Letters Testamentary and

of Administration
(Rule 78)

 Letters testamentary

is the appointment issued by a probate

court, after the will has been admitted
to probate, to the executor named in
the will to administer the estate of the
deceased
testator,
provided
the
executor named in the will is competent,
accepts the trust and gives a bond(Sec.
4).

When and to whom letters of administration

granted

(1) No person is competent to serve as

executor or administrator who:
(a) Is a minor;

(b) Is not a resident of the Philippines; and

(sec 1 0f Rule 78)

 (c) Is in the opinion of the court unfit

to execute the duties of the trust by
reason of drunkenness, improvidence,
or want of understanding or integrity,
or by reason of conviction of an
offense involving moral turpitude
(Sec. 1 of Rule 78).

 Drunkenness
something more gross than occasional must
appears in order to preclude the appointment
of the person entitled.

Improvidence

- want of care and foresight

management of property which would
render the estate and effects
instestate unsafe

in the
likely to
of the

 Want of Understanding
is a disqualification where it amount to lack of
intelligence

Want of Integrity
means a soundness of moral privilege
and character
-to sustain judgment of want of integrity the
accusation shld be certain and grave in its
nature and must be established by proof
of which atleast required for conviction in
a criminal prosecution.

 Sec 2
Executor of executor
administer estate

not

to

the executor of the first executor shall

not, as such, administer the estate of
the first testator

 Sec 3
Married women may serve as executrix or
administratrix, and the marriage of a single
woman shall not affect her authority so to
serve under a previous appointment

 sec 4
Letters testamentary issued when will
allowed.
When a will has been proved and
allowed, the court shall issue letters
testamentary thereon to the person
named as executor therein, if he is
competent, accepts the trust, and
gives bond as required by these
rules(Sec. 4).

 sec 5
Where some co-executors disqualified
others may act.When all of the executors
named in a will cannot act because of
incompetency, refusal to accept the trust,
or failure to give bond, on the part of one
or more of them, letters testamentary
may issue to such of them as are
competent, accept and give bond, and they
may perform the duties and discharge the
trust required by the will.

 Letter of Administration - refer to letter

granted to a person not named in the will as
an executor
Sec 6 When and to whom letters of
administration granted.
If no executor is named in the will, or the
executor or executors are incompetent,
refuse the trust, or fail to give bond, or a
person dies intestate, administration shall
be granted:

 (a) To the surviving husband or wife, as the

case may be, or next of kin, or both, in the
discretion of the court, or to such person
as such surviving husband or wife, or next
of kin, requests to have appointed, if
competent and willing to serve;

 (b) If such surviving husband or wife, as the

case may be, or next of kin, or the person
selected by them, be incompetent or
unwilling, or if the husband or widow, or next
of kin, neglects for thirty (30) days after the
death of the person to apply for
administration
or
to
request
that
administration be granted to some other
person, it may be granted to one or more of
the principal creditors, if competent and
willing to serve;
(c) If there is no such creditor competent
and willing to serve, it may be granted to such
other person as the court may select

Order of preference
(1) Priority in selecting an administrator
(a) Surviving spouse, or next of kin, or
both, or person as such surviving spouse,
or next of kin, requests;

(b) One or more of the principal

creditors if such surviving spouse, or
next of kin, or the person selected, be
incompetent or unwilling, or if they
neglect for 30 days after the death of
the decedent to apply for administration

 or to request that administration

be granted to some other person,
it may be granted to, if competent
and willing to serve;
(c) Such other person as the
court may select.

 G.R. No. L-4783 May 26, 1952

JULITA RELUCIO,petitioner,
vs.
HON. RAMON R. SAN JOSE, ETC.,respondents.
Jose P. Villareal and Rosendo J. Tansinsin for
petitioner. Enrique Rimando for respondent
Equitable Banking Corporation.
Guillermo Plana for claimant Godofredo M. Tinio.

 Facts:
Julita
Relucio
was
appointed
administratrix of the testate estate of
Felipe Relucio, Sr on Aug 24, 1925.
LOrenzo, Rolando and Letecia Relucio
filed opposition on June 27, 1950 to the
CFI of Manila.
CFI Manila issued order on Jan 15, 1951
appointing
Rolando
Relucio
as
administrator
in
substitution
to
petitioner, Julita Relucio.

 Rolando Relucio filed to obtain a

reconsideration then filed notice of
appeal.
Before appeal cld be perfected,
Rolando Relucio moved for immediate
execution of the order appointing
him as administrator.

 In the order of March 20, 1951 court

merely made ref to the letters of
administration issued in favor of Rolndo
Relucio and did not pass on the motion for
immediate axecution.
April 30, 1951 Rolando filed motion
praying that petitioner , Julita Relucio,
be declared in contempt for failing to
deliver to him after demand all papers,
documents, titles and properties of the
estate under her administration.

 CFI denied motion for contempt but

appointed Equitable Bank Corporation as
administrator.
CFI ruled that appeal suspended the
appointment of the Special Administrator but
in the same breath it justified the
appointment of special administrator by
arguing that if the petitioner has to remain as
administratrix during the pendency of her
appeal, "a removed administrator may easily
nullify such removal by interposing an
appeal."

 Issue/s:
whether or not a court may legally
appoint Special Administrator even if
there exist a regular administrator?

 Held:
special administrator may be appointed " section 1 of Rule
81 of the Rules of Court: "When there is delay in granting
letters testamentary or of administration occasioned by an
appeal from the allowance or disallowance of a will, or from
any other cause, the court may appoint a special
administrator to collect and take charge of the estate of the
deceased and executors or administrators thereupon
appointed.
"and under section 8 of Rule 87 which provides as follows:
"If the executor or administrator has a claim against the
estate he represents, he shall give notice thereof, in
writing, to the court, and the court shall appoint a special
administrator who shall, in the adjustment of such claim,
have the same power and be subject to the same liability
as the general administrator or executor in the settlement
of other claims

 There is no pretense that the case at bar is one

falling under either section 1 of Rule 81 or section
8 of Rule 87. In any view of the case, there is a
regular administrator.
Pending Julita's appeal from the order of January
15, 1951, the petitioner had the right to act as
administratrix. If the respondent Judge had
decreed the immediate execution of the order of
January 15, 1951, Rolando Relucio would then be
the administrator pending petitioner's appeal.
Consequently, the respondent Judge exceeded his
jurisdiction in appointing the respondent Equitable
Banking Corporation as special administrator.

Wherefore, the petition is hereby granted

and the order of the respondent Judge of
April 10, 1951, appointing the Equitable
Banking
Corporation
as
special
Administrator is set aside, without costs.