LTD Reviewer

INDEFEASIBLE TITLE

conclusive title of ownership

cannot be defeated by adverse, open and notorious possession and
prescription.

RESTRICTIONS ON PATENTS (CA 141)

Sec. 118. Except in favor of the Government or any of its branches, units or
institutions, or legally constituted banking corporations, lands acquired under free
patent or homestead provisions shall:

not be subject to encumbrance or alienation from the date of the approval of

the application and for a term of five years from and after the date of
issuance of the patent or grant
not become liable to the satisfaction of any debt contracted prior to the
expiration of said period; but the improvements or crops on the land may be
mortgaged or pledged to qualified persons, associations, or corporations.
No alienation, transfer, or conveyance of any homestead after five years and
before twenty-five years after issuance of title shall be valid without the
approval of the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources, which
approval shall not be denied except on constitutional and legal grounds.

Sec. 119 Every conveyance of land acquired under the free patent or homestead
provisions, when proper, shall:

be subject to repurchase by the applicant, his widow, or legal heirs, within a

period of five years from the date of the conveyance.

Sec. 120 Conveyances and encumbrances made by illiterate non-Christians or

literate non-Christians where the instrument of conveyance or encumbrance is in a
language not under-stood by the said literate non-Christians shall not be valid
unless duly approved by the Chairman of the Commission on National Integration.
Sec. 121 no corporation, association, or partner-ship may acquire or have any right,
title, interest, or property right whatsoever to any land granted under the free
patent, homestead or individual sale provisions of this Act or any permanent
improvement on such land.
Sec. 122. No land originally acquired in any manner under the provisions of this Act,
nor any permanent improvement on such land, shall be encumbered, alienated or
transferred, except to persons, corporations, associations, or partnerships who may
acquire lands of the public domain under this Act or to corporations organized in the
Philippines authorized therefor by their charters.
Sec. 123. No land originally acquired in any manner under the provisions of any
previous Act, ordinance, royal order, royal decree, or any other provisions of law
formerly in force in the Philippines with regard to public lands, terrenos baldios y
realengos, or lands of any other denomination that were actually or presumptively

of the public domain, or by royal grant or in any other form, nor any permanent
improvement on such land, shall be encumbered, alienated, or conveyed, except to
persons, corporations or associations who may acquire land of the public domain
under this Act or to corporate bodies organized in the Philippines whose charters
authorize them to do so
PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 2004
SEC. 2. Lands acquired under the provisions of this Act shall not be subject to any
restrictions against encumbrance or alienation before and after the issuance of the
patents thereon.
REPUBLIC ACT No. 10023 Section 5. Removal of Restrictions. - The restrictions
regarding encumbrances, conveyances, transfers or dispositions imposed in
Sections 118, 119,121, 122 and 123 of Chapter XII, Title VI of Commonwealth Act
No. 141 as amended, shall not apply to patents issued under this Act.

RECONVEYANCE
ACTION FOR RECONVEYANCE
> Legal and equitable remedy granted to the rightful owner of the land which has
been wrongfully or erroneously registered in the name of another for the purpose of
compelling the latter to transfer or reconvey the land to him
> After one year from the issuance of the decree, may bring action for
reconveyance of the property
> Only to show that the person who secured the registration of the questioned
property is not the real owner thereof
> Seeks to transfer or reconvey the land from the registered owner to the rightful
owner
> Property is deemed to be held in trust for the real owner by the person in whose
name it is registered
> Section 96 is the basis of this remedy

DECREE BECOMES INCONTROVERTIBLE AFTER 1 YEAR FROM THE ISSUANCE OF

DECREE
> Action for reconveyance still available as remedy
> Action in personam that it is always as long as the property has not passed to an
innocent purchaser for value

RELEVANT ALLEGATIONS

1. That the plaintiff is the owner of the land

2. That the defendant has illegally disposed him of the same

ACTION FOR RECONVEYANCE IS AN ACTION IN PERSONAM

> Binding only upon the parties properly impleaded and duly heard or given an
opportunity to be heard
> Directed against specific persons and seek personal judgments
> Court must have jurisdiction over the defendant
THE RTC HAS EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION OVER AN ACTION FOR RECONVEYANCE
OWNERS OF THE PROPERTY OVER WHICH RECONVEYANCE IS BEING SOUGHT
INDISPENSIBLE PARTIES WITHOUT WHOM NO RELIEF IS AVAILABLE ACTION
RECONVEYANCE MAY BE BARRED BY THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS LACHES MAY
RECOVERY

