BULATE NOTES

Property
Chapter 2 Accession Articles 440-475

RIGHT OF ACCESSION
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Art. 440. The ownership of property
gives the right by accession to
everything
which
is
produced
thereby, or which is incorporated or
attached thereto, either naturally or
artificially.
Accession Defined

the right of a property owner to

everything which is:

1. produced
thereby
(accession
discreta);
2. or which is incorporated or
attached thereto, either naturally
or artificially (accession continua or
accession non-interrumpida), which
in turn is divided into:
a. natural
accession
(accession natural);
b. artificial
accession
(accession
artificial
or
accession industrial).

Because of the word artificially, it

is understood that IMPROVEMENTS
made on the property are included
within the scope of accession.

Other Definitions of Accession

According to Sanchez Roman
the right of an owner of a thing to
the products of said thing as well
as to whatever is inseparably
attached thereto as an accessory
According to Stimsons Law Dictionary
that by which property is given to a
person in addition to what said
person already possesses, said
additional property being the result
of a natural increase, like land, by
deposit of a river; or houses, when
built on ones own land; or the
young of animals.

According to Del Viso

the right which ownership of
property gives over everything
which the same produces, or which
is attached or incorporated thereto,
naturally or artificially.
Classification of Accession
1. Accession Discreta (To the Fruits)
a. natural fruits
b. industrial fruits
c. civil fruits
2. Accession Continua (Attachment or
Incorporation)
I.
With reference to real property
a. accession industrial
1)
building
2)
planting
3)
sowing
b. accession natural
1)
alluvium
2)
avulsion
3)
change
of
course of rivers
4)
formation of
islands
II.
With
respect
to
personal
property
a. adjunction
or
conjunction
1) inclusion
(engraftment)
2) soldadura
(attachment)
3) tejido (weaving)
4) pintura
(painting)
5) escritura
(writing)
b. mixture (confusion
liquids; commixtion
solids)
c. specification
Is Accession a Mode of Acquiring
Ownership?

the
different
modes
are
enumerated in Book III of Civil Code
are:

BULATE NOTES
Property
Chapter 2 Accession Articles 440-475
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.

occupation
intellectual creation
law
donation
succession
tradition, as a consequence of
certain contracts
g. prescription

accession is not one of those listed

therein
It is safe to conclude that accession
is not a mode of acquiring
ownership.
Reason: accession presupposes a
previously existing ownership by
the owner over the principal
accession is a right implicitly
included in ownership, without
which it will have no basis or
existence
it is one of the attributes or
characteristics which will make up
the concept of dominion or
ownership
We can refer to acquisition by
accession as acquisition by LAW
(for the law itself gives the right).

Reason Behind Accession

a. for accession discreta (to the fruits)
justice, pure and simple, for
one who owns a thing
should justly enjoy its fruits
b. for accession continua (attachment
or incorporation)
economic convenience is
better attained in a state of
single ownership than in a
co-ownership
natural justice demands
that the owner of the
principal or more important
thing should also own the
accessory
Right
to
Automatic

Accession

Generally

In general, the right to accession is

automatic (ipso jure), requiring no
prior act on the part of the owner
of the principal.
EXAMPLE: in the case of landowner
over whose land a river now flows.
He is ipso facto the owner of the
abandoned river bed in proportion
to the area he has lost.
Section 1. RIGHT OF ACCESSION
WITH
RESPECT TO WHAT IS PRODUCED BY
PROPERTY (ACCESSION DISCRETA)
Art. 441. To the owner belongs:
1) The natural fruits;
2) The industrial fruits;
3) The civil fruits.
Accession Discreta (Right to the
Fruits)
This Article refers to accession
discreta which is defined as the
right to the ownership of fruits
produced by our property.
Instances When Owner of Land Does
Not Own the Fruits
a. possessor in good faith of the land
(He owns the fruits already
received)
b. usufructuary
c. lessee gets the fruits of the land
(Of course, the owner gets the civil
fruits in the form of rentals).
d. In the contract of antichresis, the
antichretic creditor gets the fruits,
although of course, said fruits
should be applied first, to the
interest, if any is owing, and then
to the principal amount of the loan.
Art. 442. Natural fruits are the
spontaneous products of the soil, and
the young and other products of
animals.

