Ma.

Agnes Celine Dolino

Ma. Lovella E. Osumo
  CONTENTS OF PETITION:
(a) the jurisdictional facts;
(b) the qualifications of the adopter;
(c) that the adopter is not disqualified by law;
(d) the name, age, and residence of the person to be adopted and
of his relatives or of the persons who have him under their care;
(e) the probable value and character of the estate of the person to
be adopted.

SECTION 4. Who may give the written consent:

 By the child, if 14yo=> & not incompetent, & by the child’s spouse, if any;
 By each known living parents who is not insane or has not abandoned the
child;
 By the proper officer if the child is in an orphan asylum, home, or benevolent
society, person;
 If illegitimate, consent of father is not required;
 If of age, only his or her consent & that of the spouse, if any shall be required.
 Who may file:
a. A minor or other incapacitated person may, through a
guardian or guardian ad litem, petition for the rescission or
revocation of his or her adoption for the same causes that
authorize the deprivation of parental authority.
b. The adopter may, likewise petition the court for the
rescission or revocation of the adoption in any of these
cases:
 If the adopted person has attempted against the life of
the adopter;
 When the adopted minor has abandoned the home of
the adopter for more than three (3) years; and
 When by other acts the adopted person has repudiated
the adoption.
ADOPTION- Rule 99-100 (Superseded by AM 02-
6-02 Effective 8/22/02])

 Adoption is now governed by:

a. RA 8552 (Domestic Adoption). The law amended
Articles 183 up to 193 of the Family Code of the
Philippines & is governing law for Filipino citizens
adopting other Filipinos (whether relatives or
strangers), with some exceptions.
b. RA 8043 (Inter-Country Adoption). Governs the
adoption of Filipinos by foreigners & is
implemented by the Inter-Country Adoption Board
(ICAB).
ADOPTION- Rule 99-100 (Superseded by AM 02-
6-02 Effective 8/22/02])

 Jurisdiction/Venue – DA, Family Court where

adopter resides; ICA – ICAB or FC where adoptee
resides, which will turn over the petition to ICAB.
 In ICA, only child declared legally available for
adoption can be adopted. No publication required.
DA, non-minors may be adopted; publication
required.
 Standard required – best interest of the minor rule
 Inter-Country Adoption refers to the socio-legal
process of adopting a Filipino child by a foreigner
or a Filipino citizen permanently residing abroad
where the petition is filed, the supervised trial
custody is undertaken, and the decree of adoption is
issued in the Philippines (Sec. 3[a], RA 8043).
 A socio-legal process of providing a permanent
family to a child whose parents have voluntarily
relinquished their parental authority over the
child.

 A juridical act which creates between two

persons a relationship similar to that which
results from legitimate paternity and filiation.
(Prasnick vs. Republic, 98 Phil. 669).
1. Ensure that every child remains under the care and
custody of his parents and is provided with love, care,
understanding and security for the full and harmonious
development of his personality.