THE
ARE
FOR
BAR

1. Conduct on the part of the defendant or of one under whom him or one under
who he claims, giving rise to the situation of which complaint is made and for which
the complainant seeks relief
2. Delay in asserting the complainants rights, the complainant having had
knowledge or notice, or the defendants conduct and having been afforded an
opportunity to institute a suit
3. Lack of knowledge or notice on the part of the defendant that the complainant
would assert the right on which he bases his suit
4. Inquiry or prejudice to the defendant in the event the relief is afforded the
complainant or the suit is not held to be barred
ACTION MAY BE BARRED BY RES JUDICATA
1. Final judgment
2. Court has competent jurisdiction
3. Between the first and second causes of actionthere is identity of
parties, subject matter and causes of action

STATE IS NOT BARRED BY PRESCRIPTION PROOF OF OWNERSHIP AND IDENTITY

INDISPENSIBLE
ACTION FOR DAMAGES
> Is available when the remedy of an action for reconveyance mayno longer be
availed of

> When the land has passed already to the hands of an innocent purchaser for
value

INNOCENT PURCHASER FOR VALUE AND IN GOOD FAITH

> One who buys property of another, without notice that some other person has a
right to, or interest in, such property and pays a full and fair price for the same, at
the time of such purchase, or Before he has notice of the claim or interest of some
other person in the property
> Good faith is the honest intention to abstain from taking any unconscientious
advantage of another
> The decree guarantees to every purchaser of registered land in good faith that
they can take and hold the same free from any and all prior claims, liens and
encumberances except those set forth in the certificate of title
> Good faith requires a well-founded belief that the person from whom the title was
received was himself the owner of the land, with the right to convey it
ALL PERSONS DELAYING WITH PROPERTY COVERED BY A TORRENS TITLE ARE NOT
REQUIRED TO GO BEYOND WHAT APPEARS ON THE FACE OF THE TITLE
> A person dealing with registered land is only charged of the notice of the burdens
on the property which are noted on the face of the register or certificate of title
AS A RULE, HE WHO ASSERTS THE STATUS OF A PURCHASER IN GOOD FAITH AND
FOR VALUE HAS THE BURDEN OF PROVING SUCH ASSERTIONcannot be discharged
by the mere invocation of the legal presumption of good faith.
INNOCENT PURCHASER FOR VALUE INCLUDES AN INNOCENT LESSEE, MORTGAGEE,
ENCUMBERANCER FOR VALUE A PERSON DEALING WITH REGISTERED LAND HAS A
RIGHT TO RELY UPON THE FACE OF THE CERTIFICATE OF TITLE AND TO DISPENSE
WITH THE NEED OF INQUIRING FURTHER, EXCEPT when the party concerned has
actual knowledge of the facts and circumstances that would impel a reasonably
cautious man to make an inquiry
RULES ON GOOD FAITH ARE NOT ABSOLUTE
> The presence of anything which excites or arouses suspicion should prompt the
vendee to look beyond the certificate and investigate the title of the vendor
appearing on the face of the certificate
A FORGED DEED MAY BE THE ROOT OF A VALID TITLE
> Where innocent third persons relying on the correctness of the certificate acquires
rights over the property, the court cannot disregard such rights and order the total
cancellation of the certifcate for that would impair public confidence in the
certificate
GOOD FAITH IS A QUESTION OF FACT
RULE ON DOUBLE SALE OF PROPERTY

1. The first registrant in good faith

2. The first possessor in good faith
3. The buyer who in good faith presents the oldest title
RULE OF PRIOR EST TEMPORAE, PRIOR EST IN JURA
> He who first in time is first in right
> The rule that where 2 certificates purport to include the same land, the earlier in
date prevails, is valid only absent any anomaly or irregularity tainting the
registration process
> Knowledge gained by the first buyer of the second sale cannot defeat the first
buyers right except only as provided for in the CC and thats where the second
buyer first registers in good faith the second sale ahead of the first

RULES OF PREFERENCE
1. The first registrant in good faith
2. The first in possession in good faith
3. The buyer who presents the olders title in good faith

RECONSTITUTION (PD 1529)

Section 110. Reconstitution of lost or destroyed original of Torrens title. Original
copies of certificates of title lost or destroyed in the offices of Register of Deeds as
well as liens and encumbrances affecting the lands covered by such titles shall be
reconstituted judicially in accordance with the procedure prescribed in Republic Act
No. 26 insofar as not inconsistent with this Decree. The procedure relative to
administrative reconstitution of lost or destroyed certificate prescribed in said Act is
hereby abrogated.
Notice of all hearings of the petition for judicial reconstitution shall be given to the
Register of Deeds of the place where the land is situated and to the Commissioner
of Land Registration. No order or judgment ordering the reconstitution of a
certificate of title shall become final until the lapse of thirty days from receipt by the
Register of Deeds and by the Commissioner of Land Registration of a notice of such
order or judgment without any appeal having been filed by any of such officials.

