LAND TITLES AND DEEDS REVIEWER
AUSL 1st Sem., SY 2013-2014
Atty. Josephine R. Santiago Saturday 1-3 Set B
I.INTRODUCTION / OVERVIEW
LAND TITLE is the evidence of the owner’s right or extent of interest, by which he can maintain control and as a rule
assert right to exclusive possession and enjoyment of property.
DEED is the instrument in writing by which any real estate or interest therein is created, alienated, mortgaged, or
assigned, or by which title to any real estate may be affected in law or equity.
LAND REGISTRATION is a judicial or administrative proceeding whereby a person’s claim over a particular land is
determined and confirmed or recognized so that such land and the ownership thereof may be recorded in a public
registry.
TORRENS SYSTEM is a system for registration of land under which, upon the landowner’s application, the court may,
after appropriate proceedings, direct the issuance of a certificate of title.
A.History of Land Laws
i. Lynch Article
Spanish Era
1. The indigenous concept of ownership by occupation and cultivation was recognized early on by the Laws of
the Indies which governed Spanish possessions in the Philippines and elsewhere.
2. Royal Decree stated that justified long and continuous possession by the natives qualified them for title to
their cultivated land. Where such possessors shall not be able to produce title deeds, it shall be sufficient if they
shall show ancient possessions as a valid title.
3. Royal Cedula Circular declared: the will of the Crown as expressed in various instructions, royal edicts,
orders and decrees, that the distribution of lands to conquistadores discoverers, and settlers should never
prejudice the natives and their and-holdings.
4. The Spanish Mortgage Law of 1893 provided for the systematic registration of land titles and deeds as well as
for possessory claims. Under its provisions owners who lack recorded title of ownership could have their
interests registered during possessory information proceeding before informacion posesoria to qualified
applicants. The titulo was merely a record of possession. It could be converted into a record of ownership,
however, twenty years (later reduced to ten years) after its date of issue, if certain conditions were met.
5. The Maura Law of 1894 was partly an amendment of the Mortgage Law as well as the Laws of the Indies, as
already amended by previous orders and decrees. This was the last Spanish land law promulgated in the
Philippines. It required the adjustment or registration of all agricultural lands, otherwise the lands shall revert to
the state.
6. Under the Treaty of Paris of December 10, 1998, Spain ceded to the government of the United States all
rights, interests and claims over the national territory of the Philippines Islands. However, the Treaty was explicit
that the relinquishment and cession cannot in any respect impair the property rights which by law belong to
peaceful possession.
Separate Opinion of J. PUNO in Cruz v. Secretary 347 SCRA 128
A. How did Spain acquire the Philippines?
The Philippines passed to Spain by virtue of discovery and conquest. Consequently, all lands became the exclusive
patrimony and dominion of the Spanish Crown. The Spanish Government took charge of distributing the lands by issuing
royal grants and concessions to Spaniards, both military and civilian.
Private land titles could only be acquired from the government either by purchase or by the various modes of land
grants from the Crown.
Separate Opinion of J. KAPUNAN in Cruz v. Secretary 347 SCRA 128
A. How did Spain acquire the Philippines?
When Spain acquired sovereignty over the Philippines by virtue of its discovery and occupation thereof in the
16th century and the Treaty of Tordesillas of 1494 which it entered into with Portugal, the continents of Asia, the
Americas and Africa were considered as terra nullius although already populated by other people.
In the Treaty of Tordesillas, the world was divided between Spain and Portugal, with the former having exclusive power
to claim all lands and territories west of the Atlantic Ocean demarcation line.
The discovery and occupation by the European States, who were then considered as the only members of the
International Community of civilized nations, of lands in the said continents were deemed sufficient to create title under
International Law.
ii. Land Laws Reference: Atty. Agcaoili book
1) Public Land Act
1.Act No. 926 – the first Public Land Act passed in pursuance of the provisions of the Philippine Bill of 1902.
The law governed the disposition of lands of the public domain. The Public Land Act operated on the assumption
that title to public lands in the Philippine Islands remained in the government. And that the government’s title to
public land sprung from the Treaty of Paris and other subsequent treaties between Spain and the United States.
The term public land referred to all lands of the public domain whose title still remained in the government and
are thrown open to private appropriation and settlement and excluded the patrimonial property of the
government and the friar lands.
2.Act No. 2874 the second Public Land Act passed under the Jones Law. It was more comprehensive in scope
but limited the exploitation of agricultural lands to Filipinos and Americans and citizens of other countries which
gave Filipinos the same privileges.
3.CA No. 141 amended the second Public Land Act after the passage of the 1935 Constitution. The present
Public Land Act, which is essentially the same as Act No. 2874. The main difference between the two relates to
the transitory provision on the rights of American citizens and corporations during the Commonwealth period at
par with Filipino citizen and corporations. CA No. 141, approved November 7, 1936, applies to lands of the
public domain which have been declared open to disposition or concession and officially delimited and
classified. It contains provisions on the different modes of government grant, e.g., homestead, sale, free patent,
and reservations for public and semi-public purpose.
2)Land Registration Act (Act No. 496)
1.The original Land Registration Act (Act No. 496) was approved on November 6, 1902, but it became effective
on January 1, 1903.
2.It established the Torrens system of registration in the country.
3.It created a court called the Court of Land Registration which had exclusive jurisdiction over all applications
for registration, with power to hear and determine all questions arising upon such applications.
4.The sole purpose of the law was to bring land titles in the Philippines under one comprehensive and
harmonious system, the cardinal features of which are indefeasibility of title and the intervention of the State as
a prerequisite to the creation and transfer of titles and interests, with the resultant increase in the use of land as
a business asset by reason of the greater certainty and security of title.
5.Registration under the system did not create a title. It simply confirmed a title already created and vested.
3)Cadastral Act (Act No. 2259)
1.The cadastral system of registration took effect with the enactment on February 11, 1913 of Act No. 2259.
When, in the opinion of the President, the public interest requires that title to any lands be settled and
adjudicated, he shall order the Director of Lands to make a survey thereof, with notice to all persons claiming an
interest therein.
2.Thereafter, the Director of Lands, represented by the Solicitor General, shall institute registration proceedings
by filing a petition in the proper court against the holders, claimants, possessors or occupants of such lands,
stating that the public interest requires that the titles to such lands be settled and adjudicated.
3.Cadastral proceeding is a proceeding in rem, hence, generally binding upon the whole world.
4) Property Registration Decree (PD No. 1529)
1. On June 11, 1978, PD No. 1529, otherwise known as the Property Registration Decree, was approved. The
Decree was issued to update the Land Registration Act and to codify the various laws relative to registration of
property and to facilitate effective implementation of said laws. It codified and incorporated the following laws
related to property registration:
a. Act 496, The Land Registration Act
b. CA No. 141, The Public Land Act
c. Act 2259, The Cadastral Act
d. Act 3344, System of Registration for Unregistered Lands
e. Act No. 1508, as amended, The Chattel Mortgage Law
f. Republic Act No. 26, Reconstitution of Original Certificates of Title
g. PD 27, Emancipation Patents, Land Reform Law
2. It supersedes all other laws relative to registration of property.
3. Judicial proceedings under the Property Registration Decree, like the old Land Registration Act, are in rem,
and are based on the generally accepted principles underlying the Torrens system.
4. Jurisdiction over the res is acquired by giving the public notice of initial hearing by means of
(a) publication, (b) mailing and
(c) notice.
5. The Decree created the Land Registration Commission, now renamed Land Registration Authority, as the
central repository of records relative to original registration, including subdivision and consolidation plans of
titled lands.
