1.

In the “Mi Ultimo Adios” of Dr. Jose Rizal, he stated, “Ahi, te dejo todo
mis amores” translated literally “By this, I leave everything to you, my
parents, my loved ones.” As the paper on which it was found was dated
and signed by Rizal, does it qualify as a holographic Will?

ANSWER: ANSWERED

2. Aurora owes Brenda P 1 Million. Brenda bequeathed that receivable to
her only cousin Ana, but two years later, Brenda brought an action
against Aurora who refused to pay her account. If Brenda would die,
shall Ana be allowed to be substituted as party plaintiff, assuming that
the will is valid?

ANWER: NO. Ana cannot be allowed to be substituted as party plaintiff.

Art. 936. The legacy referred to in the preceding article shall lapse if
the testator, after having made it, should bring an action against the
debtor for the payment of his debt, even if such payment should not
have been effected at the time of his death.

The legacy to the debtor of the thing pledged by him is understood to

discharge only the right of pledge.

The legacy is revoked if testator subsequently sues the debtor for collection.

3. Mario executed a valid will, bequeathing P 2M to Tita, his first girlfriend
whom he has not seen since he married Carla. After Mario’s death, Carla saw
that will and tore it into pieces. Fortunately, Juan, a garbage collector was able
to save said pieces and had given them to Tita.

a. May those pieces still be presented for probate?
b. Suppose that when Mario was dying, he instructed Carla to tear the will,
but Carla was able to do it only after Mario’s death. Was that will
considered validly revoked?

ANSWER:
a. YES. Those pieces may still be presented for probate.

Art. 830. No will shall be revoked except in the following cases: (1) By
implication of law; or (2) By some will, codicil, or other writing
executed as provided in case of wills; or (3) By burning, tearing,
 cancelling, or obliterating the will with the intention of revoking it, by
the testator himself, or by some other person in his presence, and by
his express direction. If burned, torn, cancelled, or obliterated by
some other person, without the express direction of the testator,
the will may still be established, and the estate distributed in
accordance therewith, if its contents, and due execution, and the
fact of its unauthorized destruction, cancellation, or obliteration
are established according to the Rules of Court.

b. NO. The will was not validly revoked.

Art. 830. No will shall be revoked except in the following cases: (1) By
implication of law; or (2) By some will, codicil, or other writing
executed as provided in case of wills; or (3) By burning, tearing,
cancelling, or obliterating the will with the intention of revoking it,
by the testator himself, or by some other person in his presence,
and by his express direction. If burned, torn, cancelled, or obliterated
by some other person, without the express direction of the testator,
the will may still be established, and the estate distributed in
accordance therewith, if its contents, and due execution, and the fact
of its unauthorized destruction, cancellation, or obliteration are
established according to the Rules of Court.

The physical destruction may be done by the testator personally or by

another person acting in his presence and in his express direction. (Balane, page
186, 2016 ed.)

In this case, the will was not validly revoked because the law requires that
the destruction by the agent must be in his presence and by his express direction.
The act of destruction was only done after the death of the testator.

4. With his first wife Ana, Rico has a son, Ricky and a daughter, Anita. With his
second wife Juana, Rico has a daughter Juanita. Ricky donated a parcel of land
to Juanita. Later, Juanita dies without any legal heir except Juana. Juana’s
mother Wanda is still alive.

a. Who shall inherit that parcel of land from Juanita?

Juana shall inherit the parcel of land from Juanita, being a direct ascendant who
survived the latter, she is preferred. Other relatives are excluded.

b. Shall that property be subject to reserve troncal?

Yes. The property shall be subject to reserva troncal. The requisites of
reserva troncal are:

1. that the property was acquired by a descendant from an ascendant
or from a brother or sister by gratuitous title;
2. that said descendant died without an issue;
3. that the property is inherited by another ascendant by operation of
law; and
4. That there are relatives within the third degree belonging to the
line from which the said property came.

Juana is the reservista who has the obligation of reserving the parcel of land
for the benefit of relatives who are within the third degree of Juanita.

5. In a sheet of paper addressed to his clerk Maria, Alex wrote the following:

Maria, please type the following, as my last will.

It is my wish that my only house and lot in Manila be given to my only
child, Jose.