2. In all matters relating to custody, and adoption of a

child, his/her interest shall be the paramount
consideration in accordance with Philippine laws and the
levels set forth in the UN Convention on the Rights of the
Child (CRC) and other international instruments. The
State shall provide alternative protection and assistance
through foster care or adoption for every child who is
neglected, orphaned or abandoned.
3. It is a State Policy to:
 Safeguard the biological parents from making hasty decisions in relinquishing their
parental authority over their child;
 Prevent the child from unnecessary separation from his biological parents;
 Protect adoptive parents from attempts to disturb their parental authority and
custody over their adopted child.
 Any voluntary or involuntary termination of parental authority shall be
administratively or judicially declared so as to establish the status of the child
as “legally available for adoption” and his custody transferred to the
Department of Social Welfare and Development or to any duly licensed and
accredited child-placing or child-caring agency, which entity shall be
authorized to take steps for the permanent placement of the child.
 Conduct public information and educational campaigns to promote a positive
environment for adoption;
 Ensure that government and private sector agencies have the capacity to handle
adoption inquiries, process domestic adoption applications and offer adoption-
related services including, but not limited to, parent preparation and post-adoption
education and counseling; and
 Encourage domestic adoption so as to preserve the child’s identity and culture in his
native land, and only when this is not available shall inter-country adoption be
considered as a last resort.
 Domestic Inter-country
 Governed by RA  Governed by RA 8043,
8552, the Domestic the Inter-Country
Adoption Act of 1998; Adoption Act of 1995;
procedure governed procedure governed by
by AM No. 02-06-02- the Amended
SC, Aug. 2, 2002. Implementing Rules
and Regulations on
ICAA.
 Domestic
 Applies to domestic  Applies to adoption of
adoption of Filipino
children, where the
entire adoption process
beginning from the
filing of the petition up
to the issuance of the
adoption decree takes
place in the
Philippines.
Inter-country
a Filipino child in a
foreign country, where
the petition for
adoption is filed, the
supervised trial custody
is undertaken and the
decree of adoption is
issued outside of the
Philippines.
Filipino Citizens
1)Of legal age;
2)In possession of full civil capacity and legal rights;
3)Of good moral character;
4)Has not been convicted of any crime involving moral turpitude;
5)Emotionally and psychologically capable of caring for children;
6)In a position to support and care for his/her children in keeping with
the means of the family;
7)At least 16 years older than the adoptee but this latter requirement may
be waived if (a) the adopter is the biological parent of the adoptee; or (b)
the adopter is the spouse of the adoptee’s parent; and
8)Permanent resident of the Philippines.
Aliens
1)Same qualifications as above, and in addition:
2)His/her country has diplomatic relations with the
Republic of the Philippines;
3)His/her government allows the adoptee to enter his/her
country as his/her adopted son/daughter;
4)Has been living in the Philippines for at least 3
continuous years prior to the filing of the application
for adoption and maintains such residence until the
adoption decree is entered; and
Aliens
5) or consular office or any appropriate government agency
that he/she has the legal capacity to adopt in his/her
country.
This requirement may be waived if:
a) a former Filipino citizens seeks to adopt a relative within
the 4th degree of consanguinity or affinity;
b) one seeks to adopt the legitimate son/daughter of his/her
Filipino spouse;
c) one who is married to a Filipino citizen and seeks to
adopt a relative within the 4th degree of consanguinity or
affinity of the Filipino spouse
c) The guardian with respect to the ward after the
termination of the guardianship and clearance of
his/her financial accountabilities.
 Filipino Citizens
1. Permanent resident of a foreign country;
2. Has the capacity to act and assume all rights and
responsibilities of parental authority under Philippine laws;
3. Has undergone the appropriate counseling from an
accredited counselor in country of domicile;
4. Has not been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude;
5. Eligible to adopt under Philippine laws;
6. In a position to provide the proper care & support & to give
the necessary moral values & example to all his children,
including the child to be adopted;
7. Agrees to uphold the basic rights of the child as embodied under
Philippine laws, the UN Convention on Rights of the Child, and
to abide by the rules and regulations issued to implement the
provisions of the ICAA;
8. Residing in a country with whom the Philippines has diplomatic
relations and whose government maintains a similarly
authorized and accredited agency and that adoption is allowed in
that country;
9. Possesses all the qualifications and none of the disqualifications
provided in the ICAA and in other applicable Philippine laws;
10. At least 27 years of age at the time of the application; and
11. At least 16 years older than the child to be adopted at the time of
application, unless (a) adopted is the parent by nature of the
child to be adopted; or (b) adopter is the spouse of the parent by
nature of the child to be adopted.
 Aliens
1. At least 27 years of age at the time of the application;
2. At least 16 years older than the child to be adopted at the
time of application unless the adopter is the parent by nature
of the child to be adopted or the spouse of such parent;
3. Has the capacity to act and assume all rights and
responsibilities of parental authority under his national laws;
4. Has undergone the appropriate counseling from an
accredited counselor in his/her country;
5. Has not been convicted of a crime involving moral
turpitude;
6. Eligible to adopt under his/her national law;
7. In a position to provide the proper care and support and to give
the necessary moral values and example to all his children,
including the child to be adopted;
8. Agrees to uphold the basic rights of the child as embodied under
Philippine laws, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child,
and to abide by the rules and regulations issued to implement the
provisions of the ICAA;
9. Comes from a country with whom the Philippines has diplomatic
relations and whose government maintains a similarly authorized
and accredited agency and that adoption is allowed under his/her
national laws; and
10. Possesses all the qualifications and none of the disqualifications
provided in the ICAA and in other applicable Philippine laws.
 Domestic
Inter-country
 General rule: husband and
wife shall jointly adopt;
 Rule: if the adopter is
otherwise, the adoption shall
married, his/her spouse
not be allowed.
must jointly file for the
 Exceptions: adoption.
1) If one spouse seeks to adopt
the legitimate son/daughter of
the other;
2)If one spouse seeks to adopt
his/her own illegitimate
son/daughter but the other spouse
must give his/her consent;
3)If the spouses are legally
separated from each other.
 Domestic Inter-country
A child legally available for adoption:
 Requisites:  Only a legally free child may be
a. Below 18 years of age; and adopted.
Requisites:
b. Judicially declared available
for adoption. a. Below 15 years of age; and
EXCEPTIONS: b. Has been voluntarily or
 Legitimate son/daughter of one involuntarily committed to
spouse by the other spouse; the DSWD in accordance
with PD 603 (The Child &
 Illegitimate son/daughter by a Youth Welfare Code).
qualified adopter;