B. The Torrens System
i. Alba v. Dela Cruz, 17 Phil 49 (1910)
The application for the registration is to be in writing, signed and sworn to by the applicant, or by some person duly
authorized in his behalf. It is to contain, among other things, the names and addresses of all occupants of land and of all
adjoining owners, if known.
Indeed, the Land Registration Act requires that all occupants be named in the petition and given notice by registered
mail. However, notice by publication to all whom it may concern is considered a sufficient notice.
Under the Land Registration Act, any petition to reopen a case after a land registration decree had been rendered
cannot lie on account of the absence, infancy, or other disability of any person affected thereby. It is only when said
decree was obtained by fraud that said petition will prosper.
ii. Separate Opinion of J. PUNO in Cruz v. Secretary, 347 SCRA 128
Grants of public land were brought under the operation of the Torrens System under Act 496, or the Land Registration
Law of 1903. Enacted by the Philippine Commission, Act 496 placed all public and private lands in the Philippines under
the Torrens System.
The Torrens System requires that the Government issue an official certificate of title attesting to the fact that the person
named is the owner of the property described therein; subject to such liens and encumbrances as thereon noted or the
law warrants or reserves.
The certificate of title is indefeasible and imprescriptible and all claims to the parcel of land are quieted upon issuance of
said certificate. This system highly facilitates land conveyance and negotiation. Its object is to do away with the delay,
uncertainty, and expense of the old conveyancing system.
Generally, by Torrens Systems are meant those systems of registration of transactions with interest in land whose
declared object is, under governmental authority, to establish and certify to the ownership of an absolute and
indefeasible title to realty, and to simplify its transfer.
iii. Legarda v. Saleeby, 31 Phil 590 (1915)
The real purpose of the Torrens System is to quiet title to land; to put a stop forever to any question of the legality of the
title, except claims which were noted at the time of registration, in the certificate, or which may arise subsequent
thereto.
That being the purpose of the law, it would seem that once a title is registered the owner may rest secure, without the
necessity of waiting in the portals of the court, or sitting in the œmirador de su casa, to avoid the possibility of losing his
land.
The registration under the Torrens System, does not give the owner any better title than he had. The registration of a
particular parcel of land is a bar to future litigation over the same between the same parties. It is a notice to the world
and no one can plead ignorance of the registration.
Purposes:
1) To quiet title to the land and to stop forever any question as to the legality of said title.
2) To relieve the land of unknown claims.
3) To guarantee the integrity of land titles and to protect their indefeasibility once the claim of ownership is
established and recognized.
4) To give every registered owner complete peace of mind.
5) To issue a certificate of title to the owner which shall be the best evidence of his ownership of the land.
6) To avoid conflicts of title in and to real estate and to facilitate transactions.
iv. D.B.T. Mar-Bay Construction, Inc. v. Panes, 594 SCRA 578 (2009)
While the Torrens system is not a mode of acquiring title, but merely a system of registration of titles to lands, justice
and equity demand that the titleholder should not be made to bear the unfavorable effect of the mistake or negligence
of the State's agents, in the absence of proof of his complicity in a fraud or of manifest damage to third persons.
The real purpose of the Torrens system is to quiet title to land and put a stop forever to any question as to the legality of
the title, except claims that were noted in the certificate at the time of the registration or that may arise subsequent
thereto. Otherwise, the integrity of the Torrens system would forever be sullied by the ineptitude and inefficiency of
land registration officials, who are ordinarily presumed to have regularly performed their duties.
Thus, where innocent third persons, relying on the correctness of the certificate of title thus issued, acquire rights over
the property, the court cannot disregard those rights and order the cancellation of the certificate. The effect of such
outright cancellation will be to impair public confidence in the certificate of title.
The sanctity of the Torrens system must be preserved; otherwise, everyone dealing with the property registered under
the system will have to inquire in every instance on whether the title had been regularly or irregularly issued, contrary to
the evident purpose of the law. Every person dealing with the registered land may safely rely on the correctness of the
certificate of title issued therefor, and the law will in no way oblige him to go behind the certificate to determine the
condition of the property.
v. NOTES TORRENS SYSTEM:
1) Torrens system under Act No. 496, or the Land Registration Act of 1903 is said to be almost a verbatim copy of the
Massachusetts Land Registration Act of 1898, which, in turn, followed the principles and procedure of the Torrens
system of registration formulated by Sir Robert Torrens who patterned it after the Merchant shipping Acts in South
Australia.
2) Advantages of the Torrens System:
a) It has substituted security for insecurity.
b ) It has reduced the costs of conveyances from pounds to shillings, and the time occupied from months to
days.
c) It has exchange brevity and clearness for obscurity and verbiage.
d) It has so simplified ordinary dealings that he who has mastered the three RS(which means Reading, wRiting
and aRithmetic) can transact his own conveyancing.
e) It affords protection against fraud.
f) It has restored to their just value many estates held under good holding titles, but depreciated in
consequence of some blur or technical defect, and has barred the reoccurrence of any similar faults.
3) The main principle of registration is to make registered titles indefeasible.
4) The element of intention to deprive another of just rights constitutes the essential characteristics of actual as
distinguished from legal-fraud.
5) Proof of constructive fraud is not sufficient to authorize the Court of Land Registration to reopen a case and modify
its decree. Specific, intentional acts to deceive and deprive another of his right or in some manner injure him, must be
alleged and proved; that is there must be actual or positive fraud as distinguished from constructive fraud.
II.CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS
A. The Regalian Doctrine
i. Paragraph 1, Section 2, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution:
All lands of the public domain, waters, minerals, coal, petroleum, and other mineral oils, all forces of potential energy,
fisheries, forests or timber, wildlife, flora and fauna, and other natural resources are owned by the State. With the
exception of agricultural lands, all other natural resources shall not be alienated. The exploration, development and
utilization of natural resources shall be under the full control and supervision of the State. The State may directly
undertake such activities or it may enter into co-production, joint venture orproduction-sharing agreements with
Filipino citizens, or corporations or associations at least sixty per centum of whose capital is owned by such citizens.
Such agreements may be for a period not exceeding twenty-five years, renewable for not more than twenty-five years,
and under such terms and conditions as may be provided by law. In cases of water rights for irrigation, water supply,
fisheries, or industrial uses other than the development of water power, beneficial use may be the measure and limit of
the grant.
Under the Regalian doctrine, all lands of the public domain belong to the State and lands not otherwise appearing to be
clearly within. Private ownership is presumed to belong to the State. Unless public land is shown to have been
reclassified as alienable or disposable, and subsequently alienated by the State, it remains part of the public domain.
Occupation or possession thereof by a person in the concept of owner, no matter how long cannot ripen in ownership.
ii. Cariño v. Insular Government, 41 Phil 935 (1909)
The court thus laid down the presumption of a certain title held (1) as far back as testimony or memory went, and (2)
under a claim of private ownership. Land held by this title is presumed to never have been public land.
The United States Supreme Court found no proof that the Spanish decrees did not honor native title. On the contrary,
the decrees discussed in Valenton v. Murciano case appeared to recognize that the natives owned some land,
irrespective of any royal grant. The Regalian doctrine declared in the preamble of the Recopilacion was all theory and
discourse and it was observed that titles were admitted to exist beyond the powers of the Crown.
iii. Cruz v. Secretary of Environment, 347 SCRA 128 (2000)
The Regalian Doctrine does not negate native title.
1) Separate Opinion of J. PUNO
Cariño case firmly established a concept of private land title that existed irrespective of any royal grant from the State
and was based on the strong mandate extended to the Islands via the Philippine Bill of 1902. The IPRA recognizes the
existence of ICCs /IPs as a distinct sector in the society. It grants this people the ownership and possession of their
ancestral domains and ancestral lands and defines the extent of these lands and domains.
