Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Sumaya V Iac PDF
Sumaya V Iac PDF
SYLLABUS
DECISION
MEDIALDEA , J : p
Raul Balantakbo inherited from two (2) different ascendants the two (2) sets of
properties subject of this case: 1) A one-third (1/3) interest, pro-indiviso in a parcel of
land situated in Dita, Lilio (Liliw) Laguna and described in paragraph 7 of the complaint
in Civil Case No. SC-956 from his father Jose, Sr., who died on January 28, 1945; and 2)
A one-seventh (1/7) interest pro-indiviso in ten (10) parcels of registered lands
described in paragraph 6 of the complaint in Civil Case No. SC-957 from his maternal
grandmother, Luisa Bautista, who died on November 3, 1950.
On June 13, 1952, Raul died intestate, single, without any issue, and leaving only
his mother, Consuelo Joaquin Vda. de Balantakbo, as his sole surviving heir to the real
properties above-mentioned.
On November 3, 1952, Consuelo adjudicated unto herself the above described
properties in an Affidavit entitled "Caudal Herederario del finado Raul Balantakbo" which
provided, among others:
"I.Que de mi legitimo matrimonio con mi difunto esposo, Jose Balantakbo, he
tenido varios hijos, entre ellos si difunto hijo, llamado Raul Balantakbo.
CD Technologies Asia, Inc. 2018 cdasiaonline.com
"II.Que mi referido hijo Raul Balantakbo, fallencio el 13 de Junio de 1952, en la
Ciudad de Pasay, durante su minoria de edad sin dejar testamento alguno."
"III.Que el finado Raul Balantakbo al morir no ha dejado descendiente alguno.
On December 21, 1959, Consuelo Joaquin vda de. Balantakbo sold the property
described in Civil Case No. SC-956 to Mariquita H. Sumaya. The sale was evidenced by
a deed attached as Annex "C" to the complaint. The same property was subsequently
sold by Mariquita Sumaya to Villa Honorio Development Corporation, Inc., on December
30, 1963. On January 23, 1967, Villa Honorio Development Corporation transferred and
assigned its rights over the property in favor of Agro-Industrial Coconut Cooperative,
Inc. The documents evidencing these transfers were registered in the Registry of Deeds
of Laguna and the corresponding certi cates of titles were issued. The properties are
presently in the name of Agro-Industrial Coconut Cooperative, Inc., 2/3 share and the
remaining 1/3 share is in the name of Sancho Balantakbo. LLjur
Also on December 30, 1963, Consuelo Joaquin vda. de Balantakbo sold the
properties described in the complaint in Civil Case No. SC-957 to Villa Honorio
Development Corporation, Inc. The latter in turn transferred and assigned all its rights
to the properties in favor of Laguna Agro-Industrial Coconut Cooperative, Inc. which
properties are presently in its possession.
The parties admit that the certi cates of titles covering the above described
properties do not contain any annotation of its reservable character.
On June 3, 1968, Consuelo Joaquin vda. de Balantakbo died.
On March 4, 1970, Amadeo, Sancho, Donato, Luis, and Erasto, all surnamed
Balantakbo, brothers in full blood of Raul Balantakbo and Luisa, Jose and Dolores, also
all surnamed Balantakbo, surviving children of deceased Jose Balantakbo, Jr., another
brother of the first named Balantakbos, filed the above mentioned civil cases to recover
the properties described in the respective complaints which they claimed were subject
to a reserva troncal in their favor.
The court a quo found that the two (2) cases varied only in the identity of the
subject matter of res involved, the transferees, the dates of the conveyances but involve
the same legal question of reserva troncal. Hence, the consolidation of the two (2)
cases.