RE-ISSUANCE (Sec. 109, PD 1529)

Section 109. Notice and replacement of lost duplicate certificate.

In case of loss or theft of an owner's duplicate certificate of title, due notice

under oath shall be sent by the owner or by someone in his behalf to the
Register of Deeds of the province or city where the land lies as soon as the
loss or theft is discovered.
a sworn statement of the fact of such loss or destruction
shall contain a memorandum of the fact that it is issued in place of the lost
duplicate certificate, but shall in all respects be entitled to like faith and
credit as the original duplicate

REVERSION
> Section 101 of Public Land Act provides for a remedy whereby lands of the public
domain fraudulently awarded to the applicant may be recovered or reverted back to
its original owner, the government
> Office of Solicitor General shall represent the government in all land registration
and related proceedings and institute actions for the reversion to the government of
lands of the public domain and improvements thereon as well as lands held in
violation of the Constitution
> It is improper for the government to file an action for reversion of land titled to
defendant pursuant to a free patent where the alleged fraud consists in the fact that
said land, at the time of issuance of the free patent was no longer a part of the
public domain, having been adjudicated as private property of another person in a
previous registration case
> An action for reversion on the ground that defendant obtained patent through
fraud would also fail where the land had successively been sold by the heirs of the
patentee to third parties who are holding Torrens titles and enjoying the
presumption of good faith
> Private parties cannot challenge the validity of the patent and title when they are
not registered owners thereof nor had they been declared the owners as owners in
the cadastral proceedings whether the grant was in conformity with the law or not
is a question which the government may raise, but until it is raised by the
government and set aside, the defendant cannot question it. The legality of the
grant is a question between the grantee and the government.
PRIVATE PARTY CANNOT BRING ACTION FOR REVERSION
> If there has been any fraud or misrepresentation in obtaining the title, an action
for reversion instituted by the Solicitor General would be the proper remedy
ACTION FOR REVERSION NOT BARRED BY PRESCRIPTION
> Statute of limitations doesnt run against the State
ACTION FOR CANCELLATION OF TITLE

> Proper when a private party claims ownership of the land as private property by
virtue of a long period of possession and hence, no longer deemed a part of the
public domain which could be disposed of under the provisions of the Public Land
Act, or when the land is already covered by a previously issued certificate of title

QUIETING OF TITLE (Art. 476, NCC)

Art. 476. Whenever there is a cloud on title to real property or any interest therein,
by reason of any instrument, record, claim, encumbrance or proceeding which
is apparently valid or effective but is in truth and in fact invalid,
ineffective, voidable, or unenforceable, and may be prejudicial to said title, an
action may be brought to remove such cloud or to quiet the title.
An action may also be brought to prevent a cloud from being cast upon title to real
property or any interest therein.
TWO ACTIONS ARE BEING REFERRED TO IN THESE PROVISIONS
1.

REMEDIALaction to remove cloud or to quiet title

2.

PREVENTIVEaction to prevent a future cloud or doubt

EXISTENCE OF A CLOUD
The cloud on title exists because
1.

Of an instrument or record or claim or encumberance or proceeding

2.

Which is apparently valid or effective

3. But is in truth and in fact, invalid, ineffective, voidable or unenforceable

or extinguished or barred by extinctive prescription
4.

And may be prejudicial to the title

RIGHT OF A PROPERTY OWNER TO HAVE CLOUDS ELIMINATED

1.

That their respective rights be determined

2. Not only to place things in their proper place, to make the one who has
no rights to said immovable respect and not disturb the other
3.

But also for the benefit of both

4.
So that he who has a right would see every cloud of doubt over the property
displaced
5.
And he could afterwards without fear introduce the improvements he may
desire, to use and even to abuse the property as he deems best

REASONS FOR ALLOWING THE ACTION

1.

The prevention of litigation

2.

The protection of the true title and possession

3.

The promotion of right and justice

N.B: the nature of the action for quieting of title is an action in personam
DOES AN ACTION FOR QUIETING OF TITLE PRESCRIBE?
It depends
1.

