Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Echavez v. Dozen Construction PDF
Echavez v. Dozen Construction PDF
RESOLUTION
BRION , J : p
Vicente Echavez (Vicente) was the absolute owner of several lots in Cebu City,
which includes Lot No. 1956-A and Lot No. 1959 (subject lots). On September 7, 1985,
Vicente donated the subject lots to petitioner Manuel Echavez (Manuel) through a Deed
of Donation Mortis Causa. 1 Manuel accepted the donation.
In March 1986, Vicente executed a Contract to Sell over the same lots in favor of
Dozen Construction and Development Corporation (Dozen Corporation). In October
1986, they executed two Deeds of Absolute Sale over the same properties covered by
the previous Contract to Sell.
On November 6, 1986, Vicente died. Emiliano Cabanig, Vicente's nephew, led a
petition for the settlement of Vicente's intestate estate. On the other hand, Manuel led
a petition to approve Vicente's donation mortis causa in his favor and an action
to annul the contracts of sale Vicente executed in favor of Dozen Corporation.
These cases were jointly heard.
The Regional Trial Court (RTC) dismissed Manuel's petition to approve
the donation and his action for annulment of the contracts of sale. 2 The RTC
found that the execution of a Contract to Sell in favor of Dozen Corporation, after
Vicente had donated the lots to Manuel, was an equivocal act that revoked the
donation. The Court of Appeals (CA) a rmed the RTC's decision. 3 The CA held that
since the donation in favor of Manuel was a donation mortis causa, compliance with the
formalities for the validity of wills should have been observed. The CA found that the
deed of donation did not contain an attestation clause and was therefore
void.
The Petition for Review on Certiorari
Manuel claims that the CA should have applied the rule on substantial
compliance in the construction of a will to Vicente's donation mortis causa. He insists
that the strict construction of a will was not warranted in the absence of any indication
of bad faith, fraud, or substitution in the execution of the Deed of Donation Mortis
Causa. He argues that the CA ignored the Acknowledgment portion of the deed of
donation, which contains the "import and purpose" of the attestation clause required in
the execution of wills. The Acknowledgment reads:
BEFORE ME, Notary Public, this 7th day of September 1985 at Talisay,
Cebu, personally appeared VICENTE S. Echavez with Res. Cert. No. 16866094
issued on April 10, 1985 at [sic] Talisay, Cebu known to me to be the same person
who executed the foregoing instrument of Deed of Donation Mortis Causa before
CD Technologies Asia, Inc. © 2018 cdasiaonline.com
the Notary Public and in the presence of the foregoing three (3) witnesses who
signed this instrument before and in the presence of each other and of the Notary
Public and all of them acknowledge to me that the same is their voluntary act and
deed. [Emphasis in the original.]
ICcaST
Footnotes
[T]he DONOR, VICENTE S. ECHAVEZ, for and in consideration of the love and affection
upon and unto the DONEE, MANUEL A. ECHAVEZ, and of the uncertainty of life and
inevitableness of death that may strike a man at the most unexpected moment, and
wishing to give DONEE while able to do so, to take effect after death, the DONOR, do
hereby give, transfer and convey by way of donation the following personal and real
CD Technologies Asia, Inc. © 2018 cdasiaonline.com
properties to wit: . . . [Emphasis in the original.], rollo, p. 90.
2.In SP Proc. No. 1776-CEB dated December 27, 1996, rollo, pp. 25-28.
3.In CA-G.R. CV No. 58328 dated May 29, 2000, id. at 84-97.
Donations which are to take effect upon the death of the donor partake the nature of
testamentary provisions, and shall be governed by the rules established in the Title on
Succession.
5.Maglasang v. Heirs of Corazon Cabatingan, G.R. No. 131953, June 5, 2002, 383 SCRA 6,
citing The National Treasurer of the Phils. v. Vda. de Meimban, No. L-61023, August 22,
1984, 131 SCRA 264.
6.92 Phil. 161 (1952).