Laws and Found

Austria v. Reyes  Facts: 1. Basilia Austria executed a will wherein the bulk of her estate was given to the respondents, alll have been declared by the former as her legally adopted children. 2. During her lifetime, Basilia filed a petition for the probate of her will. It was opposed by the petitioners who are the nephews and nieces. The opposition was dismissed and the will was allowed. 3. In 1954, the petitioners filed a petition for intervention for partition alleging that they were the nearest kin of Basilia and that the respondent had not been in fact adopted by the decedent in accordance with law, hence the latter were strangers with no right to succeed as heirs. 4. The lower court held that the validity or invalidity is not material to the institution of heirs. It held that the testator was possessed of testamentary capacity and her last will was executed free from falsification, fraud, trickery or undue influence. Issue: Whether or not the instituti...

Heirs of Lorenzo Yap v. Court of Appeals G.R. No.. 133047 August 17, 1999 Facts:  1. Petitioners as heirs of Lorenzo Yap filed an action against Ramon Yap and co-respondent for the reconveyance of land, with buildings and improvement on it. They alleged that the said property was held in trust by Ramon and that it was their father Lorenzo who purchased the said land and constructed the apartment building on it. However, alleging that since at that time, Lorenzo was still a Chinese citizen, hence prohibited from owning land, he caused it to be registered in the name of respondent Ramon. 2. The said property was sold by Ramon to his co-respondent which caused the petitioners to file this action. 3. The lower court ruled in favor of the respondents or the ownership of Ramon. This was affirmed by the Court of Appeals. Hence this petition. Issue: Whether or not a trust was constituted between Lorenzo and Ramon RULING: No, and even it there was an implied trust, ...

Saltiga v. Romero G.R. No. 109307 November 25, 1999 Ponente: Gonzaga-Reyes, J.: Trusts Facts: 1. The petitioners filed an action against Lutero Romero and DBP (bank) for the reconveyance of a parcel of land alleging that the said property was conveyed to Romero by their father by virtue of a trust. 2. In 1939, Eugenio (father)of petitioners obtained the rights and interest to the then public land from the Jaug spouses but since he had already applied for a homestead previously, he could no longer apply for this said land. As a result he caused the application to be under the name of his eldest son Eustaquio. When the father died, the said land was portioned to the children who subsequently possessed each share. 3. Romero alleged that he was subsequently forced to sign three affidavits which purportedly sold the shares to his other siblings. He repudiated the said affidavits which made his sisters file estafa charges against him. Issue:Whether or not a trust w...

Nepomuceno v. Court of Appeals Facts: 1. Martin Hugo died on 1974 and he left a will wherein he instituted Sofia Nepomuceno as the sole and only executor. It was also provided therein that he was married to Rufina Gomez with whom he had 3 children. 2. Petitioner (Sofia) filed for the probate of the will but the legal wife and her children opposed alleging that the will was procured through improper and undue influence and that there was an admission of concubinage with the petitioner. 3. The lower court denied the probate on the ground of the testator's admission of cohabitation, hence making the will invalid on its face. The Court of Appeals reversed and held that the will is valid except the devise in favor of the petitioner which is null and void in violation of Art. 739 and 1028. Issue: Whether or not the court can pass on the intrinsic validity of a will RULING: Yes, as an exception. But the general rule is that the court's area of inquiry is limited...

Gallanosa v. Arcangel Facts: 1. Florentino Gallanosa executed a will in 1938 when he was 80 years old. He owned 61 parcels of and at that time. He died in 1939 childless and survived by his brother Leon. In his will, he bequethed his 1/2 share of the conjugal estate to his second wife Tecla and if she predecease him (as what occurred), the said share shall be assigned to the spouses Gallanosa (Pedro & Corazon). Pedro is Tecla's son by her 1st marriage. He also gave 3 parcels of land to Adolfo, his protege. 2. The said will was admitted to probate with Gallanosa as executor. In 1952, thjhe legal heirs filed an action for the recovery of said 61 parcels of land. The action was dismissed on the ground of res judicata. Then, 28 years after probate, another acton agaisnt Gallanosa for annulment of the will, recovery of the lands alleging fraud and deceit, was filed. As a result, the lower court set aide the 1939 decree of probate. Issue: Whether or not a will which ...