Right after this statement, Alex affixed his usual signature and wrote
July 31, 2010. However before Maria could comply, Alex passed away. Is he
considered to have died with a valid will?

ANSWERED.

6. Mameng, a spinster, died without an issue. She is survived by the sister of
her mother named Becky and by the daughter of her brother named Aga. Both
are third degree relatives. Her estate is also being claimed by a ward whom
she took and treated as a child. She left an estate worth P100,000.00. Who are
her heirs and how much will each get?

ANSWER: Only the daughter of Aga (brother) will inherit because nieces or nephews
exclude aunts and uncles.

 Bacayo v. Borromeo.-- Nephews and nieces exclude uncles and aunts even if
they may be both only three (3) degrees away from the decedent. (Art. 1009 by
inference.)

7. A mother sold a parcel of land to her son. The mother died. Later, the son
died without any descendant of his own. Said child died intestate and all his
properties, including the land were inherited by his father. The father died.
The parcel of land is being claimed by the sister of the child’s mother and the
brother of the child’s father.

a. Is that parcel of land subject to reserva troncal?
b. Who is or are entitled to the land assuming all relationships are
legitimate?

ANSWER:

a. NO. The parcel of land is not subject to reserva troncal.

Art. 891. The ascendant who inherits from his descendant any property
which the latter may have acquired by gratuitous title from another
ascendant, or a brother or sister, is obliged to reserve such property as
he may have acquired by operation of law for the benefit of relatives
who are within the third degree and who belong to the line from
which said property came.

b. Since the parcel of land is not subject to reserva troncal, only the brother of the
child’s father will inherit.

Art. 1004. Should the only survivors be brothers and sisters of the full blood,
they shall inherit in equal shares.

8. The testator has four children, Ana, Bruja, Culit and Dagul. He does not like
his third child Culit because she leads a dishonorable life, so he provided in his
will, “I designate as my heirs, Ana, Bruja, Dagul and the children of Fred, a
friend of the testator.”
The estate is worth p 240,000.00. How much will each get?

ANSWER. ART. 918 IN REL TO 916.

9. Joey is the testator. His parents are Fred and Maria. He has a brother, Boy, to
whom he is very close. He has a legitimate child named Andoy and an adopted
child named Badoy, a legitimated child named Candoy and an illegitimate
child named Dandoy. Tony is married to Gigi, a friend of her first cousin
Cynthia. Supposing Joey dies with a net estate of P 1M and these persons
survive him, who are his compulsory heirs? What are their respective
legitimes?

10. In a valid will, Frank bequeathed his only cow to his bestfriend, Serge. At
the time of Frank’s demise, that animal was pregnant. It took a few months to
have Frank’s will probated, so by the time it was executed, the cow had
already given birth. To whom shll the offspring pertain, assuming that he has
legal heirs?

ANSWERED:

11. In his valid will, Roy instituted his friends, Bert, Dan and Tim as his heirs,
leaving P10,000.00, P20,000.00 and P30,000.00 respectively to them. Tim
predeceased Roy. Shall Bert and Dan be entitled to receive as accretion
whatever was intended for Tim?

ANSWER: YES.

Art. 1016. In order that the right of accretion may take place in a
testamentary succession, it shall be necessary:

(1) That two or more persons be called to the same inheritance, or to

the same portion thereof, pro indiviso, and

(2) That one of the persons thus called die before the testator, or
renounce the inheritance, or be incapacitated to receive it.

12. In his valid will, Virgil bequeathed P100,000.00 to Alex, his legitimate full-
blood brother, and to Alice, his illegitimate half-blood sister. Divide the legacy.

ANSWER:

Alex and Alice shall inherit equally. Under the law (Art. 848), it is provided
that if the testator should institute his brothers and sisters and he has some of full
blood and others of half blood, the inheritance shall be distributed equally, unless a
different intention appears. In this case, Alex and Alice shall inherit P50, 000.00
respectively because there was no contrary intention provided by Virgil.

13. Ramon devised a parcel of land in Manila to Lito. That property was
mortgaged to a bank to secure Ramon’s loan, which was still unpaid at the
time of his demise. Who should pay the bank to secure the release of the
mortgage?

ANSWER: The estate should pay the bank to secure the release of the mortgage.

