PRACTICE COURT

COC or Clerk of Court

COURT or Judge
RESPO (counsel for the respondent)
PLAINTIFF (Counsel for the plaintiff)

COC: All rise.............

PRAYER

Almighty God, we stand in Your Holy Presence as our Supreme Jud
ge. We humbly beseech you to bless and inspire us so that what we
think, say and do will be in accordance with Your will. Enlighten our
minds, strengthen our spirit and fill our hearts with fraternal love,
wisdom and understanding, so that we can become effective
channels of truth, justice and peace. In our proceedings today, guide
us in the path of righteousness for the fulfilment of your greater
glory. Amen

COURT Court is now on session

Call the cases
COC For Pre trial

Civil Case No. ____________

Remigio R. Binarao versus Anna Liza S. Mercado
For: Petition for declaration of nullity of marriage
COURT or COC Appearances
Counsel for Good morning your Honor. For the plaintiff. I am Attorney
Plaintiff ____________________ with Roll number _______.
We are ready for Pre trial
Counsel for For the respondent, Your Honor. I am Attorney
Plaintiff ____________________ with Roll number _______.
We are ready for Pre trial
COC or JUDGE Proceed
Counsel for Thank you, Your Honor. Your Honor, this case is about (insert
Plaintiff statement of the case and relief prayed for)
JUDGE Comment Counsel
Counsel for We do not admit, Your Honor.
Plaintiff
Your Honor, this case is about (insert statement of the case and
relief prayed for)
JUDGE Proceed with the stipulation of facts
Counsel for Yes Your Honor, Thank you. We will now proceed with the
Plaintiff stipulation of facts your Honor.
 First, the Identity of the Respondent.
JUDGE Comment (pwede ring sabihin na Do you admit or Deny?)
RES We admit Your Honor but we deny to the fact that I am residing
somewhere in Alpharetta, Georgia, USA
PLAINTIFF That sometime during the first quarter of 1997, plaintiff and
defendant met through their common friend and plaintiff and
defendant started dating and became an official couple after three
(3) months of courtship.
We deny your Honor.
PLAINTIFF Unknown to the plaintiff, defendant was then already in a
relationship with another man and she hid this fact from the plaintiff.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Defendant thereafter entertained the attention of the plaintiff while
secretly maintaining her relationship with her boyfriend.
Deny
PLAINTIFF While they were dating, plaintiff pampered the defendant with his
attention and showered her regularly with gifts and tokens almost
every other day.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Sometime in November/December 1997, defendant suddenly broke
up with the plaintiff because apparently, her boyfriend was already
coming home from his vacation.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Despite the break up, they still maintained communication
Deny
PLAINTIFF By the first quarter of 1998, defendant informed plaintiff that she had
broken up with her boyfriend and that she wanted to get back
together with him.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Still in love with the defendant, plaintiff agreed to rekindle the
relationship.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Sometime in the last quarter of 1998, the couple broke up again,
though only for a brief period of time, because defendant had issues
with the plaintiff’s best friends.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Defendant became so possessive, jealous and suspicious whenever
plaintiff spent time with his friends that it reached a point where she
already gave an ultimatum to him to choose between her and his
friends.
Deny
PLAINTIFF On 23 December 1999, plaintiff and defendant got married
Admit
PLAINTIFF They were Filipinos when they married.
Admit
PLAINTIFF After the wedding, plaintiff moved in with his wife in her parent’s
house in Quezon City, because this was what the defendant
wanted.
Admit
PLAINTIFF After cutting ties with friends, their relationship was never smooth as
they would always quarrel over petty things and she still
disapproved of plaintiff's friends even if he was not seeing them
anymore.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Plaintiff’s earning capacity decreased after their marriage because
his gun licensing business started to decline.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Despite losing money, he still gave her flowers and other gifts
Deny
PLAINTIFF Plaintiff tried to explain the situation to his wife several times, that it
was only for practicality, but she did not want to believe him, and it
became a constant source of fights and resentment.
Deny
PLAINTIFF In 2001, defendant went to the United States to visit her brother,
