LAWYERS:

LAW OFFICES OF
Ermelyn Jane P. Celindro
Celindro, Cosgafa, Marohom & Necesito Brilla Joy Cosgafa
Rm. 101, JMC Building, Phil.-Japan Friendship Highway Elfie B. Marohom
Sasa, Davao City Janine Necesito

May 4, 2019

Ms. Maria Maria

123 Any Street, Panacan, Davao City

RE: Reclamation of ancestral property with TCT No. 12345 (now TCT No. 98765)

Dear Ms. Maria:

Thank you for meeting with me last week. In this letter, I will provide you with my legal opinion
and analysis so you can make a qualified decision regarding your legal action to reclaim the
ancestral property that you inherited from your mother. I will first restate the facts, as I know
them, to confirm their accuracy. Next, I will provide you with an explanation of the law as it
applies in your case, and lastly, give you my opinion on whether you can file for legal action to
reclaim the ancestral property.

The following is a statement of the facts as I understand them:

You and Juan were high school sweethearts and separated ways in college to pursue different
courses. You studied in Manila, while Juan studied in Cebu. Two years after your high school
graduation, you went to Cebu for a weekend with Juan and both of you decided to get married.
To get married easier and get exempted from securing a marriage license, you executed an
Affidavit of Cohabitation alleging that you cohabited for more than five (5) years and lived
exclusively together as husband and wife. You got married before a judge in Cebu, witnessed by
three court staff. In 2010, you inherited from your mother a parcel of land in Davao City. Juan
convinced you to sell the property. You and Juan fought due to your refusal and this clash resulted
to Juan boxing you. You left your apartment but came back after three (3) years and reconciled
with Juan. However, the issue on the selling of the property was never settled and you would
fight repeatedly, which would again result to Juan boxing you. You left your conjugal home after
a year of this abuse. Four (4) years after, in 2015, you went to the ancestral land which you
inherited and was surprised to discover that a family had already been residing there. You
contacted you friend working in the Registry of Deeds in Cebu and found out that Juan sold the
property to Spouses Liki. He executed a Deed of Absolute Sale in favor of Spouses Liki, where
your signature was forged in the “with my marital conformity” portion.

Our main area of focus is to prove that you falsified your Affidavit of Cohabitation, in order to
establish that your marriage with Juan was void ab initio for lack of marriage license. On the event
that the court grants the Declaration for Nullity of Marriage, this will make Juan no authority to
sell the property that you inherited. Consequently, this will make the sale of the property by Juan
to the Spouses Liki as void.

Article 34 of the Family Code states that “No license shall be necessary for the marriage of a man
and a woman who have lived together as husband and wife for at least five years and without
any legal impediment to marry each other. The contracting parties shall state the foregoing facts
in an affidavit before any person authorized by law to administer oaths. The solemnizing officer
shall also state under oath that he ascertained the qualifications of the contracting parties are
found no legal impediment to the marriage.”

The minimum requisite of five years of cohabitation is an indispensability expressly stated by the
law for a marriage celebrated under Article 34 to be valid. It is not just a mere directory
requirement, but it partakes a mandatory characteristic. Jurisprudence has established the rule

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THE FIRM NAME IS FOR THEPURPOSE OF THIS EXAM ONLY

 LAWYERS:
LAW OFFICES OF
Ermelyn Jane P. Celindro
Celindro, Cosgafa, Marohom & Necesito Brilla Joy Cosgafa
Rm. 101, JMC Building, Phil.-Japan Friendship Highway Elfie B. Marohom
Sasa, Davao City Janine Necesito

that the five-year cohabitation period under Article 76 of the Civil Code (now Article 34 of the
Family Code) means a five-year period computed back from the time of the celebration of
marriage and refers to a period of legal union had it not been for the absence of marriage.