If the plaintiff is in possession of the property, the action doesn't prescribe

2.
If the plaintiff is not in possession of the property, the action may prescribe.
The period would be either 10 or 30 years. It may also be barred by laches.
Art. 477. The plaintiff must have legal or equitable title to, or interest in the
real property which is the subject matter of the action. He need not be in
possession of said property.
NECESSARY FOR TITLE OF PLAINTIFF

Plaintiff must have either equitable or legal ownership over the property

Art. 478. There may also be an action to quiet title or remove a cloud
therefrom when the contract, instrument or other obligation has been extinguished
or has terminated, or has been barred by extinctive prescription.

Art. 479. The plaintiff must return to the defendant all benefits he may have
received from the latter, or reimburse him for expenses that may have redounded
to the plaintiff's benefit.
N.B: General rule based on equity

ADVERSE CLAIM (Sec. 70, PD 1529)

Section 70. Adverse claim. Whoever claims any part or interest in registered land
adverse to the registered owner, arising subsequent to the date of the original
registration, may, if no other provision is made in this Decree for registering the
same, make a statement in writing setting forth fully his alleged right or interest,
and how or under whom acquired, a reference to the number of the certificate of
title of the registered owner, the name of the registered owner, and a description of
the land in which the right or interest is claimed.
The statement shall be signed and sworn to, and shall state the adverse claimant's
residence, and a place at which all notices may be served upon him. This statement
shall be entitled to registration as an adverse claim on the certificate of title. The

adverse claim shall be effective for a period of thirty days from the date of
registration. After the lapse of said period, the annotation of adverse claim may be
canceled upon filing of a verified petition therefor by the party in interest: Provided,
however, that after cancellation, no second adverse claim based on the same
ground shall be registered by the same claimant.
Before the lapse of thirty days aforesaid, any party in interest may file a petition in
the Court of First Instance where the land is situated for the cancellation of the
adverse claim, and the court shall grant a speedy hearing upon the question of the
validity of such adverse claim, and shall render judgment as may be just and
equitable. If the adverse claim is adjudged to be invalid, the registration thereof
shall be ordered canceled. If, in any case, the court, after notice and hearing, shall
find that the adverse claim thus registered was frivolous, it may fine the claimant in
an amount not less than one thousand pesos nor more than five thousand pesos, in
its discretion. Before the lapse of thirty days, the claimant may withdraw his
adverse claim by filing with the Register of Deeds a sworn petition to that effect
ADVERSE CLAIM, PURPOSE
> Purpose of annotating the adverse claim on the title of the disputed land is to
apprise third persons that there is a controversy over the ownership of the land and
to preserve and protect the right of the adverse claimant during the pendency of
the controversy
> Notice to third persons that any transaction regarding the disputed land is subject
to the outcome of the dispute
> Such is registered by filing a sworn statement with the RD of the province where
the property is located, setting forth the basis of the claimed right together with
other data pertinent thereto. The registration of an adverse claim is expressly
recognized under Section 70. Where the notice of adverse claim is sufficient in law
and drawn up in accordance with existing requirements, it becomes the ministerial
duty of the RD to register the instrument without unnecessary delay

> While the act of registration is the operative act which conveys or affects the land
insofar as third persons are concerned, the subsequent sale of property covered by
a certificate of title CANNOT PREVAIL OVER AN ADVERSE CLAIM, duly sworn to and
annotated on the certificate of title previous the sale
> Section 70 is divided into two partsfirst refers to the petition of the party who
claims any part or interest in the registered land, arising subsequent to the date of
the original registration, for the registration of his adverse claim, which is a
ministerial function of the Register of Deeds absent any defect on the face of the
instrument. The second refers to the petition filed in court by a party in interest for
the cancellation of the adverse claim upon showing the same is invalid.
REGISTRATION OF ADVERSE CLAIM