Paul Mercado who lived in Georgia.
Admit
PLAINTIFF Plaintiff was not able to join her because of work.
Admit
PLAINTIFF Defendant stayed in the United States (US) for six (6) months.
Admit
PLAINTIFF During the first month of her vacation, she still talked to her husband
over the phone but stopped talking to the plaintiff for no apparent
reason.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Since defendant wanted him gone, defendant’s mother told
petitioner that he needed to leave the house without any
explanation.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Defendant went home to the Philippines without informing the
petitioner.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Since defendant is not answering petitioner’s calls, latter repeatedly
go to respondent’s parent’s house even if they do not open their
gate for him.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Plaintiff then started to court the defendant again and after a couple
 of weeks, the couple eventually reconciled.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Though they have reconciled, defendant remained cold and
indifferent to the plaintiff
Deny
PLAINTIFF One time, the phone rang and plaintiff received a call from a man
with an American accent and he wanted to talk to the respondent.
Admit
PLAINTIFF Suspiciously, plaintiff asked the defendant who the man was, but
instead of answering, she got mad at him for answering the phone.
Deny
PLAINTIFF The couple moved out of her parent’s house and rented a place of
their own – a condo unit along 12th Avenue, Quezon City.
Admit
PLAINTIFF Defendant started to convince the plaintiff that they should migrate
to the United States “for a change.”
Admit
PLAINTIFF By the first quarter of 2002, the couple started to work on their tourist visas
and luckily, they were each given a 10-year multiple tourist visa with six (6)
months validity for each entry.
Admit
PLAINTIFF The couple left for the US on May 2, 2002.
Admit
PLAINTIFF The couple closed their respective businesses.
Admit
PLAINTIFF Plaintiff quit his job in JC Cruz Corporation for the respondent.
Deny
PLAINTIFF The couple first stayed with the defendant’s brother, Paul, in
Georgia for a month then later went to plaintiff’s uncle, Romulo
Macalintal, in Virginia.
Admit
PLAINTIFF Sometime in September 2002, defendant told plaintiff that she
wanted to visit her brother in Georgia again.
Admit
PLAINTIFF Since they were then on good terms, plaintiff accompanied her to
the airport.
Admit
PLAINTIFF After one (1) week, she was no longer responding again to his calls
or messages.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Sometime in October 2002, plaintiff called Paul Mercado’s
 [defendant’s brother in Georgia] home number again but someone
told him that she no longer wanted to see him or talk to him and that
they would be driving to Virginia in about a week to fetch the
defendant’s things.
Deny
PLAINTIFF A week later, defendant went back to Virginia, together with her
brother Paul and one of her cousins.
Admit
PLAINTIFF Plaintiff desperately tried to talk to his wife but she just stayed silent
the entire time they [defendant and her companions] packed her
things.
Deny
PLAINTIFF He begged to talk to her in private but even defendant’s brother and
cousin refused to leave the couple alone.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Respondent filed a divorce without informing the petitioner.
Deny
PLAINTIFF The divorce was granted and finalized in September 2003
Admit
PLAINTIFF Since the time defendant left plaintiff in October 2002, the never saw
each other again.
Admit
PLAINTIFF Petitioner tried communicate with her but she refused to accept his
call.
Deny
PLAINTIFF While defendant already successfully obtained a divorce from the
plaintiff in the United States in 2003, plaintiff was still a Filipino at the
time.
Deny
PLAINTIFF Defendant has already re-married and has children with her new
husband.
Admit
PLAINTIFF That’s all your honor.
Judge Counsel, proceed with your stipulation of facts
RESPON Yes your honor.
RESPON Respondent was already a US citizen when she filed the divorce
between the latter and the petitioner.
Deny
RESPON Petitioner has a live-in partner and has three children with his new
partner.
Admit
RESPON Petitioner’s live in partner is his girlfriend prior to respondent
Admit
RESPON Petitioner’s live in partner is also his co-worker in quezon city
Admit
RESPON Petitioner had a child with his live in partner and he hid this fact to
the respondent
Admit
RESPON That’s all your honor.
Judge Okay, we now proceed with the issues
PLAINTIFF ….whether respondent failed to comply with her essential marital
obligations stated in Article 68 of the Family Code

