer 17

Under solution indebiti, if something is received when there is no right to demand it, and it was unduly delivered through mistake, the obligation to return it arises.

Question 18

What are the two conditions that must be met to establish the application of the quasi-contract of solutio indebiti, rooted in the principle against unjust enrichment?

Answer 18

The quasi-contract of solutio indebiti harks back to the ancient principle that no one shall enrich himself unjustly at the expense of another. To establish its application, two conditions must concur:

(i) a payment is made when there exists no binding relation between the payor who has no duty to pay, the person who received the payment and
(ii) the payment is made through mistake, and not through liberality or some other cause.

Question 19

What does Article 19 of the Civil Code emphasize regarding the exercise of rights and duties, promoting fairness, giving each person their due, and upholding honesty and good faith?

Answer 19

The principle abuse of rights, as enshrined in Article 19 of the Civil Code, provides that every person must, in the exercise of his rights and in the performance of his duties, act with justice, give everyone his due, and observe honesty and good faith.

Question 20

How does Article 19 of the Civil Code contribute to defining the standard of care in human relations, and under what conditions can it form the basis for an actionable tort when combined with Article 20 or Article 21?

Answer 20

Article 19 is the general rule which governs the conduct of human relations. By itself, it is not the basis of an actionable tort. Article 19 describes the degree of care required so that an actionable tort may arise when it is alleged together with Article 20 or Article 21.

Question 21

What are the elements of abuse of rights?

Answer 21

Elements of abuse of rights:

(i) there is a legal right or duty
(ii) which is exercised in bad faith, and
(iii) for the sole intent of prejudicing or injuring another

Question 22

Under what circumstances does a mere breach of a promise to marry not constitute an actionable wrong, according to legal principles, unless it significantly violates established good customs?

Answer 22

A mere breach of a promise to marry is not an actionable wrong, as long as it is not of such extent as would palpably and unjustifiably contradict good customs.

Question 23

What does tortious interference refer to?

Answer 23

Tortious interference refers to a situation where a third person induces a party to renege on or violate his undertaking under a contract.

Answer 24

Article 26(1) providing that there is cause of action for “prying into the privacy of another’s residence” includes business offices where the public are excluded therefrom, and only certain individuals are allowed to enter.

Answer 25

Juridical capacity differs from capacity to act.

Answer 26

One need not acquire a civil personality first before he could die.

Question 27

In what ways may a married woman legally use her surname?

Answer 27

Surname of married woman. A married woman may use:

(i) her maiden first name and surname and add her husband’s surname
(ii) her maiden first name and her husband’s surname
(iii) her husband’s full name, but prefixing a word indicating that she is his wife, such as “Mrs.”

Answer 28

Legitimate and legitimated children shall principally use the surname of the father

Answer 29

A father cannot compel the use of his surname by his illegitimate child even upon his recognition of filiation.

Answer 30

An illegitimate child, upon adoption by her natural father, can use the surname of her natural mother as her middle name.

Answer 31

The judge is incorrect in dismissing a petition for declaration of nullity of marriage based on Article 366 on the ground of lack of jurisdiction reasoning that marriages solemnized by the Church are governed by its Canon Law and not by the civil law.

Answer 32

When there is no bona fide intention of becoming a spouse to another, a marriage is void for want of consent even when marriage ceremonies have been conducted and, there, the parties declared their intent to enter into married life.

Answer 33

Judges must solemnize marriages only in his office or courtroom.

Answer 34

The marriage is void if the marriage contract states that no marriage license was exhibited to the solemnizing officer at the time of marriage, and the marriage does not fall under the circumstances where marriage license can be dispensed with.

Answer 35

No license shall be necessary for the marriage of a man and a woman who have lived together as husband and wife for at least five years and without any legal impediment to marry each other.

Answer 36

Absence of legal impediment must exist throughout the five-year period, and not only during marriage, for cohabiting persons to dispense with the marriage license.

Answer 37

A marriage formally valid in the place it is celebrated is valid in the Philippines.

Answer 38

Philippine laws do not provide for absolute divorce, and hence, the courts cannot grant the same.

Answer 39

The divorce obtained by a former Filipino citizen who is naturalized abroad is valid, even if at the time of celebration of the marriage, the naturalized spouse is still a Filipino citizen.