Art. 934. If the testator should bequeath or devise something pledged

or mortgaged to secure a recoverable debt before the execution of the
will, the estate is obliged to pay the debt, unless the contrary intention
appears.

The same rule applies when the thing is pledge or mortgaged after the
execution of the will.

Any other charge, perpetual or temporary, with which the thing

bequeathed is burdened, passes with it to the legatee or devisee.

14. Pedro, the father of Jose and Maria was residing in Brazil at the time of his
death in June 7, 1997. Jose and Maria learned of his death only last June 3,
2008, when the executor of Pedro’s will came over to deliver their inheritance
consisting of numerous shares of stock in some Brazilian corporations. They
accepted that inheritance on January 29, 2009. When are Jose and Maria
considered to have acquired rights over said inheritance?

ANSWERED:

15. Mae, a daughter of Ed received nothing in his will, but long before the
making of that will, she received from him a parcel of land though with a value
less than her supposed legitime.

(a) Was there preterition?

ANSWER: NO. There is no preterition. If the heir had received a donation inter vivos
from the testator – the donation inter vivos is treated as an advance on the legitime
under Articles 906, 909, 910 and 1062.

If a compulsory heir is not given anything in the will, but he has already received a
donation from the testator, there is NO preterition because after all, a donation to a
compul- sory heir is considered an advance of the inheritance or legitime). (Paras,
page 215, 2008 ed.)

(b) Suppose that the donation was made after the making of the will,
was there preterition?

Still there no preterition. A compulsory heir completely omitted in a will
cannot be said to have been preterited if he was a recipient of a donation inter vivos
from the testator. True, what he received did not come by virtue of a will, but that
does not matter. He received atleast part of his legitime and under the law, he is only
entitled to demand the difference. (Balane, 1975, Philippine Law Journal)




16. When Nato was preparing his will, his creditor Pol arrived. As there were
only two other persons in his office to sign as witnesses. Nato asked Pol to be
the third one.
(a) Is Pol, as a creditor of Nato not disqualified from becoming a witness
to that will?
(b) Suppose that Pol is a Chinese and has businesses all over Asia, is he
qualified to be a witness to said will?

ANSWERED:

17. Mario, left a will wherein it was stated “I leave everything I own to all my
relatives”. He was survived by a LEGITIMATE brother, an ILLEGITIMATE sister,
and uncle and a first cousin.
(a) Who shall inherit Mario’s estate?
(b) Shall your answer be the same if that will was void?
ANSWER:

a. The net estate of Pedro will be divided equally between Jose (his legitimate
brother and Maria (his illegitimate sister) so each receives P500,000.00.

Tony (his uncle) and Mando (his first cousin) will not get any part because
the nearest excludes the further relatives even if the testator should provide that he
leaves his properties to the relatives without specification as to the persons
intended.

b. If the will was void, the rules on intestacy shall apply. The inheritance is shared in
a ratio of 2:1 with respect to the shares of the legitimate children to illegitimate
children of the decedent. Thus, the legitimate child P666,666.67 and the illegitimate
shall get Php 333, 333.33.

18. The only living relatives of Eva are Flora (great grandma) and Mae (her
sister). She left an estate of P100,000. Divide according to the rules on
intestacy.

ANSWER: Eva gets Php 100,000.00, under the rules on intestacy, direct line excludes
collateral line. Flora gets Php 0 because she is xcluded by Eva who is an heir from
the direct line.

19. Pedro Sr. is the father of Pedro, Jr. and the grandfather of Pedro III. When
Jr. died, Pedro III refused the inheritance from Jr’s estate. Later, Sr. died
leaving a big estate. Could Pedro III represent Jr. in the inheritance from Sr’s
estate?

ANSWER: Pedro the III will inherit in his own right because what he refused was his
inheritance from his father Pedro Jr.’s estate. Hence Pedro III will inherit in his own
right from the estate of Pedro Sr.

20. Tim and Tam has a conjugal partnership asset of 2M. They have a son and
2 daughters. Liabilities amount to 0.5M and tax of 0.1M

(a) How much is the legitime of each heir?
(b) How much is the free portion of the estate?

ANSWER:

a. Php 233, 333.33 each.
b. Free Portion= Php 700,000.00