Dela Cerna v. Potot Digest Facts: 1. The spouses Bernabe Dela Serna and Gerasisa Rebabca executed a joint will where they gave two (2) parcels of land to manuela Rebaca, a niece, as they didn't have their own child. When Bernabe died, the said will was probated in 1939. 2. Another petition for probate of the same will insofar as Gervasia was concerned was filed in 1952 but due to the failure of the petitioner (Manuela) to appears, the same was dismissed in 1954.  3. The CFI held the petition (Bernabe probate) to be null and void as it is contrary to law. While the Court of Appeals reversed and held that the decree of probate in 1939 was issued by a court of probate jurisdiction and conclusive as to the due execution of the will. Hence this appeal. Issue: Whether or not the will is valid RULING: The Supreme Court affirmed the CA decision and held that Once a decree of probate becomes final in accordance with the rules of procedure, it is res judicata. THe fina...

Guevara v. Guevara Digest Facts: 1. Victorino Guevara executed a will in 1931 wherein he made various bequests t his wife, stepchildren, wife in the 2nd marriage. He has a legitimate son Ernesto and a natural daughter Rosario. Therein, he acknowledged Rosario as his natural daughter. 2. In 1933, Victorino died but his last will was never presented for probate nor was there any settlement proceeding initiated. It appeared that only his son Ernest possessed the land which he adjudicated to himself. While Rosario who had the will in her custody, did nothing to invoke the acknowledgment, as well as the devise given to her. 3. Subsequently, Rosario filed an action for the recovery of her legitime from Ernesto, a portion of a large parcel of land invoking the acknowledgment contained in the will and based on the assumption that the decedent died intestate because his will was not probated. She alleged that the disposition in favor of Ernesto should be disregarded. 4. The l...

People v. Serzo Rights of the Accused Facts: 1. Appellant Mario Serzo was convicted of murder by the lower court for the stabbing/killing of Alfredo Casabal after the latter rescued minors being held by the former. 2. Pre-trial was waived and the case proceeded to trial on the merits.  3. The accused alleged that he was denied the right to counsel. During the arraignment he appeared without counsel,so the court appointed a counsel de officio. Thereafter, he moved that the arraignment be reset so he can engage the services of his own counsel however, during the arraignment, he still appeared without one. The arraignment proceeded with him being assisted by the counsel de officio. 4. During the trial, the same counsel appeared and cross-examined for the accused. Issue: Whether or not the accused was denied of his right to counsel HELD: NO. Herein, the accused was provided with a counsel de officio who assisted him in all stages of the proceedings.The option to...

Almayri v. Pabale G.R. No. 151243 April 30, 2008 Ponente: Chico-Nazario, J.: Facts: 1. Almayri petitions the court for the setting aside of the CA decision.  2. Cesnando Fernando, representing S.M. Fernando Realty Corp filed an action for Specific Performance with Damages (Civil Case) against Nelly Nave who owns a parcel of land which the former alleged was the subject of a 'Kasunduan ng Pagbibilihan'. However, Nave allegedly reneged on their agreement when she refused to accept the partial payment of Fernando. The said lot was instead sold to the Pabale siblings. 3.  Subsequently, the civil proceedings were suspended by virtue of a guardianship proceedings. In June 1988, Nave was declared therein to be incompetent. 4. The lower court declared the nullity of the two sale agreements on the ground that Nave was found incompetent since 1980. The Pabale siblings intervened. The Court of Appeals granted the appeals of both Fernando and the Pabale siblings and...

Nery v. Lorenzo  44 SCRA 431 G.R. No. L-23376  April 27, 1972 Ponente: Fernando, J.: Facts: 1. A parcel of land was sold to vendee spouses Nery by the widow of the deceased Leoncio Lorenzo. The vendor was Bienvenida (widow), guardian of the decedent's minor children. Two (2) of whom later assailed the validity of the said transaction. The latter contended that despite the order of the guardianship court authorizing the sale of the lot, they were not informed of the move. Further, they contended that the guardianship proceeding was conducted without notifying the two older siblings although they were already more than 14 years of age at that time. 2. The heirs of Silveria Ferrer who allegedly owned 1/4 of the property likewise intervened in the action. The lower court adjudged them the owners of the 1/4 portion and it likewise declared the sale to be null and void. 3. The spouses Nery appealed to the Court of Appeals which declared the deed of sale to the spo...