After trial, the court a quo rendered a joint decision in favor of the Balantakbos,
the dispositive portion of which reads:
"WHEREFORE, in both Civil Cases Nos. SC-956 and SC-957, judgment is hereby
rendered in favor of the plaintiffs and against the defendants, as follows:
CD Technologies Asia, Inc. 2018 cdasiaonline.com
"1.Ordering the defendant Laguna Agro-Industrial Coconut Cooperative, Inc. to
convey to the plaintiffs —
"a.)In Civil Case No. SC-956 — the one-third (1/3) interest and
ownership, pro-indiviso, in and over the parcel of land described in
paragraph three (3) subparagraph 1, of pages one (1) and two (2) of this
decision;
"b.)In Civil Case No. SC-957 — the one-seventh (1/7) interest and
ownership, pro-indiviso, in and over the ten (10) parcels of land described
in paragraph three (3), subparagraph 2, of pages two (2) and three (3) of
this decision;
"c.)The plaintiffs are to share equally in the real properties herein
ordered to be conveyed to them by the defendants with plaintiffs Luisa,
Jose and Dolores, all surnamed Balantakbo, receiving one-third (1/3) of the
one share pertaining to the other plaintiffs who are their uncles:
"2.Ordering the Laguna Agro-Industrial Coconut Cooperative, Inc. to account for
and pay to the plaintiffs the value of the produce from the properties herein
ordered to be returned to the plaintiffs, said accounting and payment of income
being for the period from January 3, 1968 until date of reconveyance of the
properties herein ordered:
"3.In each of Civil Cases Nos. SC-956 and SC-957, defendants are to pay plaintiffs
—
"a.One Thousand (P1,000.00) Pesos in litigation expenses
This decision was appealed to the appellate court which a rmed the decision of
the court a quo in toto. The motion for reconsideration was denied (p. 65, Rollo) by the
appellate court which found no cogent reason to reverse the decision.
This petition before Us was led on November 12, 1984 with the petitioners
assigning the following errors allegedly committed by the appellate court:
I.The trial court erred in not nding defendants an (sic) innocent purchaser for
value and in good faith of the properties covered by certi cates of title subject of
litigation.
II.The trial court erred in nding it unnecessary to annotate the reservable
interest of the reservee in the properties covered by certi cates of title subject of
litigation.
III.The trial court erred in nding that the cause of action of the plaintiffs (private
respondents) has not yet prescribed.
IV.The trial court erred in awarding moral and actual damages in favor of the
plaintiffs by virtue of the institution of Civil Cases Nos. 956 and 957.
Petitioners would want this Court to reverse the ndings of the court a quo,
which the appellate court a rmed, that they were not innocent purchasers for value.
According to petitioners, before they agreed to buy the properties from the reservor
CD Technologies Asia, Inc. 2018 cdasiaonline.com
(also called reservista), Consuelo Joaquin vda. de Balantakbo, they rst sought the
legal advice of their family consultant who found that there was no encumbrance nor
any lien annotated on the certificate of title covering the properties.
The court a quo found otherwise. Upon the death of the propositus, Raul
Balantakbo, the reservista, Consuelo vda. de Balantakbo caused the registration of an
a davit of self-adjudication of the estate of Raul, wherein it was clearly stated that the
properties were inherited by Raul from his father Jose, Sr., as regards the subject
matter of Civil Case No. SC-956 and from his maternal grandmother, Luisa Bautista, as
regards the subject matter of Civil Case No. SC-957. The court a quo further ruled that
said a davit was, in its form, declaration and substance, a recording with the Registry
of Deeds of the reservable character of the properties. In Spanish language, the
a davit clearly stated that the a ant, Consuelo, was a lone ascendant and heir to Raul
Balantakbo, her son, who died leaving properties previously inherited from other
ascendants and which properties were inventoried in the said affidavit.