2) Separate Opinion of J. KAPUNAN
Regalian theory does not negate the native title to lands held in private ownership since time immemorial, adverting to
the landmark case of Cariño v. Insular Government, where the US SC thru Holmes held:
The land has been held by individuals under a claim of private ownership, it will be presumed to have been held in the
same way from before the Spanish conquest, and never to have been public land.
Existence of native title to land, or ownership of land by Filipinos by virtue of possession under a claim of ownership
since time immemorial and independent of any grant from the Spanish crown as an exception to the theory of jure
regalia.
iv. Chavez v. Public Estates, 384 SCRA 152
The Regalian Doctrine
The ownership of lands reclaimed from foreshore and submerged areas is rooted in the Regalian doctrine which holds
that the State owns all lands and waters of the public domain. Upon the Spanish conquest of the Philippines, ownership
of all lands, territories and possessions in the Philippines passed to the Spanish Crown. The King, as the sovereign ruler
and representative of the people, acquired and owned all lands and territories in the Philippines except those he
disposed of by grant or sale to private individuals.
The 1935, 1973 and 1987 Constitutions adopted the Regalian doctrine substituting, however, the State, in lieu of the
King as the owner of all lands and waters of the public domain. The Regalian doctrine is the foundation of the time
honored principle of land ownership that all lands that were not acquired from the Government, either by purchase of
by grant, belong to the public domain.
The foreshore and submerged areas of Manila Bay are part of the lands of the public domain, waters and other natural
resources and consequently owned by the State. As such, foreshore and submerged areas shall not be alienable unless
they are classified as agricultural lands of the public domain.
The mere reclamation of these areas by the PEA does not convert these inalienable natural resources of the State into
alienable and disposable lands of the public domain. There must be a law or presidential proclamation officially
classifying these reclaimed lands as alienable and disposable if the law has reserved them for some public or quasipublic use.
v. Buenaventura v. Republic, 517 SCRA 271 (2207)
It is true that under the Regalian Doctrine all lands of the public domain belong to the State and all lands not otherwise
appearing to be clearly within private ownership are presumed to belong to the State. However, such presumption is not
conclusive. It can be rebutted by the applicant’s presentation of incontrovertible evidence showing that the land subject
of the application for registration is alienable and disposable.
vi.NOTES REGALIAN DOCTRINE:
1) Generally, under the concept of jura regalia, private title to land must be traced to some grant, express or
implied, from the Spanish Crown or its successors, the American Colonial government, and thereafter, the
Philippine Republic.
2) In its broad sense, the term jura regalia refers to royal rights, or those rights which the King has by virtue of
his prerogatives. In Spanish Law, it refers to a right which the sovereign has over anything in which a subject as a
right of property or propriedad. These were rights enjoyed during feudal times by the King as the sovereign.
3)Jura regalia was therefore nothing more than a natural fruit of conquest.
4)Regalian Doctrine or Jura Regalia is a Western legal concept that was first introduced by the Spaniards into the
country through the Laws of the Indies and the Royal Cedulas.
B. Citizenship Requirement
i. Paragraph 1, Section 2, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution:
All lands of the public domain, waters, minerals, coal, petroleum, and other mineral oils, all forces of potential energy,
fisheries, forests or timber, wildlife, flora and fauna, and other natural resources are owned by the State. With the
exception of agricultural lands, all other natural resources shall not be alienated. The exploration, development and
utilization of natural resources shall be under the full control and supervision of the State. The State may directly
undertake such activities or it may enter into co-production, joint venture or production-sharing agreements with
Filipino citizens, or corporations or associations at least sixty per centum of whose capital is owned by such citizens.
Such agreements may be for a period not exceeding twenty-five years, renewable for not more than twenty-five years,
and under such terms and conditions as may be provided by law. In cases of water rights for irrigation, water supply,
fisheries, or industrial uses other than the development of water power, beneficial use may be the measure and limit of
the grant.
ii. Section 7, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution:
Save in cases of hereditary succession, no private lands shall be transferred or conveyed except to individuals,
corporations, or associations qualified to acquire or hold lands of the public domain.
iii. Section 8, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution:
Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 7 of this Article, a natural-born citizen of the Philippines who has lost his
Philippine citizenship may be a transferee of private lands, subject to limitations provided by law.
iv. Krivenko v. Register of Deeds, 79 Phil 461
Public agricultural lands mentioned in Section 1, Article XIII of the 1935 Constitution, include residential, commercial
and industrial lands, the Court stated:
Natural resources, with the exception of public agricultural land, shall not be alienated, and with respect to public
agricultural lands, their alienation is limited to Filipino Citizens. But this Constitutional purpose conserving agricultural
resources in the hands of Filipino citizens may easily be defeated by the Filipino citizens themselves who may alienate
their agricultural lands in favor of aliens.
Thus Section 5, Article XIII of the 1935 Constitution provides:
Save in cases of hereditary succession, no private agricultural lands will be transferred or assigned except to individuals
corporations or associations qualified to acquire or hold lands of the public domain in the Philippines.
NOTES:
1)In determining whether a parcel of land is agricultural, the test is not only whether it is actually agricultural,
but also its susceptibility to cultivation for agricultural purposes.
2)Public Agricultural Lands – under Section 1 of Article XIII (now Section 2, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution)
of the 1935 Constitution classifies lands of public domain in the Philippines into agricultural, timber and mineral.
3)Private Agricultural Lands – Section 5, Article XIII of the 1935 Constitution
v. Halili v. CA, 287 SCRA 465 (1998)
The landmark case of Krivenko v. Register of Deeds settled the issue as to who are qualified (and disqualified) to own
public as well as private lands in the Philippines.
In fine, non-Filipinos cannot acquire or hold title to private lands or to lands of the public domain, except only by way of
legal succession.
But what is the effect of a subsequent sale by the disqualified alien vendee to a qualified Filipino citizen? This is not a
novel question. Jurisprudence is consistent that if land is invalidly transferred to an alien who subsequently becomes a
citizen or transfers it to a citizen, the flaw in the original transaction is considered cured and the title of the transferee is
rendered valid.
vi. Muller v. Muller, 500 SCRA 65 (2006)
Mr. Muller was aware of the Constitutional prohibition when he purchased the property. He declared the property in
the name of Mrs. Muller because of said prohibition. His attempt at subsequently asserting or claiming a right on the
said property cannot be sustained.
There was no implied trust created. Save for hereditary succession, an alien’s disqualification is absolute. Not even an
ownership in trust is allowed. Besides, no trust can result in favor of the party who is guilty of the fraud. To hold
otherwise would allow a circumvention of the constitutional prohibition.
