I.

Clara, thinking of her mortality, drafted a will and asked Roberta, Hannah, Luisa and Benjamin to be
witnesses. During the day of the signing of her will, Clara fell down the stairs and broke both her arms.
Coming from the hospital Clara insisted on signing her will by thumb mark and said that she can sign her
full name later. While the will was being signed, Roberta experienced a stomachache and kept going to
the restroom for long periods of time. Hannah, while waiting for her turn to sign the will, was reading the
7th Harry Potter book on the couch, beside the table on which everyone was signing. Benjamin, aside
from witnessing the will, also offered to notarize it. A week after, Clara was run over by a drunk driver
while crossing the street in Greenbelt. May the will of Clara be admitted to probate? Give your reason
briefly. (3%)

II.

For purpose of this question, assume all formalities and procedural requirements have been
complied with.

In 1970, Ramon and Dessa got married. Prior to their marriage, Ramon had a child, Anna. In 1971
and 1972, Ramon and Dessa legally adopted Cherry and Michelle, respectively. In 1973, Dessa died while
giving birth to Larry. Anna had a child, Lia. Anna never married. Cherry, on the other hand, legally adopted
Shelly. Larry had twins, Hans and Gretel, with his girlfriend, Fiona. In 2005, Anna, Larry, and Cherry died
in a car accident. In 2007, Ramon died. Who may inherit from Ramon and who may not? Give your reasons
briefly. (3%)

III.

Ed and Beth have been married for 20 years without children. Desirious to have a baby, they consulted
Dr. Jun Canlas, a prominent medical specialist on human fertility. He advised Beth to undergo artificial
insemination. It was found that Ed’s sperm count was inadequate to induce pregnancy. Hence, the couple
looked for a willing donor. Andy, the brother of Ed, readily consented to donate his sperm. After series of
tests, Andy’s sperm was medically introduced into Beth’s ovary. She became pregnant and 9 months later,
gave birth to a baby boy named Alvin.

1. Who is the father of Alvin? Explain (2%)

2. What are the requirements, if any, in order for Ed to establish his paternity over Alvin? (2%)

IV.

Alberto and Janine migrated to the United States of America, leaving behild their 4 children, one of who
is Manny. They own a duplex apartment and allowed Manny to live in one of the units. While in the United
States, Alberto died. His widow and all his children executed an Extrajudicial Settlement of Alberto’s estate
wherein the 2-door apartment was assigned by all the children to their mother, Janine. Subsequently, she
sold the property to George. The latter required Manny to sign a prepared Lease Contract so that he and
his family could continue occupying the unit.
Manny refused to sign the contract alleging that his parents allowed him and his family to continue
occupying the premises.

If you were George’s counsel, what legal steps will you take? Explain. (3%)

V.

Don died after executing a Last Will and Testament leaving his estate valued at P12-million to his
common-law wife Roshelle. He is survived by his brother Ronnie and his half-sister Michelle.

1. Was Don’s testamentary disposition of his estate in accordance with the law on succession?
Explain. (2%)

2. If Don failed to execute a will during his lifetime, as his lawyer, how will you distribute his estate?
Explain (2%)

3. Assuming he died intestate survived by his brother Ronnie, his half-sister Michelle, and his
legitimate son Jayson. How will you distribute his estate? Explain (2%)

4. Assuming further he died intestate, survived by his father Juan, his brother Ronnie, his half-sister
Michelle, and his legitimate son Jayson, how will you distribute his estate? (2%)

VI.

Emil, the testator, has three legitimate children. Tom, Henry and Warlito; a wife named Adette; parents
named Pepe and Pilar; an illegitimate child, Ramon; brother, Mark; and a sister, Nanette. Since his wife
Adette is well-off, he wants to leave to his illegitimate child as much of his estate as he can legally do. His
estate has an aggregate net amount of P1,200,000.00 and all the above named relatives are still living.
Emil now comes to you for advice in making a will.

How will you distribute his estate according to his wishes without violating the law on testamentary
succession? (3%)

VII.

Bernie bough on installment a residential subdivision lot from DEVLAND. After having faithfully paid the
installments for 48 months, Bernie discovered that DEVLAND had failed to develop the subdivision in
accordance with the approved plans and specifications within the time frame in the plan. He thus wrote
a letter to DEVLAND informing it that he was stopping payment. Consequently. DEVLAND cancelled the
sale and wrote Bernie, informing him that his payments are forfeited in its favor.

A. Was the action of DEVLAND proper? Explain. (2%)

B. Discuss the rights of Bernie under the circumstances. (2%)
 C. Supposing DEVLAND had fully developed the subdivision but Bernie failed to pay further
installments after 4 years due business reverses. Discuss the rights and obligations of the parties.
(2%)

VIII.

Rod, the owner of an FX taxi, found in his vehicle an envelope containing TCT No. 65432 over a lot
registered in Cesar’s name. Posing as Cesar, Rod forged Cesar’s signature on a Deed of Sale in Rod’s favor.
Rod registered the said document with the Register of Deeds, and obtained a new title in his name. After
a year, he sold the lot to Don, a buyer in good faith and for value, who also registered the lot in his name.

A. Did Rod acquire title to the land? Explain. (2%)

B. Discuss the rights of Don, if any, over the property. (2%)
C. In an ejectment case filed by Don against Cesar, can the latter ask for the cancellation of Don’s
title considering that he (Cesar) is the rightful owner of the lot? Explain. (2%)

IX.