It was admitted that the certi cates of titles covering the properties in question
show that they were free from any liens and encumbrances at the time of the sale. The
fact remains however, that the a davit of self-adjudication executed by Consuelo
stating the source of the properties thereby showing the reservable nature thereof was
registered with the Register of Deeds of Laguna, and this is su cient notice to the
whole world in accordance with Section 52 of the Property Registration Decree
(formerly Sec. 51 of R.A. 496) which provides: llcd
Thus, in Gatioan v. Gaffud , G.R. No. L-21953, March 28, 1969, 27 SCRA 706, 712-
713, cited in People v. Reyes , G.R. Nos. 74226-27, July 27, 1989, 175 SCRA 597; Garcia
v. CA and PNB v. CA, et al ., G.R. Nos. L-48971 and L-40911, both dated January 22,
1980, 95 SCRA 380 and Legarda and Prieto v. Saleeby, 31 Phil. 590, 600, We held:
"When a conveyance has been properly recorded such record is constructive
notice of its contents and all interests, legal and equitable, included therein . . .
"Under the rule of notice, it is presumed that the purchaser has examined every
instrument of record affecting the title. Such presumption is irrebuttable. He is
charged with notice of every fact shown by the record and is presumed to know
every fact shown by the record and is presumed to know every fact which an
examination of the record would have disclosed. This presumption cannot be
overcome by proof of innocence or good faith. Otherwise, the very purpose and
object of the law requiring a record would be destroyed. Such presumption cannot
be defeated by proof of want of knowledge of what the record contains any more
than one may be permitted to show that he was ignorant of the provisions of the
law. The rule that all persons must take notice of the facts which the public record
contains is a rule of law. The rule must be absolute, any variation would lead to
endless confusion and useless litigation. . . ."
In the case of Bass v. De la Rama , 73 Phil. 682, 685, the rule was laid down that
the mere entry of a document in the day book without noting it on the certi cate of title
is not su cient registration. However, that ruling was superseded by the holding in the
CD Technologies Asia, Inc. 2018 cdasiaonline.com
later six cases of Levin v. Bass , 91 Phil. 420. As explained in Garcia v. C.A., et al. , G.R.
Nos. L-48971 and 49011, January 20, 1980, 95 SCRA 380, 388, which is the prevailing
doctrine in this jurisdiction.
"That ruling was superseded by the holding in the later six cases of Levin v. Bass,
91 Phil. 420, where a distinction was made between voluntary and involuntary
registration, such as the registration of an attachment, levy upon execution, notice
of lis pendens, and the like. In cases of involuntary registration, an entry thereof in
the day book is a su cient notice to all persons even if the owner's duplicate
certificate of title is not presented to the register of deeds.
"On the other hand, according to the said cases of Levin v. Bass, in case of
voluntary registration of documents an innocent purchaser for value of registered
land becomes the registered owner, and, in contemplation of law the holder of a
certi cate of title, the moment he presents and les a duly notarized and valid
deed of sale and the same is entered in the day book and at the same time he
surrenders or presents the owner's duplicate certi cate of title covering the land
sold and pays the registration fees, because what remains to be done lies not
within his power to perform. The register of deeds is duty bound to perform it."
(See Potenciano v. Dineros, 97 Phil. 196).
It was admitted though that as regards the properties litigated in Civil Case SC-
957, no such admission was made by Consuelo to put Villa Honorio Development on
notice of the reservable character of the properties. The a davit of self-adjudication
executed by Consuelo and registered with the Registry would still be sufficient notice to
bind them. prcd
Moreover, the court a quo found that the petitioners and private respondents
were long time acquaintances; that the Villa Honorio Development Corporation and its
successors, the Laguna Agro-Industrial Coconut Cooperative Inc., are family
corporations of the Sumayas and that the petitioners knew all along that the properties
litigated in this case were inherited by Raul Balantakbo from his father and from his
CD Technologies Asia, Inc. 2018 cdasiaonline.com
maternal grandmother, and that Consuelo Vda. de Balantakbo inherited these
properties from his son Raul.