BULATE NOTES
Property
Chapter 2 Accession Articles 440-475
Industrial fruits
are
those
produced by lands of any kind
through cultivation or labor.
Civil fruits are the rents of
buildings, the price of leases of lands
and other property and the amount of
perpetual or life annuities or other
similar income.
Technical Meaning of Fruits

there can be no doubt as to their

meaning
if a final judgment speaks only of
natural and civil fruits, it is
understood that industrial fruits are
NOT included

Natural Fruits
There are two kinds of natural fruits:
1. the spontaneous products of the
soil (that is, human labor does not
intervene).
Examples: herbs, common grass
2. the young and other products of
animals.
Examples: chicks and chicken eggs.
Industrial Fruits
they are those produced by lands
of any kind thru cultivation or
labor.
Examples:
a. lanzones and bananas
b. palay and corn
c. zacate (cultivated as food
for horses)
d. all
kinds
of
cultivated
vegetables, since these are
no doubt also produced by
the land thru human labor
(but not canned goods or
manufactured products).
Question:
Are
the
cultivated
trees
in
themselves to be considered fruits?

Answer:
Strictly, they are not fruits in the
juridical sense for they are really
immovables as long as they are
still attached to the land, which
may themselves produce fruits.
o There is no doubt we may
consider said trees as fruits
when they are expressly
cultivated or exploited to
carry on an industry
Perennial Crops
those
growing
each season
without need
of
replanting,
like oranges
and apples
referred
to
as
natural
fruits

Annual Crops
those which
have to be
planted each
year,
like
cereals and
grains
called
industrial
fruits

Young of Animals
Whether
brought
about
by
scientific means or not, it would
seem that the young of animals
should be considered as natural
fruits
Reason: the law makes no
distinction
Meaning of Other Products of
Animals
refers to such things as chicken
eggs, or horse manure, or milk, or
wool.
BAR Question (Re: Offspring of
Animals)
To whom does the offspring of
animals belong when the male and
female belong to different owners?
o Answer: under the Partidas,
the owner of the female was
considered also the owner
of the young, unless there is

BULATE NOTES
Property
Chapter 2 Accession Articles 440-475

a
contrary
custom
or
speculation
in one case it was held that
the legal presumption, in
the absence of proof to the
contrary, is that the calf, as
well as its mother belong to
the owner of the latter, by
the right of accretion.
may be applied under the
Codes because such rule
merely
continues
the
ownership which the owner
of the female possessed,
when the young was still in
the womb of the mother
also in accord with the
maxim
pratus
sequitor
ventrem
(the
offspring
follows the dam or
mother)
This maxim is based on two
good reasons:
1. oftentimes, it is not
known who the
male is.
2. during
the
pregnancy of the
female, its owner is
greatly
burdened
by
the
consequential
expenses
and
virtual uselessness
of the animal, and
it is only fair that
when the young is
born, the owner
should gain, or at
least recover his
loss

Civil Fruits
Consist of:
a) rent of buildings;
b) price of leases (rentals) of lands
and other property (even if
personal property);
c) the amount of perpetual or life
annuities or other similar income

(but not a bonus granted as a

reward or as a compensation to a
person who mortgaged and thus
risks his land to secure anothers
indebtedness).

a dividend, whether in the form of

cash or stock, is income or fruits,
because it is declared out of the
profits of a corporation, and not out
of the capital