Answer 40

Foreign divorce decree, initiated and obtained by the Filipino spouse against the alien spouse, is cognizable in the Philippines and capacitates the Filipino spouse to remarry pursuant to Article 26(2).

Answer 41

Alien spouses who obtained divorce cannot invoke Article 26(2) to remarry.

Answer 42

Void marriage differs from voidable marriage

Answer 43

The parties are not required to obtain a judicial declaration of absolute nullity of a void ab initio first and subsequent marriages to raise it as a defense in a bigamy case.

Answer 43

There is a collateral attack on the validity of marriage when, as an incident in a pending action not precisely brought to nullify the marriage, an attack is made impugning the validity of marriage to obtain a different affirmative relief or by way of defense, even though there is no final judgment yet in a direct proceeding declaring the marriage annulled or nullified.

Answer 44

Other than for purposes of remarriage, no judicial action is necessary to declare a marriage an absolute nullity.

Answer 44

Bigamy is not committed where the parties to a purported second marriage merely signed a purported marriage contract without a license.

Answer 45

Psychological incapacity is neither a mental incapacity nor a personality disorder that must be proven through expert opinion.

Answer 46

A party to nullity case is still required to prove juridical antecedence because it is an explicit requirement of the law.

Answer 47

The psychological incapacity contemplated in Article 36 of the Family Code is incurable, not in the medical, but in the legal sense.

Answer 48

With respect to gravity, the requirement is retained, not in the sense that the psychological incapacity must be shown to be a serious or dangerous illness, but that “mild characterological peculiarities, mood changes, occasional emotional outbursts” are excluded.

Answer 49

Showing that a spouse is a compulsive gambler, habitual drunkard, womanizer, illegal substance user, and even a drug trafficker does not mean that he has psychological incapacity.

Answer 50

Sexual infidelity and abandonment, while grounds for legal separation, may be considered as manifestations of psychological incapacity.

Answer 51

As Article 36 of the Family Code is similarly worded to the third paragraph of Canon 1095, canonical decisions have a persuasive effect in secular decisions on psychological incapacity.

Answer 52

The principle of clean hands - he who comes into equity must come there with clean hands - should not prevent a psychologically incapacitated spouse from initiating a proceeding to declare a marriage void. This is because there is no party at fault in the case of declaration void marriage based on psychological incapacity.

Answer 53

Psychological incapacity is a legal concept, not an illness which has to be medically or clinically identified.

Answer 54

The evaluation of testimony, report, and conclusions of the psychologist who was unable to examine the defendant spouse must be done with the application of a more rigid and stringent set of standards.

Answer 55

The standard of proof in Article 36 cases is clear and convincing evidence, not mere preponderant evidence.

Answer 56

Ordinary witnesses who have been present in the life of the spouses before the latter contracted marriage may testify to behaviors that they have consistently observed from the supposedly incapacitated spouse.

Answer 57

Under the nationality principle, a petitioner who is a naturalized German citizen cannot invoke Article 36 in a petition for declaration of nullity of her marriage with her German national husband unless there is a German law that allows her to do so.

Answer 58

A petition for the declaration of presumptive death under Article 41 is not proper if the present spouse is not seeking to remarry.

Answer 59

“Well-founded belief” requisite under Article 41 on the declaration of spouse as absentee is complied with only upon a showing that sincere honest-to-goodness efforts had been made to ascertain whether the absent spouse is still alive or is already dead.

Answer 60

Requisites for the spouse declared presumptively dead to terminate the subsequent marriage contracted by the other spouse:

(i) non-existence of a judgment annulling the previous marriage or declaring it void ab initio
(ii) recording in the civil registry of the residence of the parties to the subsequent marriage of the sworn statement of fact and circumstances of reappearance
(iii) due notice to the spouses of the subsequent marriage of the fact of reappearance
(iv) fact of reappearance must either be undisputed or judicially determined.

Answer 61

A petition for declaration of presumptive death of an absent spouse for the purpose of contracting a subsequent marriage involves a proceeding that is summary in nature, the judgment of the court therein shall be immediately final and executory.

Answer 62

To constitute fraud regarding pregnancy that warrants annulment of marriage:
(1) the wife must have been pregnant by a man other than her husband at the time of the marriage and
(2) the wife must have fraudulently concealed the same

Answer 63

When a couple enters a regime of absolute community, the husband and the wife become joint owners of all the properties of the marriage.