He who seeks equity must do equity, and he who comes into equity must come with clean hands. Mr. Muller cannot
seek reimbursement of the funds he used to purchase the property on the ground of equity where it is clear that he
willingly and knowingly bought the property despite the constitutional prohibition.
vii. Republic v. CA and Lapiña, 235 SCRA 567
The Court explained that even if the spouses were already Canadian citizens at the time they applied for registration, the
lots were already private lands, and no longer formed part of the public domain. They were already private in character
at the time of the purchase since respondents predecessors-in-interest had been in open, continuous and exclusive
possession and occupation thereof under claim of ownership prior to June 12, 1945 or since 1937. Moreover, the law
provides that a natural-born citizen of the Philippines who has lost his Philippine citizenship may be a transferee of a
private land under the terms prescribed by law.
viii. Amendments to the IRR of RA No. 7042 (FIA of 1991), as amended by RA No. 8179
LIST A:
FOREIGN OWNERSHIP IS LIMITED BY MANDATE OF THE CONSTITUTION
AND SPECIFIC LAWS
No Foreign Equity
1) Mass Media except recording (Article XVI, Section 11 of the Constitution; Presidential Memorandum dated
04 May 1994)
2) Services involving the practice of licensed professions save in cases prescribed by law;(Article XIV, Section 14
of the Constitution; Section 1 of RA No. 5181)
3) Retail Trade (Section 1 of RA No. 1180)
4) Cooperatives (Chapter III, Article 26 of RA No. 6938)
5) Private Security Agencies (Section 4 of RA No. 5487)
6) Small-scale Mining (Section 3 of RA No. 7076)
7) Utilization of Marine Resources in archipelagic waters, territorial sea, and exclusive economic zone (Article
XII, Section 2 of the Constitution)
8) Ownership, operation and management of cockpits (Section 5 of Presidential Decree No. 449)
9) Manufacture, repair, stockpiling and/or distribution of nuclear weapons (Article II, Section 8 of the
Constitution)
10) Manufacture, repair, stockpiling and/or distribution of biological, chemical and radiological weapons
(Various treaties to which the Philippines is a signatory and conventions supported by the Philippines)
Up to Twenty-Five Percent (25%) Foreign Equity
11) Private recruitment, whether for local or overseas employment (Article 27 of Presidential Decree No. 442)
12) Contracts for the construction and repair of locally-funded public works except:
a. infrastructure/development projects covered in RA No. 7718; and
b. projects which are foreign funded or assisted and required to undergo international competitive
bidding
Up to Thirty Percent (30%) Foreign Equity
13) Advertising (Article XVI, Section 11 of the Constitution)
Up to Forty Percent (40%) Foreign Equity
14) Exploration, development and utilization of natural resources (Article XII, Section 2 of the Constitution)
15) Ownership of private lands (Article XII, Section 7 of the Constitution; Chapter 5, Section 22 of
Commonwealth Act No. 141)
16) Operation and management of public utilities (Article XII, Section 11 of the Constitution; Section 16 of
Commonwealth Act No. 146)
17) Ownership/establishment and administration of educational institutions (Article XIV, Section 2 of the
Constitution)
18) Engaging in the rice and corn industry (Presidential Decree No. 194)
19) Financing companies regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Section 6 of RA No. 5980)
20) Contracts for the supply of materials, goods and commodities to government-owned or controlled
corporation, company, agency or municipal corporation (Section 1 of RA No. 5183)
21) Contracts for the construction of defense-related structures (e.g., land, air, sea and coastal defenses,
arsenals, barracks, depots, hangars, landing fields, quarters and hospitals) (Commonwealth Act No. 541)
22) Project proponent and facility operator of a BOT project requiring a public utilities franchise (Article XII,
Section 11 of the Constitution; Section 2a of RA No. 7718)
23) Private domestic construction contracts (Republic Act 4566; Article XIV, Section 14 of the Constitution)
LIST B: FOREIGN OWNERSHIP IS LIMITED FOR REASONS OF SECURITY, DEFENSE, RISK TO HEALTH AND MORALS AND
PROTECTION OF SMALL- AND MEDIUM-SCALE ENTERPRISES
Up to Forty Percent (40 %) Foreign Equity
1) Manufacture, repair, storage, and/or distribution used in the manufacture thereof requiring Philippine
National Police (PNP) clearance
2) Manufacture, repair, storage and/or distribution of products requiring Department of National Defense
(DND) clearance
3) Manufacture and distribution of dangerous drugs (RA No. 7042 as amended by RA No. 8179)
NOTES:
1) Domestic investments are also prohibited (Article II, Section 8 of the Constitution; Conventions/Treaties to
which the Philippines is a signatory)
2) Full foreign participation is allowed through financial or technical assistance agreement with the
President (Article XII, Section 11 of the Constitution)
ix. Citizenship Requirement - Individuals
1 )Filipino Citizens
Citizens of the Philippines may lease not more than five hundred hectares, or acquire not more than twelve hectares of
the alienable lands of the public domain, by purchase, homestead, or grant. (Sec. 3, Article XII, Constitution)
Citizens may acquire private lands.
2) Former Natural-Born Citizens
A natural-born citizen of the Philippines who has lost his Philippine citizenship may be a transferee of private lands,
subject to limitations provided by law. (Sec. 8, Article XII, Constitution)
Any natural born citizen who has lost his Philippine citizenship and who has the legal capacity to enter into a contract
under Philippine laws may be a transferee of a private land up to a maximum area of five thousand (5,000) square
meters in the case of urban land or three (3) hectares in the case of rural land to be used by him for business or other
purposes. In the case of married couples, one of them may avail of the privilege herein granted: Provided, That if both
shall avail of the same, the total area acquired shall not exceed the maximum herein fixed.
In case the transferee already owns urban or rural land for business or other purposes, he shall still be entitled to be a
transferee of additional urban or rural land for business or other purposes which when added to those already owned by
him shall not exceed the maximum areas herein authorized.
A transferee under this Act may acquire not more than two (2) lots which should be situated in different municipalities
or cities anywhere in the Philippines: Provided, that the total land area thereof shall not exceed five thousand (5,000)
hectares in the case of rural land for use by him for business or other purposes. A transferee who has already acquired
urban land shall be disqualified from acquiring rural land area and vice versa. (Section 10 of RA No. 7042, as amended by
RA No. 8179, dated March 28, 1996, Foreign Investment Act of 1991, implementing Section 8, Article XII of the
Constitution)
3) Aliens
Alien Individuals may be transferees of private lands only in cases of hereditary succession. (Sec. 7, Article XII,
Constitution)
C. Corporations
i. Section 3, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution:
Lands of the public domain are classified into agricultural, forest or timber, mineral lands and national parks. Agricultural
lands of the public domain may be further classified by law according to the uses to which they may be devoted.
Alienable lands of the public domain shall be limited to agricultural lands. Private corporations or associations may not
hold such alienable lands of the public domain except by lease, for a period not exceeding twenty-five years, renewable
for not more than twenty-five years, and not to exceed one thousand hectares in area. Citizens of the Philippines may
lease not more than five hundred hectares, or acquire not more than twelve hectares thereof, by purchase, homestead,
or grant.
Taking into account the requirements of conservation, ecology, and development, and subject to the requirements of
agrarian reform, the Congress shall determine, by law, the size of lands of the public domain which may be acquired,
developed, held, or leased and the conditions therefor.
ii. Chavez v. Public Estates, 384 SCRA 152 (2002)
The Constitutional intent, both under the 1973 and 1987 Constitutions, is to transfer ownership of only a limited area of
alienable land of the public domain to a qualified individual. This constitutional intent is safeguarded by the provision
prohibiting corporations from acquiring alienable lands of the public domain, since the vehicle to circumvent the
constitutional intent is removed. The available alienable public lands are gradually decreasing in the face of an evergrowing population. The most effective way to insure faithful adherence to this constitutional intent is to grant or sell
alienable lands of the public domain only to individuals. This, it would seem, is the practical benefit arising from the
constitutional ban.
If the constitutional intent is to encourage economic family-size farms, placing the land in the name of a corporation
would be more effective in preventing the break-up of farmlands. If the farmland is registered in the name of a
corporation, upon the death of the owner, his heirs would inherit shares in the corporation instead of subdivide parcels
of the farmland. This would prevent the continuing break-up of farmlands into smaller and smaller plots from one
generation to the next.