Paciente v. Dacuycuy 114 SCRA 924 G.R. No. L-58319 June 29, 1982 Ponente: Guttierez, J.: Facts: 1. Leonardo Homeres died, leaving to his widow Lilia, and two (2) minor children a lot. Subsequently, the lot was sold to Conchita Dumdum, who later on sold it to the petitioner. The petitioner then mortgaged the subject lot to the Citytrust bank as security for a loan. Thereafter, Lilia was declared guardian of the minors in the guardianship proceedings. 2. The guardianship court issued an order for the cancellation of the transfer certificate of title for the lot. It also ordered the petitioner to pay the minors the price of the lot alienated. Hence, this petition. Issue: Whether or not the guardianship court has jurisdiction to order the cancellation on the transfer certificate of title of the subject lot RULING: Yes, in this case the title and ownership of the minors over the disputed property is clear and indisputable, as such, the court orders for the return or d...

Parco v. Court of Appeals 111 SCRA 262 G.R. No. L-33152 January 30,1982 Ponente: De Castro, J.: Facts: 1. This case stems from a previous Special proceedings for the guardianship of incompetent Soriaya Rodriguez. The guardianship proceeding originally pertained to Branch 1, CFI of Quezon. Subsequently, it was transferred to Branch IV-Calauag, CFI of Quezon, where respondent judge Kayanan took cognizance of the case. 2. The private respondent, Francisco Rodriguez Jr. was the appointed guardian. Respondent judge approved the conveyance of three (3) parcels of land belonging to the ward to the petitioners, the spouses Parco.  3. Almost two years after the guardianship court's approval of the 'sale', the private respondent filed an urgent petition for the examination of the subject conveyance of the lots to the petitioners, by virtue of the transfer of title to third parties.   He argued that the conveyance was actually a loan agreement with a right to recove...

Guy v. CA 502 SCRA 151 G.R. No. 163707 September 15, 2006 Ponente: Ynares-Santiago, J.: Facts: 1. The special proceeding case concerns the settlement of the estate of Sima Wei (a.k.a. Rufina Guy Susim). Private-respondents Karen and Kamille alleged that they are the acknowledged  illegitimate children of Sima Wei who died intestate. The minors were represented by their mother Remedios Oanes who filed a petition for the issuance of letters of administration before the RTC of Makati City. 2. Petitioner who is one of the children of the deceased with his surviving spouse, filed for the dismissal of the petition alleging that his father left no debts hence, his estate may be settled without the issuance of letters administration. The other heirs filed a joint motion to dismiss alleging that the certification of non-forum shopping should have been signed by Remedios and not by counsel. 3. Petitioners further alleged that the claim has been paid and waived by reason ...

Stonehill v. Diokno 20 SCRA 283 (1967) Concepcion, CJ Facts: 1. Respondent (porsecution) made possible the issuance of 42 search warrants against the petitioner and the corporation to search persons and premises of several personal properties due to an alleged violation of Central Bank Laws, Tariff and Custom Laws, Internal Revenue Code and the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines. As a results, search and seizures were conducted in the both the residence of the petitioner and in the corporation's premises. 2.The petitioner contended that the search warrants are null and void as their issuance violated the Constitution and the Rules of Court for being general warrants.  Thus,he filed a petition with the Supreme Court for certiorari , prohibition, mandamus and injunction to prevent the seized effects from being introduced as evidence in the deportation cases against the petitioner. The court issued the writ only for those effects found in the petitioner's reside...

The May 2013 national elections in the Philippines is fast approaching and yet many candidates were found to have violated Comelec rules specifically on campaign materials. To save effort and confusion, and to elucidate on this issue, the Commission on Elections issued Resolution No. 9615 . For information dissemination purposes, this Resolution is reproduced below and for more information on election campaign, it is best to refer to the Comelec website. RULES AND REGULATIONS IMPLEMENTING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9006, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE “FAIR ELECTION ACT”, IN CONNECTION TO THE 13 MAY 2013 NATIONAL AND LOCAL ELECTIONS, AND SUBSEQUENT ELECTIONS Promulgated on  15 January 2013 Source: COMELEC WHEREAS,  Republic Act No. 9006  provides for the holding of free, orderly, honest, peaceful and credible elections through fair election practices; WHEREAS, the said Act allows the publication or broadcast, through mass media, of political advertisements or propag...