Art. 443. He who receives the

fruits has the obligation to pay the
expenses made by a third person in
their production, gathering, and
preservation.
Duty of Recipient of Fruits
Reimburse Necessary Expenses

to

Reason:
were it not for the said
necessary
cultivation
expenses, there would not
be any fruits grown at all, or
left or preserved
merely in consonance with
the principle that no one
may enrich himself unjustly
at anothers expense
Article 443
applies when
the
crops
have already
been
gathered
accession
continua
cannot apply

Article 449
applies only
if the crops
have not yet
been
gathered
the
landowner
gets
the
fruits
without
indemnity by
the principle
of accession
continua

BULATE NOTES
Property
Chapter 2 Accession Articles 440-475
Non-Applicability of Article When
Planter is in Good Faith
Art. 443 does not apply when the
planter is in good faith
Reason: he is entitled to the fruits
already received, hence, there is no
necessity of reimbursing him
Characteristic
of
the
Expenses
Referred to in Art. 443
a) They must have been used for
production,
gathering,
or
preservation,
not
for
the
improvement of the property. (KEY:
PGP)
b) They must have been necessary,
and not luxurious or excessive.
Query: Suppose the expenses exceed the
value of the fruits (as when, for example,
typhoons have damaged the crops) must
there still be a reimbursement for the
expenses?
Answer: Yes, if the owner insists on being
entitled to the fruits.
Reason:
a. the law makes no exception or
distinction;
b. the same thing would have
happened had the owner been also
the planter;
c. he who gets expected advantages
must be prepared to shoulder
losses.

deemed
manifest
(existing)
the moment
their
seedlings
appear from
the ground,
although the
grains have
not
yet
actually
appeared.
Examples: cereals,
grains, rice, corn,
sugar

Animals

Two Kinds
Perennial)
Annual Crops

of

Crops

(Annual

and

Perennial Crops

young of animals are already

considered existing even if still in
the maternal womb
they should be considered existing
only at the commencement of the
maximum
ordinary
period
of
gestation

Civil Fruits

if the fruits had not yet been

gathered, no indemnity is required

Art. 444. Only such as are

manifest or born are considered as
natural or industrial fruits.
With respect to animals, it is
sufficient that they are in the womb
of the mother, although unborn.

deemed
to
exist
only
when
they
actually
appear
on
the trees.
Examples:
cereals, grains, rice,
corn, sugar

accrue daily
hence,
considered
in
the
category of
personal
property
can be prorated

Natural
and
Industrial Fruits
while
still
growing, are
real property
cannot

Section 2. RIGHT OF ACCESSION

WITH
RESPECT
TO
IMMOVABLE
PROPERTY
Art. 445. Whatever is built,
planted or sown on the land of
another and the improvements or
repairs made thereon, belong to the

BULATE NOTES
Property
Chapter 2 Accession Articles 440-475
owner of the land, subject to the
provisions of the following articles.
Accession
Industrial
Planting, Sowing)

(Building,

deals with accession continua;

more specifically with accession
industrial. (BUILDING, PLANTING,
SOWING)
Sowing
each deposit
of seed gives
rise merely
to a single
crop
or
harvest

Planting
more or less
permanent
trunks
or
trees
are
produced,
which in turn
produce
fruits
themselves
without
a
replanting,
crops
will
continue to
grow every
season

Art. 445 can be applied only if the

owner of the land is known.
o If he be unknown, no
decision on the ownership of
the things planted, built or
sown, can be made.

accessory
would
result
in
substantial injury to either
c. He who is in good faith may be
held responsible but he should not
be penalized.
d. He who is in bad faith may be
penalized.
e. No one should enrich himself
unjustly at the expense of another.
f. Bad faith of one party neutralizes
the bad faith of the other so both
should be considered in good faith.
One Exception to the General Rule
Enunciated in Art. 445 Whereby the
Owner of the Land is also the Owner
of Whatever Is Built, Planted, or
Sown Thereon
Under Art. 120 of the Family Code
In either case, the ownership of the entire
property shall be vested upon the
reimbursement, which shall be made at
the time of the liquidation of the conjugal
partnership.
1. It is important to Note which is
Bigger or Greater
a. the value of the property just
before the improvement was
made; or
b. its value after the improvement
including the cost
2. Rules

