ANTONIO B. BALTAZAR VS.

LORENZO LAXA
G.R. No. 174489 : April 07, 2012
DEL ASTILLO, J.
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Paciencia was a 78 year old spinster when she made her last will and
testament in the Pampango dialect on September 13, 1981. The Will,
exected in the hose o! retired "dge #rnestino $. %impin, was read to
Paciencia twice. &!ter which, Paciencia expressed in the presence o! the
instrmental witnesses that the docment is her last will and testament. She
therea!ter a!!ixed her signatre at the end o! the said docment on page 3
and then on the le!t margin o! pages 1, ' and ( thereo!. The witnesses to the
Will attested to the Will)s de exection by a!!ixing their signatres below
its attestation clase and on the le!t margin o! pages 1, ' and ( thereo!, in the
presence o! Paciencia and o! one another and o! "dge %impin who acted as
notary pblic.
Petitioners as*ed the +T, to deny the probate o! Paciencia)s Will on
the !ollowing gronds- the Will was not exected and attested to in
accordance with the re.irements o! the law/ that Paciencia was mentally
incapable to ma*e a Will at the time o! its exection/ that she was !orced to
execte the Will nder dress or in!lence o! !ear or threats/ that the
exection o! the Will had been procred by nde and improper pressre
and in!lence by %oren0o or by some other persons !or his bene!it/ that the
signatre o! Paciencia on the Will was !orged/ that assming the signatre to
be genine, it was obtained throgh !rad or tric*ery/ and, that Paciencia did
not intend the docment to be her Will.
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Whether the will shold be allowed !or probate.
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The burden to prove that Paciencia was of unsound mind at the time
of the execution of the will lies on the shoulders of the petitioners.
Petitioners, throgh their witness +osie, claim that Paciencia was !orget!l
so mch so that it e!!ecti1ely stripped her o! testamentary capacity. The state
o! being !orget!l does not necessarily ma*e a person mentally nsond so
as to render him n!it to execte a Will. 2orget!lness is not e.i1alent to
being o! nsond mind. 3n this case, apart !rom the testimony o! +osie
pertaining to Paciencia)s !orget!lness, there is no sbstantial e1idence,
medical or otherwise, that wold show that Paciencia was o! nsond mind
at the time o! the exection o! the Will. 4n the other hand, the ,ort !inds
more worthy o! credence 5ra. %impin)s testimony as to the sondness o!
mind o! Paciencia when the latter went to "dge %impin)s hose and
1olntarily exected the Will.
Bare allegations of duress or influence of fear or threats, undue and
improper influence and pressure, fraud and trickery cannot be used as basis
to deny the probate of a will.