 Person of legal age if, prior to

the adoption said person has
been consistently considered and
treated by the adopter/s as
his/her own child since minority.
 Domestic
 Where to file application: Either in
 Where to file application:
In the Family Court of the
province or city where the
prospective parents reside.
 After filing: The petition
shall not be set for hearing
 After filing: (a) if filed in the FC, court
without a case study report
by a licensed social
worker.
Inter-country
(a)Family Court having jurisdiction over
the place where the child resides or may
be found, or (b) Inter-Country Adoption
Board (ICAB) through an intermediate
agency, whether governmental or an
authorized and accredited agency, in the
country of the prospective adoptive
parents.
determines sufficiency of petition in
respect to form and substance, after which,
petition is transmitted to ICAB; (b) if
petition is already with ICAB, it conducts
matching of the applicant with an adoptive
child; (c) after matchmaking, the child is
personally fetched by the applicant for
the trial custody which takes place
outside of the Philippines.
 Domestic
 Supervised Trial Custody:
Inter-country
a) Temporary parental authority is vested in  Supervised Trial Custody:
prospective adopter;
a) This process takes place outside of the
b) Period is at least 6 months, but may be country and under the supervision of
reduced by the court motu propio or upon the foreign adoption agency;
motion;
b) For a period of 6 months;
c) If adopter is alien, the law mandatorily
requires completion of the 6-month trial c) If unsuccessful, ICAB shall look for
custody and may not be reduced, except if: another prospective applicant.
(1) a former Filipino citizen seeks to adopt Repatriation of the child is to be
th
a relative within 4 degree of resorted only as a last resort;
consanguinity or affinity;
(2)one seeks to adopt the legitimate d) If successful, ICAB transmits a written
son/daughter of his/her Filipino spouse; consent for the adoption to be executed
(3)one who is married to a Filipino citizen and
by the DSWD, and the applicant then
seeks to adopt jointly with his/her spouse a
relative within the 4th degree of files a petition for adoption in his/her
consanguinity or affinity of the Filipino country.
spouse
 Domestic
Consent Required: Written consent
of the following to the adoption is
required, in the form of affidavit:
(1) adoptee, if 10 years of age or
over; (2) biological parent/s of the
child, if known, or the legal guardian,
or the proper government
instrumentality which has legal
custody of the child; (3) legitimate
and adopted sons or daughters, 10
years of age or over, of the adopter/s
and adoptee, if any; (4) illegitimate
sons/daughters, 10 years of age of
over, of the adopter if living with
said adopter and the latter’s spouse,
if any; (5) spouse, if any, of the
person adopting or to be adopted.
Inter-country
 Consent Required:
(1) Written consent of biological or
adopted children above 10 years of
age, in the form of sworn statement
is required to be attached to the
application to be filed with the FC or
ICAB;
(2) If a satisfactory pre-adoptive
relationship is formed between the
applicant and the child, the written
consent to the adoption executed by
the DSWD is required.
 (1) Transfer of parental authority
 (2) Legitimacy
 (3) Successional Rights
A childless couple adopted the wife’s niece &
brought her up as their own.

Years later, despite Mrs. Rodriguez pleas and

that of her husband, their adopted daughter
refused to use their surname Rodriguez and
continue to use Dimagiba in all her dealings
and that she was indifferent towards her
adoptive parents.
 The following are the instances when adoption
may be rescinded by the adoptee:

a. Repeated physical and verbal maltreatment by the

adopter(s) despite having undergone counseling;
b. Attempt on the life of the adoptee;
c. Sexual assault or violence; or
d. Abandonment & failure to comply w/parental
obligations.
 YES. Below are the prescriptive period.
(a) If incapacitated – within five (5) years after
he reaches the age of majority;
(b) If incompetent at the time of the adoption –
within five (5) years after recovery from
such incompetency (Sec. 21, Rule on
Adoption).
 (1) Parental authority of the adoptee’s biological
parent(s), if known, or the legal custody of the DSWD
shall be restored if the adoptee is still a minor or
incapacitated;
 (2) Reciprocal rights and obligations of the adopter(s)
and the adoptee to each other shall be extinguished;
 (3) Cancellation of the amended certificate of birth of
the adoptee and restoration of his/her original birth
certificate; and
 (4) Succession rights shall revert to its status prior to
adoption, but only as of the date of judgment of judicial
rescission. Vested rights acquired prior to judicial
rescission shall be respected (Sec. 20).
 Is the tampering of the civil registry to make it
appear in the birth records that a certain child was
born to a person who is not his biological mother,
thus causing such child to lose his true identity &
status.
 Under RA 8552, simulation of birth is a criminal
offense punishable by eight years imprisonment &
a fine of fifty thousand pesos (Php50,000.00).

 An amnesty was given under RA 8552 to those

individuals who simulated the birth of a child to
legally rectify birth records or file for adoption
within five (5) years from said enactment.
IN RE: PETITION FOR G.R. Nos. 168992-93
ADOPTION OF MICHELLE and MICHAEL JUDE P. LIM,
 “An Act Requiring DSWD To Declare A Child Legally
Available For Adoption As Prerequisite For Adoption
Proceedings”

 Amended certain portions of RA 8552, RA 8043, & PD 603;

 Applies only to surrendered, abandoned, neglected, &
dependent children who are subject to adoption;
 Made the declaration of abandonment of child “
administrative in nature” which now requires just a
certification signed by the DSWD Secretary instead of a
judicial order;
 A child is considered abandoned has been reduced to three
(3) months from the original minimum of six (6) months;
CARAM vs. Atty. SEGUI, Atty. ESCUTIN, CABRERA, & YANGCO,
G.R. No. 193652, 8/5/2014

Christina Caram filed a petition for the issuance of a writ of amparo

before the RTC seeking to obtain custody of Baby Julian. She alleged
that respondents "blackmailed" her and misrepresented themselves into
surrendering custody of her child to the DSWD.

RULING:
Christina's directly accusing the respondents of forcibly separating
her from her child and placing the latter up for adoption, indicates
that she is not searching for a lost child but asserting her parental
authority over the child and contesting custody over him. Since it is
extant from the pleadings filed that what is involved is the issue of
child custody and the exercise of parental rights over a child, who,
for all intents and purposes, has been legally considered a ward of
the State, the Amparo rule cannot be properly applied. Petition
DENIED. RTC judgement AFFIRMED without prejudice to petitioner's
right to avail of proper legal remedies afforded to her by law and
related rules.
 Facts:
 Petitioner, Marissa Benetiz Badua, claims to be an heir to Vicente
Benitez and Isabel Chipongian, being the legitimate child of the
spouses. Such claim by the petitioner was done after the private
respondents (Vicente’s sister & nephew) filed a special proceeding for
the settlement of estate & administration of the same. At the trial
court, the private respondents contended that the couple has no
biological child, for their incapacity to procreate a child as testified
by the obstetrician-gynecologist of Isabel.

 RULING:
The mere registration of a child in his or her birth certificate as
the child of the supposed parents is not a valid adoption, does
not confer upon the child the status of an adopted child and the
legal rights of such child, and even amounts of simulation of the
child's birth or falsification of his or her birth certificate, which
is a public document.
IN THE MATTER OF THE ADOPTION OF STEPHANIE NATHY ASTORGA GARCIA
HONORATO B. CATINDIG, petitioner
G.R. No. 148311. March 31, 2005
 May an illegitimate child, upon adoption by her natural
father, use the surname of her natural mother as her middle
name?
Law Is Silent As To The Use Of Middle Name –

Notably, the law is likewise silent as to what middle

name an adoptee may use.

Art. 10 of the New Civil Code provides that:

"In case of doubt in the interpretation or application of laws, it is presumed that

the lawmaking body intended right and justice to prevail.“

Hence, since there is no law prohibiting an illegitimate child adopted by her

natural father, like Stephanie, to use, as middle name her mother’s surname,
we find no reason why she should not be allowed to do so.
ADOPTION- Rule 99-100 (Superseded by AM 02-
6-02 Effective 8/22/02])

 Adoption is now governed by RA 8552 (Domestic

Adoption) and RA 8043 (Inter-Country Adoption)
 Jurisdiction/Venue – DA, Family Court where
adopter resides; ICA – ICAB or FC where adoptee
resides, which will turn over the petition to ICAB.
 In ICA, only child declared legally available for
adoption can be adopted. No publication required.
DA, non-minors may be adopted; publication
required.
 Standard required – best interest of the minor rule