Basic
Principles
of
Accession
Continua (Accession Industrial)
a. To the owner of the principal (the
land for example) must belong also
the accessions, in accordance with
the principle that the accessory
follows the principal (accesio
cedit principali).
b. The union or incorporation must,
with
certain
exceptions,
be
effected in such a manner that to
separate the principal from the

If (a) is greater, the whole thing

belongs to the owner-spouse,
without
prejudice
to
reimbursement of the conjugal
partnership.
If (b) is greater, the whole thing
belongs to the conjugal partnership
but the owner-spouse must be
reimbursed.

Meaning of Building in Art. 445

refers to all kinds of constructions
with a roof, and used as residence,
for office, or social meetings, etc

BULATE NOTES
Property
Chapter 2 Accession Articles 440-475
Some
Latin
Legal
Maxims
in
Connection with Accession Industrial
Accessorium non ducit sed sequitor suum
principali.
The accessory does not lead but
follows its principal. Or:
If the principal is given, the
accessory is also given; but if the
accessory is given, this does not
necessarily mean that the principal
is also given.

shall pay their value; and, if he acted

in bad faith, he shall also be obliged
to the reparation of damages. The
owner of the materials shall have the
right to remove them only in case he
can do so without injury to the work
constructed, or without the plantings,
constructions
or
works
being
destroyed. However, if the landowner
acted in bad faith, the owner of the
materials may remove them in any
event, with a right to be indemnified
for damages.

Accessorium sequitor naturam rei cui

accedit.
The accessory follows the nature of
that to which it relates.

Rules When Landowner Constructs or

Plants on His Land With the Materials
of Another

Aedifi catum solo, solo cedit.

What is built upon the land goes
with it; or the land is the principal,
and whatever is built on it becomes
the accessory.

This Article treats of the rights and

obligations of:
a. the owner of the land who uses the
materials of another;
b. the owner of the materials.

Art. 446. All works, sowing, and

planting are presumed made by the
owner and at his expense, unless the
contrary is proved.

Rights and Obligations of the Owner

of the Land Who Uses the Materials
of Another

Presumption that Works, Sowing and

Planting
Were
Made
by
the
Landowner and at His Expense

The two disputable (juris tantum)

presumptions under this Article
are:

a) The works, sowing, and planting

were made by the owner.
b) They were made at the owners
expense.

The two presumptions in this

Article are rules of evidence or of
substantive law, not mere rules of
procedural law.

Art. 447. The owner of the land who

makes thereon, personally or through
another, plantings, constructions or
works with the materials of another,

If the landowner acted in good faith

He becomes the owner of the
materials but he must pay for their
value.
EXCEPTION: when they can be
removed without destruction to the
work made or to the plants.
o In such a case, the owner of
the materials can remove
them.
If the landowner is in bad faith
He becomes the owner of the
materials but he must pay:
1. their value; and
2. damages.
EXCEPTION: when the owner of the
materials decides to remove them
whether or not destruction would be
caused.

BULATE NOTES
Property
Chapter 2 Accession Articles 440-475
o

In this case, the materials

would still belong to the
owner of said materials,
who in addition will still be
entitled to damages

Rights and Obligations of the Owner

of the Materials
If the landowner acted in good faith

The owner of the materials is

entitled to reimbursement
o Provided
he
does
not
remove them
He is entitled to removal
o Provided
no
substantial
injury is caused

