CHOICE OF LAW IN WILLS, SUCCESSION,

AND ADMINISTRATION OF ESTATES

 A Will is an act whereby a person is
permitted with the formalities prescribed
by law , to determine to a certain extent
the distribution of his estate to take effect
after his death
In a Conflict of Laws perspective, a will is
an involuntary transfer of property,
because it comes into effect only upon the
death of the owner. Death is involuntary
thus, making a will is an involuntary
transfer of property.
 Extrinsic Validity of Wills
A Filipino National making a will abroad may comply with:
> lex nationalii (Philippine Law)
> lex loci celebrationis (law of the country where the will was executed)
 Article 17

The forms and solemnities of contracts, wills, and other public instruments shall be
governed by the laws of the country in which they are executed
When the acts referred to are executed before the diplomatic or consular officials of the Republic of the Philippines in a foreign country, the solemnities established by Philippine Laws shall be observed in their execution
> Prohibitive laws concerning persons, their acts or property, and those which
have for their public order, public policy, and good customs shall not be
rendered ineffective by laws or judgments promulgated, or by determinations or
conventions agreed in a foreign country.
 Article 815
When a Filipino is in a foreign country, he is authorized to make a will in any of the forms established
by the law of the country in which he may be. Such will may be probated in the Philippines.

> Aliens making wills outside the Philippines are permitted to follow:
* lex nationalii * lex domicilii *lex loci celebrationis
 Article 816

The will of an alien who is abroad produces effect in the Philippines if made with
the formalities prescribed by the law of the place in which he resides, or
according to the formalities observed in his country, or in conformity with those
which this code prescribes.
 Article 817

A will made in the Philippines by a citizen or subject of another country, which is executed
in accordance with the law of the country of which he is a citizen or subject, and which
might be proved and allowed by the law of his own country, shall have the same effect
as if executed according to the laws of the Philippines.
 In re Estate of Johnson (1918)
FACTS: Ebba Ingeborg sought to annul the probate of the will of his father Emil
Johnson, because the resulting intestacy would be favorable to her as a sole heir.
She stresses that Section 636 of the Code Of Civil Procedure should not govern
the will executed by her father in the US, because the word “state” in the body of
the section is not capitalized (thus not referring to a State in the US).
ISSUE: Should the petition for intestacy be granted?
HELD: This interpretation is erroneous because the full phrase
“another state or country”, means that the section refers to either
a State in the US or another country. The admission of the will to
probate by the CFI of Manila under Section 636 was therefore
correct. Although the CFI Of Manila most likely erred in taking
judicial notice of Illinois law when it promulgated that the will was
executed in conformity with the laws of Illinois, Ebba is now
precluded to raise this issue because the petition to annul the
probate did not allege the difference between Philippine Law and
Illinois law.