Answer 64

Net profits require to first find the market value of the properties at the time of the community’s dissolution.

Answer 65

When a couple enters a regime of conjugal partnership of gains, the husband and the wife place in common fund the fruits of their separate property and income from their work or industry, and divide equally, upon the dissolution of the marriage or of the partnership, the net gains or benefits obtained indiscriminately by either spouse during the marriage.

Answer 66

Net profits of the conjugal partnership of gains are all the fruits of the separate properties of the spouses and the products of their labor and industry.

Answer 67

In determining the ownership of the improvements that are made on the separate property of the spouses at the expense of the partnership or through the acts or efforts of either or both spouses, the cost of the improvement and any resulting increase are considered.

Answer 68

A property registered “Ron, married to Schar” merely describes the civil status and identifies the spouse of the registered owner Ron; it does not necessarily mean the property is conjugal.

Answer 69

The applicable law governing an alienation or encumbrance of conjugal properties, without the consent of the other spouse, must be reckoned on the date of the alienation or encumbrance.

Answer 70

Payment of personal debts contracted by the husband or the wife before or during the marriage shall not be charged to the conjugal partnership except insofar as they redounded to the benefit of the family.

Answer 71

Article 50 providing the rule on liquidation, partition, and distribution of properties does not apply to marriages declared void under Article 36 based on psychological incapacity.

Answer 72

Upon the termination of the marriage by death, the conjugal partnership property shall be liquidated in the same proceeding for the settlement of the estate of the deceased.

Answer 73

Articles 147 vis-a-vis Article 148. Article 147 applies to union of parties who are legally capacitated and not barred by any impediment to contract marriage without the benefit of marriage or under a void marriage. Property acquired during marriage is prima facie presumed to have been obtained through the couple’s joint efforts and governed by the rules on co-ownership.

Article 148 applies to cohabitation where the parties are incapacitated to marry each other, in which case, it is necessary for each partner to prove actual contribution to the acquisition of property to claim any portion of it.

Question 74

What must be present for Article 147 to apply?

Answer 74

(i) the man and the woman must be capacitated to marry each other
(ii) they live exclusively with each other as husband and wife
(iii) their union is without the benefit of marriage, or their marriage is void

Answer 75

Cohabitation would require a significant period of staying together before a man and a woman may be said to be in cohabitation.

Answer 76

The prohibition against a spouse to donate any absolute community property or conjugal partnership property without the consent of the other spouse equally applies to common-law relations or cohabitations of a man and a woman without a valid marriage or under a void marriage.

Answer 77

The husband and the wife are obliged to live together, observe mutual love, respect, and fidelity

Answer 78

No suit between members of the same family shall prosper unless it should appear from the verified complaint or petition that earnest efforts toward a compromise have been made, but that the same have failed.

Answer 79

A family home constitutes not only the house where the family actually resides but also the lot on which it is situated.

Question 80

What are the requisites before the creditor can go after the family home if there is an increase in its value?

Answer 80

Requisites before the creditor can go after the family home if there is an increase in its value:

(i) increase in its actual value
(ii) increase resulted from voluntary improvements on the property introduced by persons constituting the family home, its owners or any of its beneficiaries
(iii) increased actual value exceeded the maximum allowed by law

Answer 81

The family home exemption from execution is not automatic. The claim for exemption from levy and execution must be backed with evidence showing that the home:

(i) was duly constituted as a family home
(ii) was constituted jointly by the husband and wife or by an unmarried head of a family
(iii) was resided in by the family (or any of the family home’s beneficiaries)
(iv) forms part of the properties of the absolute community or the conjugal partnership, or of the exclusive properties of either spouse with the latter’s consent, or property of the unmarried head of the family
(v) has an actual value of P300,000 in urban areas, and P200,000 in rural areas.

Answer 82

Family home shall continue to exist despite the death of one or both spouses or of the unmarried head of the family.

Answer 83

The law itself establishes the status of a child from the moment of his birth; proof of filiation is necessary only when the legitimacy or illegitimacy of the child is being questioned.

Answer 84

While under the Family Code, only the husband, or in exceptional circumstances, his heirs, could impugn the legitimacy of a child born in a valid and subsisting marriage, children who enjoy the presumption of legitimacy may also impugn this presumption through any of the grounds provided under the same Code.