If the landowner acted in bad faith

The owner of the materials is
entitled to the ABSOLUTE right of
removal and damages
o whether or not substantial
injury is caused
He is entitled to reimbursement
and damages
o in case he chooses not to
remove
Query
The
law
says:
Pay
their
value
(reimbursement). Suppose the landowner
wants to return the materials instead of
reimbursing their value, may this be done
even without the consent of the former
owner of the materials?
Answers: It depends:
1. If no damage has been made to the
materials, or they have not been
transformed as a result of the
construction they may be
returned (of course,
at the
landowners expense).
2. If damage has been made or there
has been a transformation, they
cannot be returned anymore.
o Note that the law does not
grant this option to the
landowner

Meaning of Bad Faith and Good Faith

in Connection with Art. 447
Good Faith
if he did not
know that he
had no right
to such land
or materials
if he did not
know
that
another was
using
his
materials; or
granting that
he did know,
if
he
informed the
user of the
ownership
thereof and
made
the
necessary
prohibition.

Bad Faith
if he makes
use of the
land
or
materials
which
he
knows
belong
to
another
if he allows
another
to
use
the
materials
without
informing
him of the
ownership
thereof

Rule When Both Parties are in Bad

Faith

Consider them in good faith

Rule When Landowner is in Good

Faith But Owner of Materials is in Bad
Faith
There is no provision of the law on
this point, but it would seem that
the landowner would not only be
exempted from reimbursement, but
he would also be entitled to
consequential damages
o as when for instance, the
materials are of an inferior
quality
the owner of the materials would
lose all rights to them, such as the
right of removal, regardless of
whether or not substantial injury
would be caused

BULATE NOTES
Property
Chapter 2 Accession Articles 440-475

Presumption of Good Faith

Good faith is always presumed, and
upon him who alleges bad faith
rests the burden of proof
Art. 448. The owner of the land on
which anything has been built, sown
or planted in good faith, shall have
the right to appropriate as his own
the works, sowing or planting, after
payment of the indemnity provided
for in articles 546 and 548, or to
oblige the one who built or planted to
pay the price of the land, and the one
who
sowed,
the
proper
rent.
However, the builder or planter
cannot be obliged to buy the land if
its value is considerably more than
that of the building or trees. In such
case, he shall pay reasonable rent, if
the owner of the land does not
choose to appropriate the building or
trees after proper indemnity. The
parties shall agree upon the terms of
the
lease
and
in
case
of
disagreement, the court shall fix the
terms thereof.

Art. 448 applies only when the

builder, planter or sower believes
he has the right to so build, plant
or sow because he thinks he owns
the land or believes himself to have
a claim of title

Rule When On the Land of a Person in

Good Faith, Another Builds, Sows, or
Plants in Bad Faith
Example:
On Os land, B built in good faith a house.
O is in good faith. What are Os rights?
ANS.: O is entitled to an option. He is
therefore allowed:
a. to appropriate for himself the
house upon payment of the proper
indemnity;
b. or to compel the builder B to buy
the land upon which the house has
been built, unless the value of the

land be considerably more than the

value of the house

It is the owner of the land who has

the choice or option, not the
builder. Hence, the builder cannot
compel the owner of the land to
sell such land to him
the right of the builder in good faith
is the right to reimbursement for
the improvements
The option granted to the
landowner is not absolute, as when
it is impractical for the landowner
to exercise the first alternative

Why Option Is Given to the

Landowner and Not to the Planter or
Builder
It is the owner of the land who is allowed
to exercise the option because:
a. his right is older;
b. and because, by the principle of
accession, he is entitled to the
ownership of the accessory thing
The Indemnities to be Given
1. Necessary Expenses.
o made for the preservation of
the thing or
o those without which the
thing would deteriorate or
be lost
o such as those incurred for
cultivation, production,
and upkeep.
o include necessary repairs
2. Useful Expenses
o those that augment the
income of the thing upon
which they are spent
o or add value to the property
but do not include the value
of farming implements or
work animals which do not
remain on the land
3. Luxurious Expenses if he desires
to appropriate them for himself.

BULATE NOTES
Property
Chapter 2 Accession Articles 440-475
Rights of Landowner Before He Makes
the Choice