> A lease over a parcel of land for a 10-year period, which could not be registered
because the owners duplicate of title wasnt surrendered, could be registered as an
adverse claim and the owner couldnt be compelled to surrender the owners
duplicate of the title to that adverse claim could be annotated thereon
> If the adverse claim turns out to be invalid, the owner could ask for its
cancellation and, if found to be frivolous or vexatious, then costs may be adjudged
against the adverse claimant.
> The claim of a person that she has hereditary rights in the land fraudulently
registered in his sisters name, because the land belonged to their mother whose
estate is pending settlement in a special proceeding, is registrable as an adverse
claim\
> Where a guardianship proceeding is pending in court, it is proper to annotate on
the title of the land in question the pendency of such a proceeding by means of a
notice of lis pendens for the purpose of alerting anyone who might wish to buy the
land that his purchase may be questioned later on. Since an adverse claim and a
notice of lis pendens have the same purpose, there would be no need of
maintaining the adverse claim. But a notice of levy cannot prevail over an existing
adverse claim inscribed in the certificate of title
> The annotation of an adverse claim is a measure designed to protect the interest
of a person over a piece of real property where the registration of such interest or
right isnt otherwise provided for by PD1529, and serves as a notice and warning to
third persons dealing with said property that someone is claiming an interest on the
same or a better right than the registered owner thereof
> FOR THE SPECIAL REMEDY OF ADVERSE CLAIM TO BE AVAILED OF, IT MUST BE
SHOWN THAT THERE IS NO OTHER PROVISION IN THE LAW FOR REGISTRATION OF
THE CLAIMANTS ALLEGED RIGHT IN THE PROPERTY.
> An adverse claim of ownership over a parcel of land registered under the Torrens
system based on prescription and adverse possession cannot be registered as an
adverse claimno title to registered land in derogation of the title of the registered
owner shall be acquired by prescription or adverse possession. Hence, the
registration of such adverse claim will serve no useful purpose and cannot validly
and legally affect the parcel of land in question.
REQUISITES OF AN ADVERSE CLAIM
1. The adverse claimant must state the following in writing
a. His alleged right or interest
b. How and under whom such alleged right or interest is acquired
c. The description of the land in which the riht or interest is claimed
d. The number of the certificate of title

2. The statement must be signed and sworn to before a notary public or other
officer authorized to administer oath
3. The claimant should state his residence or the place to which all notices may be
served upon him
REGISTRATION COURT MAY DETERMINE THE VALIDITY OF ADVERSE CLAIM
> An adverse claim may be cancelled only after the claim is adjudged invalid and
unmeritorious by the court while passing upon a case where the land involved is
subject of the interest or right being secured by the adverse claim.
ADVERSE CLAIM NOT IPSO JURE CANCELLED AFTER 30 DAYS; HEARING NECESSARY.
> Sajonas v. CA
> Register of Deeds cannot unilaterally cancel the adverse claim. There must be a
court hearing for the purpose. The reason for this is to afford the
adverse claimant an opportunity to be heard, providing a venue where the propriety
of his claimed interest can be established or revoked, all for the purpose of
determining at least the existence of any encumbrance on the title arising from
such adverse claim.

LAND CLASSIFICATIONS
CA 141 Sec. 6. The President, upon the recommendation of the Secretary of
Agriculture and Natural Resources, shall from time to time classify the lands of the
public domain into:
(a) Alienable or disposable,
(b) Timber, and
(c) Mineral lands,
and may at any time and in a like manner transfer such lands from one class to
another, for the purposes of their administration and disposition.

Sec. 8. Only those lands shall be declared open to disposition or concession which
have been officially delimited and classified and, when practicable, surveyed, and
which have not been reserved for public or quasi-public uses, nor appropriated by
the Government, nor in any manner become private property, nor those on which a
private right authorized and recognized by this Act or any other valid law may be
claimed, or which, having been reserved or appropriated, have ceased to be so.
However, the President may,
for reasons of public interest, declare lands of the public domain open to disposition
before the same have had their boundaries established or been surveyed, or may,
for the same reason, suspend their concession or disposition until they are again

declared open to concession or disposition by proclamation duly published or by Act

of the Congress.

PD 705
a) Public forest is the mass of lands of the public domain which has not been the
subject of the present system of classification for the determination of which lands
are needed for forest purposes and which are not.
b) Permanent forest or forest reserves refers to those lands of the public domain
which have been the subject of the present system of classification and declared as
not needed for forest purposes.
c) Alienable and disposable lands refer to those lands of the public domain which
have been the subject of the present system of classification and declared as not
needed for forest purposes.
d) Forest lands includes the public forest, the permanent forest or forest reserves,
and forest reservations.
e) Grazing land refers to that portion of the public domain which has been set aside,
in view of the suitability of its topography and vegetation, for the raising of
livestock.
f) Mineral lands refer to those lands of the public domain which have been classified
as such by the Secretary of Natural Resources in accordance with prescribed and
approved criteria, guidelines and procedure.
g) Forest reservations refer to forest lands which have been reserved by the
President of the Philippines for any specific purpose or purposes.
h) National park refers to a forest land reservation essentially of primitive or
wilderness character which has been withdrawn from settlement or occupancy and
set aside as such exclusively to preserve the scenery, the natural and historic
objects and the wild animals or plants therein, and to provide enjoyment of those
features in such a manner as will leave them unimpaired for future generations.