The constitutional ban strengthens the constitutional limitation on individuals from acquiring more than the allowed
area of alienable lands of the public domain. Without the constitutional ban, individuals who already acquired the
maximum area of alienable lands of the public domain could easily set up corporations to acquire more alienable public
lands. The corporation is a convenient vehicle to circumvent the constitutional limitation on acquisition by individual of
alienable lands of the public domain.
iii. Director v. IAC and ACME, 146 SCRA 509 (1986)
When natural persons have fulfilled the required statutory period of possession, the Public Land Act confers on them a
legally sufficient and transferable title to the land, which are already private lands because of acquisitive prescription,
and which could be validly transferred or sold to private corporations.
The doctrine of vested rights was articulated by the Supreme Court in this ruling.
The Supreme Court declared that the purely accidental circumstance that confirmation proceedings were brought under
the aegis of a subsequent law which forbids corporations from owning lands of the public domain cannot defeat a right
already vested before that law came into effect, or invalidate transactions then perfectly valid and proper. The Court
emphatically stated that even the Constitution or subsequent law cannot impair vested rights.
iv. NOTES - CORPORATIONS:
1)
Private corporations or associations may not hold such alienable lands of the public domain except by lease,
for a period not exceeding twenty-five years, renewable for not more than twenty-five years, and not to
exceed one thousand hectares in area.
(Sec. 3, Article XII, Constitution)
2) Corporations or associations — whether citizens or of citizens and aliens — may not own, but may only
hold by lease lands of the public domain. (DOJ Opinion, 1973)
3) However, only corporations or associations at least 60% of the capital stock of which is owned by Filipinos,
and the remainder by foreigners, may own private lands.
4) Condominium Corporation Owns the Land
Transfers to aliens of a condominium unit may be made only up to the point where the concomitant transfer of
membership or stockholding in the condominium corporation would not cause the alien interest in such
corporation to exceed 40% of its entire capital stock. (Sec 5, Condominium Act)
5) Corporation Leases the Land
Any corporation which is owned 100% by a foreign firm may establish a "condominium corporation" under R.A.
No. 4726 and set up a condominium project on land leased for a period not to exceed (50) years. (DOJ Opinion
1973)
Foreign Investors may lease private lands for a period not exceeding fifty (50) years, renewable once for a period
of not more than twenty- five (25) years, provided that the leased area shall be used solely for the purpose of
the investment, and provided further that the leased premises shall comprise such area as may reasonably be
required for the purpose of the investment subject however to the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law and
the Local Government Code. (Sec. 4, Investor’s Lease Act)
6) Land is Co-owned by the Unit Owners
Where the common areas in the condominium project are owned by the owners of separate units as coowners thereof, no condominium unit therein shall be conveyed or transferred to persons other than Filipino
citizens, or corporations at least 60% of the capital stock of which belong to Filipino citizens, except in cases of
hereditary succession. (Sec. 5, Condominium Act)
Only citizens of the Philippines, as individuals, may acquire both private lands and lands of the public domain.
Therefore, there can be no joint ownership of such lands between Filipinos and foreign investors as individuals.
D. CHAPTER 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS
i. SECTION 2. Nature of registration proceedings; jurisdiction of courts.
Judicial proceedings for the registration of lands throughout the Philippines shall be in rem and shall be based on the
generally accepted principles underlying the Torrens system.
Courts of First Instance (now Regional Trial Courts) shall have exclusive jurisdiction over all applications for original
registration of title to lands, including improvements and interests therein, and over all petitions filed after original
registration of title, with power to hear and determine all questions arising upon such applications or petitions. The
court through the clerk of court shall furnish the Land Registration Commission with two certified copies of all pleadings,
exhibits, orders, and decisions filed or issued in applications or petitions for land registration, with the exception of
stenographic notes, within five days from the filing or issuance thereof.
NOTES SECTION 2 of PRD:
1) Registration is not a mode of acquiring ownership but is merely a procedure to establish evidence of tile over
realty.
2) A certificate of title is not a source of right. It merely confirms or records a title already existing and vested.
The mere possession thereof does not make one the true owner of the property.
3) Title is generally defined as the lawful cause or ground of possessing that which is ours. Title, therefore, may
be defined briefly as that which constitutes a just cause of exclusive possession, or which is the foundation of
ownership of property, real or personal. Certificate of title, on the other hand, is a mere evidence of ownership;
it is not the title to the land itself.
4) Under the Torrens system, a certificate of title may be:
a.Original Certificate of Title: the first title issued in the name of the registered owner by the Register of
Deeds covering a parcel of land which had been registered by virtue of a judicial or administrative
proceeding.
b. Transfer Certificate of Title – the title issued by the ROD in favor of the transferee to whom the
ownership of the already registered land had been transferred by virtue of a sale or other modes of
conveyance.
5) Torrens Title is a certificate of ownership issued under the Torres System, through the Register of Deeds,
naming and declaring the owner of the real property described therein, free from all liens and encumbrances
except such as may be expressly noted there or otherwise reserved by law.
6) General Rule: A title once registered cannot be impugned, altered, changed, modified, enlarged, or
diminished. It shall not be subject to collateral attack. Exception: Direct proceeding permitted by law, usually for
the protection of innocent third persons.
7) Collateral Attack
A certificate of title shall not be subject to collateral attack. It cannot be altered, modified, or cancelled except in
a direct proceeding in accordance with law. (Sec. 48, P.D. 1529)
a. Accion Publiciana, also known as accion plenaria de posesion, is an ordinary civil proceeding to determine the
better right of possession of realty independent of title. It refers to an ejectment suit filed after the expiry of one
year from the accrual of the cause of action or from the unlawful withholding of possession of the realty. The
objective of the plaintiffs in an accion publiciana is to recover possession only, and not ownership. However,
where the question of ownership is raised, the courts may pass upon the issue to determine who has the better
right of possession. Such determination is merely provisional and not conclusive on the question of ownership.
b. If the petitioner-defendants attack on the validity of respondent-plaintiffs title, by claiming that fraud
attended its acquisition, is a [prohibited] collateral attack on the title. It is an attack incidental to the quest to
defend their possession of the properties in an accion publiciana not in a direct action whose main objective is
to impugn the validity of the judgment granting the title.
8) Nature of Torrens System:
a. Judicial in character and not merely administrative.
b. Proceeding is in rem (binding upon the whole world). A proceeding is in rem when the object of the
action is to bar indifferently all who might be minded to make an objection of any sort against the right
sought to be established, and if anyone in the world has a right to be heard on the strength of alleging
facts which, if true, show an inconsistent interest.
c. Distinguished from proceedings in personam and quasi in rem:
i. It is a proceeding in personam when the technical object of the suit is to establish a claim against some
particular person, with a judgment which generally in theory at least, binds his body, o to bar some individual
claim or objection, so that only certain persons are entitled to be heard in defense.
ii. On the other hand, actions quasi in rem deal with the status, ownership or liability of a particular property
but which are intended to operate on these questions only as between the particular parties to the proceedings
and not to ascertain or cut off the rights or interests of all possible claimants. The judgments therein are binding
only upon the parties who joined in the action.
9) RTC have plenary jurisdiction over land registration cases as provided in Section 2 of PD 1529. Exception –
Inferior Courts delegated jurisdiction to hear and determine cadastral or land registration cases in the following
instances:
a. Where the lot sought to be registered is not the subject of controversy or opposition; or
b. Where the lot is contested but the value thereof does not exceed P100,000.00, such value to be
ascertained by the affidavit of the claimant or by the agreement of the respective claimants, if there be
more than one, or from the corresponding tax declaration of the real property.