Filiation proceedings are instituted not only for the purpose of determining paternity. These proceedings are also filed to secure a legal right associated with paternity, such as citizenship, support or inheritance. The best interest of the child is to allow the child to prove and establish her true filiation.

Therefore, while the law grants the husband the sole right to impugn his child’s legitimacy, the same child may bring an action to establish that she is not filliated to her mother’s husband.

Answer 85

An action to claim legitimate filiation is strictly personal to the child whose filiation is in question, and he or she may exercise such anytime within his lifetime. The only three instance when such right passes to the child’s heirs are:

(1) when the child dies during minority
(2) when the child dies in a state of insanity
(3) when the child dies after the commencement of the action

Answer 86

How filiation of illegitimate children can be established. Filiation of illegitimate children, like that of legitimate children, is established by:

(i) the record of birth appearing in the civil register or a final judgment or
(i) an admission of legitimate filiation in a public document or a private handwritten instrument and signed by the parent concerned. in the absence thereof, filiation is proved by:
(i) the open and continuous possession of the status of a legitimate child or
(ii) any other means allowed by the Rules of Court and special laws

Answer 87

Rules on the requirement of affixing the signature of the acknowledging parent in any private handwritten instrument wherein an admission of filiation of a legitimate or illegitimate child is made:

(i) where the private handwritten instrument is the lone piece of evidence submitted to prove filiation, there should be strict compliance with the requirement that the same must be signed by the acknowledging parent and
(ii) where the private handwritten instrument is accompanied by other relevant and competent evidence, it suffices that the claim of filiation therein be shown to have been made and handwritten by the acknowledging parent as it is merely corroborative of such other evidence.

Answer 88

Baptismal certificate is not a good proof of paternity. It only serves as evidence of the administration of the sacrament on the date specified but not the veracity of the entries with respect to the child’s paternity. It has evidentiary value to prove kinship if considered alongside other evidence of filiation.

Baptismal certificate alone is not sufficient to resolve a disputed filiation, and courts must peruse other pieces of evidence instead of relying only on a canonical record.

Answer 89

A birth certificate, being a public document, is an important piece of evidence, and offers prima facie evidence of filiation. For a birth certificate to prove paternity, it must be shown that the putative father had a hand in its preparation. The putative father’s signature on the face of the birth certificate is not indispensable in ascribing probative weight to the same. For as long as it can be shown that the putative father participated in the preparation of the certificate of birth, e.g., when the putative father provided the information for the entries to the certificate, or otherwise caused the registration of the birth, probative weight can be ascribed.

Answer 90

The signature of the mother is required in birth certificates of her illegitimate children who must use her surname, unless legally recognized by the father. Thus, if birth certificate was signed only by the illegitimate father and registered the child under his name without the consent of the mother, said birth certificate is void and the child cannot use the void certificate to authorize him to use the father’s name.

Answer 91

Filiation proceedings may be instituted together with an action for support.

Answer 92

The Family Code cannot be invoked to compel a foreigner father to support his illegitimate Filipino child. The laws of his country govern whether he is obliged to give support to his child, as well as the consequences of his failure to do so. The national law must be pleaded and proven in court; otherwise, the doctrine of processual presumption applies

Answer 93

The best interest of the minor refers to the totality of the circumstances and conditions as are most congenial to the survival, protection, and feelings of security of the minor encouraging to his physical, psychological, and emotional development.

Answer 94

Under the tender age presumption, a mother is to be preferred in awarding custody of children under the age of seven. The presumption may be overcome only by compelling evidence of the mother’s unfitness. The mother has been declared unsuitable to have custody of her children in any of the following: neglect, abandonment, unemployment, immorality, habitual drunkenness, drug addiction, maltreatment of the child, insanity, or affliction with a communicable disease.

Answer 95

the father does not have the right to parental custody of his illegitimate child upon his recognition of filiation.

Answer 96

The school, its administrators and teachers, or the individual, entity or institution engaged in childcare have special parental authority and responsibility over the minor child while under their supervision, instruction, or custody. Authority and responsibility apply to all authorized activities whether inside or outside the premises of the school, entity, or institution.

Answer 97

While a schoolteacher could duly discipline her pupils, her infliction of the physical injuries is unnecessary, violent, and excessive. The Family Code expressly bans the infliction of corporal punishment by a school administrator, teacher, or individual engaged in childcare exercising special parental authority.