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G.R. No. 125088: Lagrimas Boy v. Court of Appeals, Erlinda & Isagani Ramos
14 April 2004, 427 SCRA 196
Constructive Delivery

In 1984, Lagrimas needed money for her brother’s placement fee to go abroad. She then
borrowed P15k from spouses Ramos. In 1986, Lagrimas executed a Deed of Absolute Sale with
the Ramoses. Subject of the sale was Lagrimas’ 55.75 sq m land and the house erected there.
Price agreed upon was P31k. Allegedly, Lagrimas’ debt is to be deducted, so the Ramoses are
to pay P16k more. Lagrimas stayed in the property as the Ramoses were not yet in immediate
need thereof.

In 1988, Lagrimas went to Erlinda asking that they execute a Kasunduan. The Kasunduan
states that the Ramoses still owe P16k to Lagrimas; that interest is to be deducted in favor of
the Ramoses so that would leave a balance of P8.5k. The Kasunduan was notarized but upon
signing, Erlinda changed her mind. She said she realized that they were actually able to pay
P31k to Lagrimas when the Deed of Sale was executed. She advised the lawyer to change what
she just signed. The lawyer said that the parties need to talk to each other first. Lagrimas
promised the lawyer that she will be scrapping the Kasunduan.

Later, the need for the Ramoses to occupy the land arose. They demanded Lagrimas to vacate
the property. Lagrimas refused to do so. She invoked the Kasunduan.

ISSUE: Whether or not the Kasunduan prevails over the Deed of Absolute Sale.

HELD: No. A review of the Deed shows no indication that there was a balance left to be paid to
Lagrimas. The contract is absolute. It has been established that Lagrimas sold the subject
property to private respondents for the price of P31k, as evidenced by the Deed of Absolute
Sale, the due execution of which was not controverted by Lagrimas. The contract is absolute
in nature, without any provision that title to the property is reserved in Lagrimas until full
payment of the purchase price. By the contract of sale, Lagrimas (as vendor), obligated herself
to transfer the ownership of, and to deliver, the subject property to the Ramoses (as vendees)
after they paid the price of P31k. Under Article 1477 of the Civil Code, the ownership of the
thing sold shall be transferred to the vendee upon the actual or constructive delivery thereof.

In addition, Article 1498 of the Civil Code provides that when the sale is made through a public
instrument, as in this case, the execution thereof shall be equivalent to the delivery of the thing
which is the object of the contract, if from the deed the contrary does not appear or cannot
clearly be inferred. In this case, the Deed of Absolute Sale does not contain any stipulation
against the constructive delivery of the property to private respondents. In the absence of
stipulation to the contrary, the ownership of the property sold passes to the vendee upon the
actual or constructive delivery thereof. The Deed of Absolute Sale, therefore, supports private
respondents’ right of material possession over the subject property.