Dear PAO,

I would like to ask for your advice in behalf of my mother. She is working in Saipan at present. My brother and I
were left under the care of our father, although in reality it is our grandmother who is taking care of us because
my father is more occupied with his vices to the point that he spends the money allotted for me and my brother.
Just recently, my mother found out that my father sold the land that he acquired a year after they got married.
She wants to know if there is any way for her to have that sale nullified.
Cristy
Dear Cristy,
Husbands and wives are governed by property relations. They may choose, prior to the celebration of their
marriage, the particular property relations they prefer, whether it is the regime of absolute community, conjugal
partnership of gains, complete separation of property or any other regime. In the absence of such agreement,
or if the regime agreed upon by them is void, they will be governed by the system of absolute community of
property (Article 75, Civil Code of the Philippines (CCP) ).
If your parents did not enter into a marriage settlement prior to their marriage, it is safe to say they are
governed by the system of absolute community of property. Accordingly, they are deemed as co-owners of all
pieces of property owned by them at the time of the celebration of their marriage as well as those which they
have acquired thereafter (Article 91, CCP).
But he pieces of properties that either of them has acquired by gratuitous title, including the fruits as well as the
income thereof, do not form part of the community property, unless such is expressly provided by the donor,
testator or grantor. In the same manner, assets for personal and exclusive use of either of your parents are not
part of the community property (Article 92 (1) and (2), CCP).
Correspondingly, if the land that was sold by your father is his exclusive property, having acquired it by
gratuitous title, then your mother may not have such contract of sale nullified. Being his exclusive property, he
may mortgage, encumber, alienate or otherwise dispose of the property without the consent of your mother
(Article 111, CCP, as amended by Section 2, Republic Act 10572).
On the other hand, if the subject land forms part of the absolute community property of your parents, your
father may not sell it without securing prior consent from your mother. Should he be able to do so, your mother
may seek for the nullification of such sale being a void transaction. This is in consonance with Article 96 of the
law stating that: x x x In the event that one spouse is incapacitated or otherwise unable to participate in the
administration of the common properties, the other spouse may assume sole powers of administration. These
powers do not include disposition or encumbrance without authority of the court or the written consent of the
other spouse. In the absence of such authority or consent, the disposition or encumbrance shall be void. x x x
(emphasis supplied)
We hope that we were able to answer your queries. Please be reminded that this advice is based solely on the
facts you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts are changed
or elaborated.

Dear PAO,
We need help in transferring the title of the land that my father inherited from my late grandmother. Right now, the title is still in
the name of the person who sold the land to my grandmother but our family has been occupying the land and paying the taxes
since I was little. We want to transfer the title but we lack one requirement, that is, the deed of sale from the seller to my
grandmother. Apparently, it was lost in a flood. What can we do? Please advise us.
Romi
Dear Romi,
In order to transfer the title of the land that your grandmother bought, it is necessary to produce the deed of sale that the seller
executed in favor of your grandmother. Without such deed, your father, as an heir of your deceased grandmother, would first have
to go to court and prove that his family owns the subject land to secure a transfer certificate of title to the land.
Section 57 of the Property Registration Decree states, An owner desiring to convey his registered land in fee simple an
(unlimited manner) shall execute and register a deed of conveyance in a form sufficient in law. The deed of conveyance shall be
filled and indorsed with the number and the place of registration of the certificate of title of the land conveyed. Consequently, a
deed of conveyance executed by the registered owner of the land is one of the primary requirements that the concerned register of
deeds would ask before the transfer of land title is made. Hence, if it is possible to secure a copy of the deed of sale from other
sources, such as the seller or his heirs, or the notary public if the deed of sale was notarized, I advise you to do so in order to
comply with the legal requirements for transferring a land title.
If such measure proves impractical or impossible, however, your father may need to file a case in court and prove that his family
owns the land by virtue of the sale made by the registered owner in favor of his deceased mother to facilitate the transfer of his
title. For this purpose, your father would have to present secondary evidence under Section 5 of Rule 130 of the Rules of Court
allowing a party to prove the contents of a document, which is lost or destroyed, by presenting a copy, or by a recital of its
contents in some authentic document, or by the testimony of witnesses.
In such a case, the existence of the document, its content and execution, and subsequent loss must all be proved. The execution of
a document may be established by the person or persons who executed it, by the person before whom its execution was
acknowledged, or by any person who was present and saw it executed or who, after its execution, saw it and recognized the
signatures, or by a person to whom the parties to the instrument had previously confessed its execution (De Vera vs. Aguilar, 218
SCRA 602).
We hope we were able to sufficiently address your concern. Please bear in mind that this opinion is based on the facts you
narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary if facts are changed or elaborated.
Editors note: Dear PAO is a daily column of the Public Attorneys Office. Questions for Chief Acosta may be sent to
dearpao@manilatimes.net