The obligation to reserve rests upon the reservor, Consuelo Joaquin vda. de
Balantakbo. Article 891 of the New Civil Code on reserva troncal provides:
"Art. 891.The ascendant who inherits from his descendant any property which the
latter may have acquired by gratuitous title from another ascendant or a brother
or sister, is obliged to reserve such property as he may have acquired by operation
of law for the bene t of relatives who are within the third degree and who belong
to the line from which said property came." (emphasis supplied).
We do not agree, however, with the disposition of the appellate court that there is
no need to register the reservable character of the property, if only for the protection of
the reservees, against innocent third persons. This was suggested as early as the case
of Director of Lands v. Aguas , G.R. No. 42737, August 11, 1936, 63 Phil. 279. The main
issue submitted for resolution therein was whether the reservation established by
Article 811 (now Art. 891 of the New Civil Code) of the Civil Code, for the bene t of the
relatives within the third degree belonging to the line of the descendant from whom the
ascendant reservor received the property, should be understood as made in favor of all
the relatives within said degree and belonging to the line above-mentioned, without
distinction legitimate, natural and illegitimate ones not having the legal status of natural
children. However, in an obiter dictum this Court stated therein:
"The reservable character of a property is but a resolutory condition of the
ascendant reservor's right of ownership. If the condition is ful lled, that is, if upon
the ascendant reservor's death there are relatives having the status provided in
Article 811 (Art. 891, New Civil Code), the property passes, in accordance with this
special order of succession, to said relatives, or to the nearest of kin among them,
which question not being pertinent to this case, need not now be determined. But
if this condition is not ful lled, the property is released and will be adjudicated in
accordance with the regular order of succession. The ful llment or non-ful llment
of the resolutory condition, the e cacy or cessation of the reservation, the
acquisition of rights or loss of the vested ones, are phenomena which have
nothing to do with whether the reservation has been noted or not in the certi cate
of title to the property. The purpose of the notation is nothing more than to afford
to the persons entitled to the reservation, if any, due protection against any act of
the reservor, which may make it ineffective . . . ." (p. 292, ibid).
Likewise, in Dizon and Dizon v. Galang , G.R. No. 21344, January 14, 1926, 48 Phil.
601, 603, this Court ruled that the reservable character of a property may be lost to
innocent purchasers for value. Additionally, it was ruled therein that the obligation
imposed on a widowed spouse to annotate the reservable character of a property
subject of reserva viudal is applicable to reserva troncal. (See also Edrozo v. Sablan ,
G.R. No. 6878, September 13, 1913, 25 Phil. 295).
"Since these parcels of land have been legally transferred to third persons, Vicente
Galang has lost ownership thereof and cannot now register nor record in the
Registry of Deeds their reservable character; neither can he effect the fee simple,
which does not belong to him, to the damage of Juan Medina and Teodoro
Jurado, who acquired the said land in good faith, free of all incumbrances. An
attempt was made to prove that when Juan Medina was advised not to buy the
land he remarked, `Why, did he (Vicente Galang) not inherit it from his son?' Aside
from the fact that it is not clear whether this conservation took place in 1913 or
CD Technologies Asia, Inc. 2018 cdasiaonline.com
1914, that is, before or after the sale, it does not signify that he had any
knowledge of the reservation. This did not arise from the fact alone that Vicente
Galang had inherited the land from his son, but also from the fact that, by
operation of law, the son had inherited it from his mother Ru na Dizon, which
circumstance, so far as the record shows, Juan Medina had not been aware of.
We do not decide, however, whether or not Juan Medina and Teodoro Jurado are
obliged to acknowledge the reservation and to note the same in their deeds, for
the reason that there was no prayer to this effect in the complaint and no
question raised in regard thereto."
Consistent with the rule in reserva viudal where the person obliged to reserve
(the widowed spouse) had the obligation to annotate in the Registry of Property the
reservable character of the property, in reserva troncal, the reservor (the ascendant who
inherited from a descendant property which the latter inherited from another
descendant) has the duty to reserve and therefore, the duty to annotate also. prLL