10)Actions for forcible entry into and unlawful detainer of lands or buildings, original jurisdiction over which is
conferred upon the metropolitan trial courts, municipal trial courts, and municipal circuit trial courts.
11) The Decree has eliminated the distinction between the general jurisdiction vested in the RTC and the limited
jurisdiction conferred upon it by the former law when acting merely as a cadastral court. The amendment was
aimed at avoiding multiplicity of suits and the change has simplified registration proceedings.
12) Venue:
a. Real Actions affecting title to or possession of real property, or an interest therein shall be
commenced and tried in the proper court which has territorial jurisdiction over the area where the real
property involved, or a portion thereof, is situated.
b. Personal Actions shall be commenced and tried in the proper court where the plaintiff or any of the
principal defendants resides or in the case of anon-resident defendant where he may be found, at the
election of the plaintiff.
ii. SECTION 3. Status of other pre-existing land registration system.
The system of registration under the Spanish Mortgage Law is hereby discontinued and all lands recorded under said
system which are not yet covered by Torrens title shall be considered as unregistered lands.
Hereafter, all instruments affecting lands originally registered under the Spanish Mortgage Law may be recorded under
Section 113 of this Decree, until the land shall have been brought under the operation of the Torrens system.
The books or registration for unregistered lands provided under Section 194 of the Revised Administrative Code, as
amended by Act No. 3344, shall continue to remain in force; Provided, that all instruments dealing with unregistered
lands shall henceforth be registered under Section 113 of this Decree.
E. CHAPTER 2 THE LAND REGISTRATION COMMISSION AND ITS REGISTRIES OF DEEDS
i. Section 4. Land Registration Commission.
In order to have a more efficient execution of the laws relative to the registration of lands, geared to the massive and
accelerated land reform and social justice program of the government, there is created a commission to be known as
the Land Registration Commission under the executive supervision of the Department of Justice.
ii. Section 5. Officials and employees of the Commission.
The Land Registration Commission shall have a chief and an assistant chief to be known, respectively, as the
Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner of Land Registration who shall be appointed by the President. The
Commissioner shall be duly qualified member of the Philippine Bar with at least ten years of practice in the legal
profession, and shall have the same rank, compensation and privileges as those of a Judge of the Court of First Instance.
The Deputy Commissioner, who shall possess the same qualifications as those required of the Commissioner, shall
receive compensation which shall be three thousand pesos per annum less than that of the Commissioner. He shall act
as Commissioner of Land Registration during the absence or disability of the Commissioner and when there is a vacancy
in the position until another person shall have been designated or appointed in accordance with law. The Deputy
Commissioner shall also perform such other functions as the Commissioner may assign to him.
They shall be assisted by such number of division chiefs as may be necessary in the interest of the functioning of the
Commission, by a Special Assistant to the Commissioner, and by a Chief Geodetic Engineer who shall each receive
compensation at the rate of three thousand four hundred pesos per annum less than that of the Deputy Commissioner.
All other officials and employees of the Land Registration Commission including those of the Registries of Deeds whose
salaries are not herein provided, shall receive salaries corresponding to the minimum of their respective upgraded
ranges as provided under paragraph 3.1 of Budget Circular No. 273, plus sixty per centum thereof across the board,
notwithstanding the maximum salary allowed for their respective civil service eligibilities.
The salaries of officials and employees provided in this Decree shall be without prejudice to such benefits and
adjustments as may from time to time be granted by the President or by the legislature to government employees.
All officials and employees of the Commission except Registers of Deeds shall be appointed by the Secretary of Justice
upon recommendation of the Commissioner of Land Registration.
NOTES SECTION 5 of PRD:
1) On June 17, 1954, RA No. 1151 created the Land Registration Commission (LRC) to provide a more efficient
execution of the existing laws relative to the registration of lands.
2) LRC exercise supervision and control over all Registers of Deeds, as well as the clerical and archival system of
the courts of first instance throughout the Philippines with the reference to the registration of lands.
3) It was headed by a Commissioner and an Assistant Commissioner, both appointed by the President with the
consent of the Commission on Appointments.
4) The LRC has been renamed Land Registration Authority (LRA). It is headed by an Administrator who is
assisted by two (2) Deputy Administrators, all of whom are appointed by the President upon
the recommendation of the Secretary of Justice. All other officials of the LRA, except Register of Deeds, are
appointed by the Secretary of Justice upon recommendation of the Administrator.
5) The LRA is the central repository of records relative to original registration of lands titled under the Torrens
system, including subdivision and consolidation plans of titled lands. Specifically, it is responsible for the
issuance of decrees of registration and certificates of title (original and duplicate) where land is brought for the
first time under the Torrens system.
iii. Section 6. General Functions.
1. The Commissioner of Land Registration shall have the following functions:
a) Issue decrees of registration pursuant to final judgments of the courts in land registration
proceedings and cause the issuance by the Registers of Deeds of the corresponding certificates of title;
b) Exercise supervision and control over all Registers of Deeds and other personnel of the Commission;
c) Resolve cases elevated en consulta by, or on appeal from decision of, Registers of Deeds;
d) Exercise executive supervision over all clerks of court and personnel of the Courts of First Instance
throughout the Philippines with respect to the discharge of their duties and functions in relation to the
registration of lands;
e) Implement all orders, decisions, and decrees promulgated relative to the registration of lands and
issue, subject to the approval of the Secretary of Justice, all needful rules and regulations therefor;
f)Verify and approve subdivision, consolidation, and consolidation- subdivision survey plans of
properties titled under Act No. 496 except those covered by P.D. No. 957.
2. The Land Registration Commission shall have the following functions:
a) Extend speedy and effective assistance to the Department of Agrarian Reform, the Land Bank, and other
agencies in the implementation of the land reform program of the government;
b) Extend assistance to courts in ordinary and cadastral land registration proceedings;
c) Be the central repository of records relative to original registration of lands titled under the Torrens system,
including subdivision and consolidation plans of titled lands.
NOTES SECTION 6 of PRD:
1) LRA Administrator, an executive officer with judicial rank.
a. Shall have the same rank, compensation, and privileges as those of a Judge of the Court of First
Instance (RTC).
b. His functions are plainly executive and subject to the President’s power of supervision and control.
c. He can be investigated and removed only by the President and not by the Supreme Court.
2) Duty of LRA to issue decree ministerial.
a. While the duty of the LRA officials to issue a decree of registration is purely ministerial, it is
ministerial only in the sense that they act under the orders of the court and the decree must be in
conformity with the decision of the court and with the data found in the record, as to which they have
no discretion on the matter.
b. But the issuance by LRA officials of a decree of registration is not a purely ministerial duty in cases
where they find that such would result to the double titling of the same parcel of land.
c. The issuance of a decree of registration is part of the judicial function of courts and is not compellable
by mandamus because it involves the exercise of discretion.
d. The duty of land registration officials to render reports is not limited to the period before the court’s
decision becomes final, but may extend even after its finality but not beyond the lapse of one (1) year
from the entry of the decree.
iv. Section 7. Office of the Register of Deeds.
There shall be at least one Register of Deeds for each province and one for each city. Every Registry with a yearly
average collection of more than sixty thousand pesos during the last three years shall have one Deputy Register of
Deeds, and every Registry with a yearly average collection of more than three hundred thousand pesos during the last
three years, shall have one Deputy Register of Deeds and one second Deputy Register of Deeds.
The Secretary of Justice shall define the official station and territorial jurisdiction of each Registry upon the
recommendation of the Commissioner of Land Registration, with the end in view of making every registry easily
accessible to the people of the neighboring municipalities.