Dr. and Mrs. Almeda are prominent citizens of the country and are frequent travelers abroad. In 1996,
they booked round-trip business class tickets for the Manila-Hongkong-Manila route of the Pinoy Airlines,
where they are holders of Gold Mabalos Class Frequent Flier cards. On their return flight, Pinoy Airlines
upgraded their tickets to first class without their consent and, inspite of their protestations to be allowed
to remain in the business class so that they could be with their friends, they were told that the business
class was already fully booked, and that they were given priority in upgrading because they are elite
members/holders of Gold Mabalos Class cards. Since they were embarrassed at the discussion with the
flight attendants, they were forced to take the flight at the first class section apart from their friends who
were in the business class. Upon their return to Manila, they demanded a written apology from Pinoy
Airlines. When it went unheeded, the couple sued Pinoy Airlines for breach of contract claiming moral
and exemplary damages as well as attorney’s fees.

Will the action prosper? Give reasons. (3%)

X.

A. Mr. ZY lost P100,000.00 in a card game called Russion Poker, but he had no more cash to pay in full the
winner at the time session ended. He promised to pay PX, the winner, two weeks thereafter. But he failed
to do so despite the lapse of two months, so PX filed in court a suit to collect the amount of P50,000 that
he won but remained unpaid. Will the collection suit against ZY proper? Could Mrs. ZY file in turn a suit
against PX to recover the P100,000.00 that her husband lost? Reason. (3%)

B. TX filed a suit for ejectment against BD for non-payment of condominium rentals amount to
P150,000.00. During the pendency of the case, BD offered and TX accepted the full amount due as rentals
from BD, who then filed a motion to dismiss the ejectment suit on the ground that the action is already
extinguished. Is BD’s contention correct? Why or why not? Reason. (3%)
 XI.

Antonio, Bart, and Carlos are brothers. They purchased from their parents specific portions of a parcel of
land as evidenced by three separate deeds of sale, each referring to a particular lot in metes and bounds.
When the deeds were presented for registration, the Register of Deeds could not issue separate
certificated of title due to absence of subdivision plan. The new title had to be issued, therefore, in the
names of the brothers as co-owners of the entire property. The situation has not changed up to now, but
each of the brothers has been receiving rentals exclusively from the lot actually purchased by him. Antonio
sells his lot to a third person, with notice to his brothers. To enable the buyer to secure a new title in his
name, the deed of sale was made to refer to an undivided interest in the property of the seller (Antonio),
with metes and bounds of the lot sold being stated. Bart and Carlos reacted by signifying their exercise of
their right of redemption as co-owners. Antonio, in his behalf and in behalf of his buyer, contends that
they are no longer co-owners, although the title covering the property has remained in their names as
such.

May Bart and Carlos still redeem the lot sold by Antonio? Explain. (2%)

XII.

Way back in 1948, Winda’s husband sold in favor of Verde Sports Center Corp. (Verde) a 10-hectare
property belonging to their conjugal partnership. The sale was made without Winda’s knowledge, much
less consent. In 1950, Winda learned of the sale, when she discovered the deed of sale among the
documents in her husband’s vault after his demise. Soon after, she noticed that the construction of the
sports complex had started. Upon completion of the construction in 1952, she tried but failed to get free
membership privileges in Verde.

Winda now files a suit against Verde for the annulment of the sale on the ground that she did not consent
to the sale. In answer, Verde contends that, in accordance with the Spanish Civil Code which was then in
force, the sale in 1948 of the property did not need her concurrence. Verde contends that in any case the
action has prescribed or is barred by laches. Winda rejoins that her Torrens title covering the property is
indefeasible and imprescriptible.

Decide the case, stating your reasons for your decision. (3%)

XIII.

A van owned by Orlando and driven by Diego, while negotiating a downhill slope of a city road, suddenly
gained speed, obviously beyond the authorized limit in the area, and bumped a car in front of it, causing
severed damage to the car and serious injuries to its passengers. Orlando was not in the car at the time
of the incident. The car owner and the injured passengers sued Orlando and Diego for damages caused
by Diego’s negligence. In their defense, Diego claims that the downhill slope caused the van to gain speed
and that, as he stepped on the brakes to check the acceleration, the brakes locked, causing the van to go
even faster and eventually hit the car in front of it. Orlando and Diego contend that the sudden
malfunction of the van’s brake system is a fortuitous event and that, therefore, they are exempt from any
liability.

A. Is this contention tenable? Explain (1%)

B. Does the presence of the owner inside the vehicle causing damage to a third party affect his
liability for his driver’s negligence? Explain (2%).

XIV.

Mike built a house on his lot in Pasay City. Two years later, a survey disclosed that a portion of the building
actually stood on the neighboring land of Jose, to the extent of 40 square meters. Jose claims that Mike is
a builder in bad faith because he should know the boundaries of his lot, and demands that the portion of
the house which encroached on his land should be destroyed or removed. Mike replies that he is a builder
in good faith and offers to buy the land occupied by the building instead.

A. Is mike a builder in good faith or bad faith? Why? (2%)

B. Whose preference should be followed? Why? (2%)

XV.

In his last will and testament, Lamberto (1) disinherits his daughter Wilman because “she is disrespectful
towards me and raises her voice talking to me”, (2) omits entirely his spouse Elvira, (3) leaves a legacy of
P100,000.00 to his mistress Rosa and P50,000.00 to his driver Ernie and (4) institutes his son Baldo as his
sole heir. How will you distribute his estate of P1,000,000.00? (3%)