61. On May 1, 1978 Facundo married Petra, by whom he had a son Sotero.
Petra died on July 1,
1996, while Facundo died on January 1, 2002. Before his demise, Facundo had married, on July 1,
2002, Quercia. Having lived together as husband and wife since July 1, 1990, Facundo and Quercia
did not secure a marriage license but executed the requisite affidavit for the purpose. To ensure
that his inheritance rights are not adversely affected by his father second marriage, Sotero now
brings a suit to seek a declaration of the nullity of the marriage of Facundo and Quercia, grounded
on the absence of a valid marriage license. Quercia contends that there was no need for a marriage
license in view for her having lived continuously with Facundo for five years before their marriage
and that has Sotero has no legal personality to seek a declaration of nullity of the marriage since
Facundo is now deceased.
A. Is the marriage of Facundo and Quercia valid, despite the absence of a marriage license? Explain.
(2%)
No, the marriage is void.
The exemption from the requirement of a marriage license under Art. 34 of the
Family Code requires that the man and the woman must have lived together for at
least five years and without any legal impediment to marry each other during those
five years.
The cohabitation of Facundo and Quercia for six years from 1990 to July 1, 1996
when Petra died was one with a legal impediment hence, not in compliance with the
requirement of law. On the other hand, the cohabitation thereafter until the
marriage on July 1, 2000, although free from legal impediment, did not meet the 5-
year cohabitation requirement.
B. Does Sotero have the personality to seek the declaration of nullity of the marriage, especially
now that Facundo is already deceased? Explain.
Yes.
A void marriage may be questioned by any interested party in any proceeding
where the resolution of the issue is material.
Being a compulsory heir, Sotero has the personality to question the validity of the
marriage of Facundo and Quercia. Otherwise, his participation in the estate on
Facundo would be affected.
62. Gigi and Ric, Catholics, got married when they were 18 years old. Their marriage was
solemnized on August 2, 1989 by Ric's uncle, a Baptist Minister, in Calamba, Laguna. He overlooked
the fact that his license to solemnize marriage expired the month before and that the parties do not
belong to his congregation. After 5 years of married life and blessed with 2 children, the spouses
developed irreconcilable differences, so they parted ways. While separated, Ric fell in love with
Juliet, a 16 year-old sophomore in a local college and a Seventh-Day Adventist. They decided to get
married with the consent of Juliet's parents. She presented to him a birth certificate showing she is
18 years old. Ric never doubted her age much less the authenticity of her birth certificate. They got
married in a Catholic church in Manila. A year after, Juliet gave birth to twins, Aissa and Aretha.
(1) What is the status of the marriage between Gigi and Ric — valid, voidable or void? Explain
Valid.
Even if the Minister's license expired, the marriage is valid if either or both Gigi and
Ric believed in good faith that he had the legal authority to solemnize marriage.
While the authority of the solemnizing officer is a formal requisite of marriage, and
at least one of the parties must belong to the solemnizing officer's church, the law
provides that the good faith of the parties cures the defect in the lack of authority of
the solemnizing officer.
The absence of parental consent despite their having married at the age of 18 is
deemed cured by their continued cohabitation beyond the age of 21. At this point,
their marriage is valid.
(2) What is the status of the marriage between Ric and Juliet — valid, voidable or void?
The marriage between Juliet and Ric is void.
First of all, the marriage is a bigamous marriage not falling under Article 41 [Art.
35(4)Family Code], A subsisting marriage constitutes a legal impediment to re-
marriage. Secondly, Juliet is below eighteen years of age. The marriage is void even
if consented to by her parents. The fact that Ric was not aware of her real age is
immaterial.
(3) Suppose Ric himself procured the falsified birth certificate to persuade Juliet to marry him
despite her minority and assured her that everything is in order. He did not divulge to her his prior
marriage with Gigi. What action, if any, can Juliet take against him? Explain
Juliet can file an action for the declaration of nullity of the marriage on the ground
that he willfully caused loss or injury to her in a manner that is contrary to morals,
good customs and public policy [Art. 21, New Civil Code]. She may also bring
criminal actions for eduction, falsification, illegal marriage and bigamy against Ric.
(4) If you were the counsel for Gigi, what action/s will you take to enforce and protect her
interests? Explain.
I would file an action to declare the marriage between Juliet and Ric null and void ab
initio and for Ric's share in the co-ownership of that marriage to be forfeited in
favor and considered part of the absolute community in the marriage between Gigi
and Ric [Arts. 148 & 147, Family Code]. I would also file an action for damages
against Ric on the grounds that his acts constitute an abuse of right and they are
contrary to law and morals, causing damages to Gigi (See Arts 19, 20, 21, New Civil
Code).
63.
(a) Two (2) months after the death of her husband who was shot by unknown criminal elements on
his way home from office, Rose married her childhood boyfriend, and seven (7) months after said
marriage, she delivered a baby. In the absence of any evidence from Rose as to who is her child's
father, what status does the law give to said child? Explain.
The child is legitimate of the second marriage under Article 168(2) of the Family
Code which provides that a "child born after one hundred eighty days following the
celebration of the subsequent marriage is considered to have been conceived during
such marriage, even though it be born within three hundred days after the
termination of the former marriage."
(b) Nestor is the illegitimate son of Dr. Perez. When Dr. Perez died, Nestor intervened in the
settlement of his father's estate, claiming that he is the illegitimate son of said deceased, but the
legitimate family of Dr. Perez is denying Nestor's claim. What evidence or evidences should Nestor
present so that he may receive his rightful share in his father's estate?
To be able to inherit, the illegitimate filiation of Nestor must have been admitted by
his father in any of the following:
1. the record of birth appearing in the civil register,
2. a final judgment,
3. a public document signed by the father, or
4. a private handwritten document signed by the father.