The province or city shall furnish a suitable space or building for the office of the Register of Deeds until such time as the
same could be furnished out of national funds.
NOTES SECTION 7 of PRD:
1) Registry of Property:
a. The registration of instruments affecting registered land must be done in the proper registry, in order to
affect and bind the land and, thus, operate as constructive notice to the world.
b. If the sale is not registered, it is binding only between the seller and the buyer but it does not affect innocent
third persons.
c. The Civil Code, in Article 708, provides for the establishment of a Registry of Property which has for its object
the inscription or annotation of acts and contracts relating to the ownership and other rights over immovable
property.
d. The original copy of the original certificate of title shall be filed in the Registry of Deeds.
e. Each Register of Deeds shall keep a primary entry book where all instruments including copies of writs and
processes relating to registered land shall be entered in the order of their filing. They shall be regarded as
registered from the time so noted.
2) Registration in general, as the law uses the word, means any entry made in the books of the Registry, including both
registration in its ordinary and strict sense, and cancellation, annotation, and even the marginal notes. In its strict
acceptation, it is the entry made in the Registry which records solemnly and permanently the right of ownership and
other real rights.
3) When a conveyance has been properly recorded, such record is constructive notice of its contents and all interests,
legal and equitable, included therein.
4) Effect of Registration:
a. The act of registration shall be the operative act to convey or affect the land insofar as third persons are
concerned, and in all cases under this Decree.
b. Registration in the public registry is notice to the whole world.
c. Thus, between two buyers of the same immovable property registered under the Torrens system, the law
gives ownership priority to:
i. The first registrant in good faith;
ii. Then, the first possessor in good faith; and
iii. Finally, the buyer who in good faith presents the oldest title.
This rule, however, does not apply if the property is not registered under the Torrens system.
d. In a case, two certificates of title were issued covering the very same property derived from two different
land patents, the Court ruled in favor of the owner who registered his land patent first regardless of the date of
issuance of the said land patent.
v. Section 8. Appointment of Registers of Deeds and their Deputies and other subordinate personnel; salaries.
Registers of Deeds shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines upon recommendation of the Secretary of
Justice. Deputy Registers of Deeds and all other subordinate personnel of the Registries of Deeds shall be appointed by
the Secretary of Justice upon the recommendation of the Commissioner of Land Registration.
The salaries of Registers of Deeds and their Deputies shall be at the following rates:
1. First Class Registries - The salaries of Registers of Deeds in first class Registries shall be three thousand four
hundred pesos per annum less than that of the Deputy Commissioner.
2. Second Class Registries - The salaries of Registers of Deeds in second class Registries shall be three thousand
four hundred pesos per annum less than those of Registers of Deeds in first class Registries.
3. Third Class Registries - The salaries of Registers of Deeds in third class Registries shall be three thousand four
hundred pesos per annum less than those of Registers of Deeds in second class Registries.
4. The salaries of Deputy Registers of Deeds and Second Deputy Registers of Deeds - shall be three thousand
four hundred pesos per annum less than those of their corresponding Registers of Deeds and Deputy Registers
of Deeds, respectively.
The Secretary of Justice, upon recommendation of the Commissioner of Land Registration, shall cause the
reclassification of Registries based either on work load or the class of province/city, whichever will result in a higher
classification, for purposes of salary adjustments in accordance with the rates hereinabove provided.
vi. Section 9. Qualifications of Registers of Deeds and Deputy Registers of Deeds.
No person shall be appointed Register of Deeds unless he has been admitted to the practice of law in the Philippines and
shall have been actually engaged in such practice for at least three years or has been employed for a like period in any
branch of government the functions of which include the registration of property.
The Deputy Register of Deeds shall be a member of the Philippine Bar. Provided, however, that no Register of Deeds or
Deputy Register of Deeds holding office as such upon the passage of this Decree shall by reason hereof, be removed
from office or be demoted to a lower category or scale of salary except for cause and upon compliance with due process
as provided for by law.
vii. Section 10. General functions of Registers of Deeds.
The office of the Register of Deeds constitutes a public repository of records of instruments affecting registered or
unregistered lands and chattel mortgages in the province or city wherein such office is situated.
It shall be the duty of the Register of Deeds to immediately register an instrument presented for registration dealing
with real or personal property which complies with all the requisites for registration. He shall see to it that said
instrument bears the proper documentary and science stamps and that the same are properly canceled. If the
instrument is not registerable, he shall forthwith deny registration thereof and inform the presentor of such denial in
writing, stating the ground or reason therefor, and advising him of his right to appeal by consultation in accordance with
Section 117 of this Decree.
NOTES SECTIONS 8, 9, & 10 of PRD:
1) Office of the Register of Deed:
a. There shall be at least one Register of Deeds for each province and one for each city.
b. The Secretary of Justice shall define the official station and territorial jurisdiction of each Registry upon the
recommendation of the LRA Administrator.
c. Registers of Deeds shall be appointed by the President upon recommendation of the Secretary of Justice.
d. Deputy Registers of Deeds and all other subordinate personnel of the Registries of Deeds shall be appointed
by the Secretary of Justice upon the recommendation of the LRA Administrator.
e. Both the Register of Deeds and Deputy Register of Deeds must be members of the Bar.
2) Duty of Register of Deeds to register, ministerial.
a. Register of Deeds perform both functions of an administrative character and functions which are at least of
a quasi-judicial nature.
b. However, the function of a Register of Deeds with reference to the registration of deeds, encumbrances,
instruments and the like is ministerial in nature.
c. Registration is a mere ministerial act by which a deed, contract or instrument is sought to be inscribed in the
records of the office of the Register of Deeds and annotated at the back of the certificate of the title covering
the land subject of the deed, contract or instrument. Whether the document is invalid, frivolous or intended to
harass, is not the duty of a Register of Deeds to decide, but is for a court of competent jurisdiction to determine.
3) Instances where Register of Deeds may deny registration:
a. Where there are several copies of the title (co-owner’s duplicate) but only one is presented with the
instrument to be registered.
b. Where the property is presumed to be conjugal but the instrument of conveyance bears the signature of only
one spouse.
c. Where there is a pending case in court where the character of the land and validity of the conveyance are in
issue.
d. Where required certificates or documents are not submitted.
The refusal by the Register of Deeds to register an instrument affecting registered land by reason of noncompliance with certain requirements does not bar registration if thereafter the defects are cured.
4) Doubtful questions shall be submitted to LRA Administrator for resolution:
a. A Register of Deeds is precluded from exercising his personal judgment and discretion when confronted with
the problem of whether to register a deed or instrument on the ground that it is invalid.
b. When the Register of Deeds is in doubt with regard to the proper step to be taken or memorandum to be
made in pursuance of any deed, mortgage or other instrument presented to him for registration, or where any
party in interest does not agree with the action taken by him with reference to any such deed or instrument, he
shall certify the question to the LRA Administrator who shall, after notice and hearing, enter an order
prescribing the step to be taken on the doubtful question.
c. But mandamus does not lie to compel the Register of Deeds to make registration.
d. The administrative remedy must be resorted to by the interested party before he can have recourse to the
courts.
5) The act of registration does not validate an otherwise void contract. While registration operates as a notice of the
deed, contract, or instrument to others, it does not add to its validity nor converts an invalid instrument into a valid one
as between the parties, not amounts to a declaration that the instrument recognizes a valid and subsisting interest in
the land.
