Sunday, August 31, 2014

Bequeath equals legacy only?

In commenting on Article 924 of the Civil Code, Paras differentiated the words "bequeathed" and "devised". On page 403 of the book Civil Code of the Philippines Annotated, Vol. III, 2013 Edition we find:


The differentiation, however, fails when we come to succeeding articles. See for instance Article 929:


The word used is "bequeathed" to refer to both a legacy and a devise.

I think the problem arose when we grafted unto our Civil Code terms from American legal usage. The Spanish Civil Code uses "legacy" to refer to both personal and real property.

Article 865 of the Spanish Civil Code, which corresponds with Article 924 of the NCC, says:
The legacy of things which are beyond the bounds of commerce shall be null and void.

Sunday, August 24, 2014

Revisiting Art. 992

Article 992 of the Civil Code of the Philippines says:
An illegitimate child has no right to inherit ab intestato  from the legitimate children and relatives of his father and mother; nor shall such children or relatives inherit in the same manner from the illegitimate child.
Paras speaks of the Article thusly on page 494 of the Civil Code of the Philippines Annotated, Vol. III, 2013 Edition:

And here's how the barrier is explained (page 495):


I think this barrier, when it relates to the relatives (emphasis mine in Article 992, above), creates uncomfortable, complicated, and relationship-shattering   situations among would-be heirs.

Here's how Paras diagrams, on page 495, a relationship that can lead to several situations:


I can understand the barrier between B and C, between D and E, and between F and G if the inheritance comes from either side of the relationship.

But I don't seen any reason for a barrier between E and A if the inheritance is from A to E or the other way around.

Paras even considers an extreme situation (page 499):


Here we have a granddaughter whose misfortune is that her mother was a single parent and, in fact, the only child of her grandmother. We have laws protecting the rights of a single parent, especially an unwed mother which render obsolete the part of Article 992 talking of relatives.

In Lorrente v. Rodriguez, however, the unwed mother had other siblings. The siblings using Article 992 deprived their niece from what she would have inherited from her grandmother by way of representation. Can you imagine the resentment of the niece against her uncle? Article 992 in this case created an unwanted barrier.

I maybe inclined to believe in the barrier if it was a grandfather, father, grandson situation. There is no telling, without DNA evidence, that the grandson is a blood relative of the father's siblings. But in a grandmother, mother, granddaughter there can be no doubt, if you catch my drift.

Saturday, August 23, 2014

Saturday typos, 23 August 2014

From the Civil Code of the Philippines, Annotated, Volume III, 2013 Edition by Paras:

Page 302 -

 In (1), it should be "Legitimate children and . . . ".   Art. 992 is not correct.

Page 329 -

Should be "reservee".

Sunday, August 17, 2014

Institution by death

One way of instituting an heir is by death. So says Paras, or at least he seems to say, on page 371 of the Civil Code of the Philippines, Annotated, Vol. III, 2013 Edition:


Saturday, August 16, 2014

Saturday typos, 16 August 2014

From the Civil Code of the Philippines, Annotated, Vol III, 2013 Edition by Paras:

Page 491 -

Page 516 -

Page 556 -

Sunday, August 10, 2014

Sibling of a land

Can a land have a sibling?

It seems so on page 299 of Paras' Civil Code of the Philippines Annotated, Vol. III,2013 Edition.


Saturday, August 9, 2014

Saturday typos, 9 August 2014

From Essentials of Transportation and Public Utilities Law, 2011 Edition by Aquino and Hernando:

Page 441 -


Page 458 -
 Page 466 -


Page 470 -

Sunday, August 3, 2014

Contract of make

On page 193 of the Essentials of Transportation and Public Utilities Law, 2011 Edition by Aquino and Hernando we find this:

Aquino and Hernando quoted from Sweet Lines, Inc. v. Teves, GR L-37750. So I checked with Chan Robles Virtual Law Library and found this:

Chan Robles has it right. Here's the link.to the case.

Apparently Aquino and Hernando got their jurisprudence from Lawphil. See the case here.

And here's another portion from the same jurisprudence as transcribed by Lawphil:

Saturday, August 2, 2014

Saturday typo, 2 Aug 2014

From the Essentials of Transportation and Public Utilities Law, 2011 Edition by Aquino and Hernando.

Page 423:

Page 424:

Page 438: