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UC School of Law
NUISANCE
property)
Injury Consequential Direct and immediate
ARTICLE 694: CONCEPT OF NUISANCE Nuisance Negligence
Nature Liable for the resulting Liability is based on a
Definition injury to other want of care
Layman’s term: Annoyance or anything that works, hurt, inconvenience, or regardless of the
injury. It is comprehensive enough to include all wrong which have interfered degree of care or skill
with the rights of the citizens in person, property, or enjoyment of his exercised to avoid the
property or his comfort. injury
Kind of violation Violation of an Violation of a relative
Legal phraseology: Class of wrongs which arises from unreasonable, absolute duty duty
unwarrantable, or unlawful use by a person of his own property and which - The doing of - Failure to use
produces such material annoyance, inconvenience, or discomfort, or hurt an act which is the degree of
that the law will presume a consequent damage. wrongful in care required
This embraces both intentional harms and those caused by itself under
negligence or recklessness particular
circumstance
Statutory definition: Anything which is injurious to public health or safety, in connection
is offensive to the senses, is indecent or immoral, obstructs the free use of with an act or
any public street or body of water, impairs the use of property, or, in any omission which
way, interferes with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property. is not wrongful
Negligence is not an essential ingredient per se
Necessity of Damage is the Damage is immaterial
DIFFERENTIATING NUISANCE FROM OTHER DELICTS/TORTS damage necessary
consequence of the act
Nuisance Trespass
Definition Use of one’s own Direct infringement of TN: if the acts constituting negligence are the same acts which give rise to a
property in such a another’s right of cause of action for nuisance, the rules applicable to negligence will be
manner as to cause property applied.
injury to the property
or other right or ART. 695: PRIVATE AND PUBLIC NUISANCES
interest of another
Public Nuisance Private Nuisance
Presence of physical No actual physical There is an actual
Definition Doing of or the Violates only private
invasion invasion. (Meaning wa physical invasion
failure to do something rights and produces
jud ka niadto sa
that injuriously affects damage to but one or
property sa laing tao.
safety, health, or a few persons, and
Murag ang effect ra of
morals of the public, or cannot be said to be
ur action done in ur
works some substantial public.
property reached
annoyance,
another person’s
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UC School of Law
inconvenience, or account of the offensive odors, pernicious to health, coming
injury to the public. from manure scattered therein, stagnant water, etc.
Right injured prejudicial to the One is injured in constitutes both public and private nuisance.
health, comfort, safety, relation to a right
property, sense of which he enjoys by Javier v. Ozaeta (On storing gasoline as a kind of nuisance)
decency, or morals of reason of his The keeping or storage of gasoline may constitute a nuisance, either private
the citizens at large, ownership of an or public. Whether or not it becomes a nuisance depends upon the location,
resulting either from interest in land, and the quantity, and other surrounding circumstances. While it would not
an act not warranted where an individual necessarily depend upon the degree of care used in the storage, the manner
by law, or neglect of a wrong arising from an in which the tanks are constructed and operated may be considered.
duty imposed by unreasonable,
law. unwarrantable, or Nuisance per se Nuisance per
unlawful use of one’s accidens
property produces An act, occupation, or
such material structure which
annoyance, unquestionably is a
inconvenience, nuisance at all time
discomfort, or hurt and under An act, occupation, or
that the law will circumstances, structure that becomes
presume regardless of location a nuisance by reason
Definition
a consequent damage or surroundings of circumstances,
Available remedies Indictable Actionable (either for Nuisance because of location, or
their abatement or for its inherent qualities, surroundings.
damages or both) productive of injury or
dangerous to life or
property without
MIXED NUISANCE regard to circumstance
A nuisance that may be both public and private in character. Proof needed Proved in any locality May be summarily
o Public because it violates public rights to the injury of many without a showing of abated under the
persons specific damages undefined law of
o Private because it produces special injury to private right to necessity BUT the
any extent beyond the injury to the public. person alleged to be
Examples of mixed nuisance: maintaining or doing
o A house abutting on a street railway track is a private an act of nuisance
nuisance to the railway company and a public nuisance must be notified.
because it obstructs the street. Example House of prostitution Raising and breeding
o Raising and breeding animals (pigs, goats and sheep) for pigs in a house within
o commercial purposes in a vicinity that is fast becoming a city limits
fashionable Houses constructed
o Residential district and where it is shown that the place without governmental
where the animals are kept are found to be unsanitary on authority on public
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UC School of Law
streets and river beds Actual knowledge of the existence of the nuisance
for they obstruct at all It is within their power to abate the same.
times the free use by
the public of said ARTICLE 697: ABATEMENT OF NUISANCE AND
places.
Any and all squatters RECOVERY OF DAMAGES
on government If you are an aggrieved party, you can file BOTH or EITHER an action for
resettlement projects ABATEMENT and RECOVERY OF DAMAGES. Depends on you since these two
remedies are concurrent and not exclusive.