… whether Respondent is psychologically incapacitated

…. Whether or not Petitioner and Respondents’ marriage should be

declared NULL and VOID on the ground of Psychological Incapacity
of the Respondent
Judge Counsel for the respondent
RESPON … whether respondent is a Filipino or a us citizen at the time she
filed her application for divorce

… Whether the divorce decree or the foreign judgment can be

enforced

Judge Do you intend to avail modes of discovery or refer this to

commissioners
No your honor
Respondent does not intend to avail of discovery procedures nor
referral to commissioners
Judge Documents to be marked
PLAINTIFF Your honor, we would like to mark the following documents

Sworn Certification of Residency issued by the Barangay Captain of

Cubao QC attesting to the fact that Petitioner grew up at Cubao
Quezon City and it is the same place where his parents and sister
presently reside, to be marked as Exhibit A

Copy of petitioner's Birth Certificate showing his place of birth, to be

marked as Exhibit A-1

A copy of their Certificate of Marriage, to be marked as Exhibit B

A copy of plaintiff’s Philippine Passport No. EE555321 with a stamp

of the US Immigration dated May 2, 2002 is hereto attached as
exhibit “C” and “C-1”, respectively.

A copy of the divorce decree is hereto attached as exhibit “D”.

 Copies of the Order of Approval of plaintiff’s Petition for Citizenship
Retention and Re-Acquisition of Philippine Citizenship and
Identification Certificate No. LA-DS-580-2018 are hereto attached as
EXHIBITS “F” and “F-1”;

We reserved our right to present other documents relevant to this

case your honor.
Judge Counsel for respondent
RESPON Your honor, we would like to mark the following documents

Sworn Certification of Residency Abroad – to prove that the

Respondent no longer resides in the Philippines and is currently a
resident of US, hereto attached as EXHIBIT 1;

Certificate of Naturalization No. A087001234 – to prove that the

Respondent is no longer a citizen of the Philippines and to prove
that at the time of her application for divorce, she is no longer a
Filipino. hereto attached as EXHIBIT 2 and 2-1;

Certificate of Marriage – to prove that a marriage transpired

between Petitioner and Respondent, hereto attached as EXHIBIT 3

Affidavit of Publication – to prove that a US Court Order was issued

sufficient in form and substance and that Petitioner was informed of
Respondent’s application for divorce, hereto attached as EXHIBIT 4;

Divorce Decree No. B0-04-092564 – to prove that a decree was

issued by a foreign/ US court, hereto attached as EXHIBIT 5;

Authentication/Certificate issued by the Philippine Consulate

General in Georgia, USA of the Notification of Divorce – to prove of
that a Notification of Divorce was issued thereafter, hereto attached
as EXHIBIT 6.

We reserved our right to present other documents relevant to this

case your honor.
Judge Witnesses
PLAINTIFF Your honor, we will be presenting the following witnesses

Romulo Macalintal
- uncle of Petitioner, to testify that Respondent has abandoned
her husband while the couple was living with him in Virginia.

Melanie Liban
- common friend of the Petitioner and Respondent who will
attest about Respondent’s infidelity towards the Petitioner.
JUDGE Counsel for the respondent
RESPON Your honor, we will be presenting the following witnesses

Paul Mercado
- brother of the Respondent, to testify that Respondent is a
resident of Fulton County, Georgia since 2002 when she
arrived in the USA;

Sandy Velasquez
- friend of Paul Mercardo and Respondent, to testify as to the
fact that she is the same witness during the hearing of the
naturalization and divorce proceeding for the Respondent.

Charise Natividad
- a relative of the Respondent and a friend of petitioner, to
testify to the fact that Respondent is her neighbor in Fulton
County, Georgia where Respondent resides with her
husband.

No more your Honor.