You provided that you and Juan falsified your Affidavit of Cohabitation by declaring that you have
been living together exclusively as husband and wife for more than five (5) years, when in fact,
you only lived together from the time you visited him in Cebu and immediately decided to get
married.

In Republic vs. Dayot, the Supreme Court ruled that the falsity of an affidavit of marital
cohabitation, where the parties truthfully have fallen short of the minimum five-year
requuirement, effectively renders the marriage void ab initio for lack of marriage license. In the
same case the Court also qualified that:

“xxx the falsity of the allegation in the sworn affidavit relating to the period of Jose’s and Felisas’
cohabitation, which would have qualified their marriage as an exception to the requirement for
a marriage license, cannot be mere irregularity, for it refers to a quintessential fact that the law
precisely required to be deposed and attested to by the parties under oath.xx”

Based on the foregoing details, my opinion is that you may file for a petition for declaration of
absolute nullity of marriage on the ground of lack of marriage license at the time of the
celebration of marriage. The falsification of the affidavit does not excuse you from the
requirement of marriage of license. It would render you marriage with Juan as void. Furthermore,
in void marriages in your particular situation, the property relations of the parties during the
period of cohabitation is governed by Article 147 of the Family Code, which provides that the
property regime to be followed is Co-ownership.

Article 147 states that “When a man and a woman who are capacitated to marry each other, live
exclusively with each other as husband and wife without the benefit of marriage or under a void
marriage, their wages and salaries shall be owned by them in equal shares and the property
acquired by both of them through their work or industry shall be governed by the rules on co-
ownership.

In the absence of proof to the contrary, properties acquired while they lived together shall be
presumed to have been obtained by their joint efforts, work or industry, and shall be owned by
them in equal shares. For purposes of this Article, a party who did not participate in the acquisition
by the other party of any property shall be deemed to have contributed jointly in the acquisition
thereof if the former's efforts consisted in the care and maintenance of the family and of the
household.

xxx.”

The above provision applies when a man and a woman, who are legally capacitated and not
barred by any impediment to contract marriage, lived exclusively together as husband and wife
under a void marriage, for reasons like the absence of a marriage license. The property relation
shall be governed by applicable provisions of the Civile Code on Co-ownership.

Under this property regime, properties acquired by both parties during their union through their
work and industry shall be governed by the rules on equal share of co-ownership and are prima
facie presumed to have been obtained through their joint efforts.

Co-ownership applies to properties, wages and salaries which have been acquired and earned by
the parties during their union. On the other hand, properties, wages and salaries which have

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THE FIRM NAME IS FOR THEPURPOSE OF THIS EXAM ONLY

 LAWYERS:
LAW OFFICES OF
Ermelyn Jane P. Celindro
Celindro, Cosgafa, Marohom & Necesito Brilla Joy Cosgafa
Rm. 101, JMC Building, Phil.-Japan Friendship Highway Elfie B. Marohom
Sasa, Davao City Janine Necesito

been acquired and earned by the parties before the union, and those which have been donated
or inherited by each of the parties shall not be governed under Co-ownership.

Based on the law provided above, it is my opinion that the property you inherited from your
mother is not one which Juan can dispose. This makes Juan’s sale of the subject property as null
and void. Upon acquiring the declaration of nullity of marriage, you may file for legal action to
reclaim your inherited property from Spouses Liki.

The success of your case relies on persuading the jury that you falsified your affidavit of
cohabitation. Proving that defense would render your marriage void ab initio. Following this, the
property regime of your void marriage would be governed by Co-ownership, which would not
grant Juan the authority to sell the subject property, and thus, make the Deed of Absolute Sale
to Spouses Liki as null and void. I will work with you and for you in creating a strong case in your
favor if you so choose.

Please do not hesitate to call me with any questions you may have. Also, if there are any
misstatements of fact in this letter it is important that you contact me when possible. Again, it
was a pleasure meeting you and I look forward to your call.

Most Sincerely,

Ermelyn Jane P. Celindro

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