TN: The difference between per se and accidence depends upon its
location and surroundings, the manner of its conduct and other Abatement of a nuisance Recovery of damages
circumstances. In these cases, proof of act and its consequences is Takes place after injury or damage Pwede ra before and after the
necessary. has already been caused abatement of nuisance
DOCTRINE OF ATTRACTIVE NUISANCE ARTICLE 698: EFFECT OF LAPSE FO TIME
GR: The action to abate cannot prescribe.
Definition: One who maintains on his premises dangerous instrumentalities
XPN: Article 698 is subject to exception under the special rule in Article
or appliances of a character likely to attract children in play, and who fails to
631(2) which expressly prescribes that easements are extinguished by
exercise ordinary care to prevent children from playing therewith or resorting
obstruction and non-use for ten years.
thereto, is liable to a child of tender years who is injured thereby, even if the
child is technically a trespasser in the premises. The principal reason for the
doctrine is that the condition or appliance in question although its danger is ARTICLE 699 and 705: REMEDIES AGAINST A
apparent to those of age, is so enticing or alluring to children of tender years PUBLIC NUISANCE AND PRIVATE NUISANCE
as to induce them to approach, get on or use it, and this attractiveness is an
implied invitation to such children. Remedies for public Remedies for private
nuisance nuisance
As to the application of the doctrine to bodies of waters A prosecution under the Penal A civil action
GR: Does not apply to both artificial and natural bodies of waters Code or any local ordinance
XPN: Unless these bear unusual condition or artificial feature other than the A civil action Abatement without judicial
mere water and its location. proceedings
Abatement without judicial
proceedings
ARTICLE 696: LIABILITY OF SUCCESSOR OF TN: Criminal prosecution is only for public nuisance.
PROPERTY CONSTITUTING A NUISANCE
GR: Only the creator of a nuisance is liable for the damage resulting Abatement without judicial proceedings
therefrom. 1. As an exercise of police power
XPN: Every successor owner or possessor of property constituting a 2. As an exercise of eminent domain
nuisance who fails or refuses to abate the nuisance, or maintains or permits 3. Moved by the need for abatement
its continuation has the same liability as the original owner or possessor who
created it.
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UC School of Law
ARTICLE 700-02: ROLE OF DISTRICT HEALTH degree of danger to
OFFICE AND OTHER WITH RESPECT TO PUBLIC life, health or safety
Pwede gihapon Pwede gihapon
NUISANCE makainstitute ug makainstitute ug
District health Municipal or city Private person proceedings under proceedings under
officer mayor 700 and 702 of the 700 and 702 of the
Duty to determine that Should be the one to Institute Civil Code Civil Code
one or all of the institute the action to abatement if the Charter of City of National Building Fire Code of the
remedies against a abatement public nuisance is Manila Code Philippines
public nuisance are especially
availed of injurious to him
ARTICLE 703: RIGHT OF PRIVATE PERSON TO FILE
Determine whether the ACTION ON ACCOUNT OF A PUBLIC NUISANCE
extrajudicial GR: City or municipal mayor commences the civil action against a public
abatement is the best nuisance.
remedy against a XPN: The individual may institution an action for damages, injunction, and
abatement if he prove that the public nuisance is specially injurious to
public nuisance.
himself.
Can only institute U should prove that the private person suffers an injury or special or
abatement if the unusual damages
nuisance is one that
affects public health TN: An action may be maintained by one who is not the sole or even a
and sanitation peculiar sufferer, if his grievance is not common to the whole public, but is a
common misfortune of a number or even a class of persons.
DESIGNATED BY SPECIAL LAWS ARTICLE 704: CONDITIONS FOR EXTRAJUDICIAL
City Engineer of Building Official Director General
the City of Manila of the Integrated
ABATEMENT OF A PUBLIC NUISANCE
Art. 704. Any private person may abate a public nuisance which is specially
national Police or
injurious to him by removing, or if necessary, by destroying the thing which
his authorized
constitutes the same, without committing a breach of the peace, or doing
representative unnecessary injury. But it is necessary:
Abatement of illegal Abatement of any Abate fire hazards
construction building o structure (1) That demand be first made upon the owner or possessor of the property
which found or to abate the nuisance;
declared to be (2) That such demand has been rejected;
dangerous or (3) That the abatement be approved by the district health officer and
ruinous, to order its executed with the assistance of the local police; and
repair, vacation or (4) That the value of the destruction does not exceed three thousand pesos.
demolition
depending upon the
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UC School of Law
GR: Notice must be given to the person responsible before abating the
nuisance especially if the abatement is propelled by necessity.
XPN: Notice can be dispensed with if there is a danger to health, life,
property is imminent and the necessity of prompt removal of the nuisance is
urgent.
ARTICLE 705: LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES IN CASE OF
EXTRAJUDICIAL ABATEMENT OF NUISANCE
Art. 707. A private person or a public official extrajudicially abating a
nuisance shall be liable for damages:
(1) If he causes unnecessary injury; or
(2) If an alleged nuisance is later declared by the courts to be not a real
nuisance.
Ratio: This liability for damages provides a sort of deterrent against the
unreasonable resort to the extrajudicial abatement of nuisance by
unscrupulous parties and at the same time affords the victim a civil remedy
to recover damages without prejudice to such other remedies granted by
law.