6) Notice to the Register of Deeds or adverse party.
a) When a writ of preliminary injunction in a cadastral proceeding is dissolved, the obstacle to the registration
of a deed of sale is removed, but it is no authority for the court to issue an order for registration of said deed
without notice to the Register of Deeds or to the adverse party, where the dismissal of the cadastral case is not
yet final.
b) It is one thing for the Register of Deeds, in the exercise of his ministerial duties under the law, to register an
instrument which in his opinion is registrable, and quite another thing for the court itself to order the
registration. The former does not contemplate notice to and hearing of interested parties such as are required in
a judicial proceeding nor carries with it the solemnity and legal consequences of a court judgment.
viii. Section 11. Discharge of duties of Register of Deeds in case of vacancy, etc.
1. Until a regular Register of Deeds shall have been appointed for a province or city, or in case of vacancy in the office,
or upon the occasion of the absence, illness, suspension, or inability of the Register of Deeds to discharge his duties, said
duties shall be performed by the following officials, in the order in which they are mentioned below, unless the
Secretary of Justice designates another official to act temporarily in his place:
a) For the province or city where there is a Deputy Register of Deeds, by said Deputy Register of Deeds, or by
the second Deputy Register of Deeds, should there be one;
b) For the province or city where there is no Deputy or second Deputy Register of Deeds, by the Provincial or
City Fiscal, or any Assistant Fiscal designated by the Provincial or City Fiscal;
2. In case of absence, disability or suspension of the Register of Deeds without pay, or in case of vacancy in the position,
the Secretary of Justice may, in his discretion, authorize the payment of an additional compensation to the official acting
as Register of Deeds, such additional compensation together with his actual salary not to exceed the salary authorized
for the position thus filled by him.
3. In case of a newly-created province or city and pending establishment of a Registry of Deeds and the appointment of
a regular Register of Deeds for the new province or city, the Register of Deeds of the mother province or city shall be
the ex-officio Register of Deeds for said new province or city.
ix. Section 12. Owner's Index; reports.
There shall be prepared in every Registry an index system which shall contain the names of all registered owners
alphabetically arranged. For this purpose, an index card which shall be prepared in the name of each registered owner
which shall contain a list of all lands registered in his name.
The Register of Deeds shall submit to the Land Registration Commission within ten days after the month to which they
pertain his monthly reports on collections and accomplishments. He shall also submit to the Commission at the end of
December of each year, an annual inventory of all titles and instruments in his Registry.
x. Section 13. Chief Geodetic Engineer.
There shall be a Chief Geodetic Engineer in the Land Registration Commission who shall be the technical adviser of the
Commission on all matters involving surveys and shall be responsible to him for all plats, plans and works requiring the
services of a geodetic engineer in said office. He shall perform such other functions as may, from time to time, be
assigned to him by the Commissioner.
NOTES SECTION 13 of PRD:
1) A survey plan serves to establish the true identity of the land to ensure that it does not overlap a parcel of
land or a portion thereof already covered by a previous land registration, and to forestall the possibility that it
will be overlapped by a subsequent registration of any adjoining land.
2) Only the Lands Management Bureau has authority to approve original survey plans for registration
purposes. There was a need to centralize in one agency, the function of verifying and approving original survey
plans for all purposes in order to assure compliance with established standards and minimize irregularities in the
execution of land surveys.
III.CHAPTER 3 - ORIGINAL REGISTRATION
ORDINARY REGISTRATION PROCEEDINGS
A. Who may apply
Registration under the Property Registration Decree i. Section 14. Who may apply.
The following persons may file in the proper Court of First Instance an application for registration of title to land,
whether personally or through their duly authorized representatives:
1.Those who by themselves or through their predecessors-in-interest have been in open, continuous, exclusive and
notorious possession and occupation of alienable and disposable lands of the public domain under a bona fide claim of
ownership since June 12, 1945, or earlier.
NOTES SECTION 14(1) of PRD:
1) Requisites for registration under Section 14(1)
a. That the land applied for is an agricultural public land classified as alienable and disposable land at the time;
b. The application for registration is filed with the proper court;
c. That the applicant, by himself or through his predecessors-in-interest, has been in open, continuous,
exclusive and notorious possession and occupation thereof, under a bona fide claim of ownership; and
d. That such possession and occupation has been effected since June 12, 1945 or earlier.
2) Land must already be (a) classified as alienable and disposable land; and (b)possessed and occupied since June 12,
1945 or earlier at the time of filing of the application for registration.
a. It need not be classified as alienable and disposable land of public domain since June 12, 1945. It is sufficient
that the land is already declared as alienable and disposable land at the time of the application for registration is
filed so as to entitle the possessor to registration.
3) Steps in Alienation of Public Agricultural Land:
a. It must be shown to have been reclassified as alienable and disposable land of the public domain;
b. It must establish the existence of a positive act of the government such as a presidential proclamation or an
executive order; an administrative action; investigation reports of Bureau of Lands investigators; and a
legislative act or a statute. (Republic v. CA)
4) With respect to non-agricultural lands like forest lands, the rules on the confirmation of imperfect title do not apply
unless and until the land classified as forest land is released in an official proclamation to that effect so that it may form
part of the disposable agricultural lands of the public domain.
5) Nature of possession must be:
a. Open- It must be known to all. It must not be a secret or clandestine.
b. Continuous- There must not be any interruption.
c. Exclusive- Land must be possessed by himself or by his predecessors- in-interest to the exclusion of all
others.
d. Notorious - Use or inhabitance of real property that is open and obvious to neighbors, leading to a
presumption that the owner has notice of it.
2. Those who have acquired ownership of private lands by prescription under the provision of existing laws.
NOTES SECTION 14(2) of PRD:
1) Properties of public dominion cannot be acquired by prescription. No matter how long the possession of the
properties has been, there can be no prescription against the State regarding property of public domain. Even a city or
municipality cannot acquire them by prescription as against the State. The exception is where the law itself so
provides. Thus, patrimonial property of the State may be the subject of acquisition through prescription.
2) While as a rule, prescription does not run against the State, the exception is where the law itself expressly provides.
3) Article 1113 of the Civil Code provides the legal foundation for the application Section 14(2). It reads:
Art. 1113. All things which are within the commerce of men are susceptible of prescription, unless otherwise
provide. Property of the State or any of its subdivisions not patrimonial in character shall not be the object of
prescription.
4) Under the Civil Code, it is clear that where lands of the public domain are patrimonial and, hence, private in
character, they are susceptible to acquisitive prescription.
5) Lands of public dominion shall form part of the patrimonial property of the State when there is a declaration by the
government that these are alienable or disposable and are no longer intended for public use or public service. Only
when such lands have become patrimonial can the prescriptive period for the acquisition of property of the public
dominion begin to run.
6) Thus, where the land is already a private land, the applicant has the right to register the same under Section 14(2)
even if the possession thereof for the required prescriptive period commenced on a date later than June 12, 1945.
7) 2 Kinds of Prescription:
a. Ordinary Acquisitive Prescription- a person acquires ownership of a patrimonial property through possession
for at least ten (10) years, in good faith and with just title.
b. Extraordinary acquisitive prescription - a person’s uninterrupted adverse possession of patrimonial property
for at least thirty (30) years, regardless of good faith or just title, ripens into ownership pursuant to Article 1137
of the Civil Code.
8) In sum, for Section 14(2) of the Property Registration Decree to apply –
a) There must be an express declaration by the State that the public dominion property is no longer intended
for public service or the development of the national wealth or that the property has been converted into
patrimonial. Without such express declaration, the property, even if classified as alienable or disposable,
remains property of the public dominion, pursuant to Article 420 (2) of the Civil Code, and thus incapable of
acquisition by prescription.
b) Such declaration shall be in the form of a law duly enacted by Congress or a Presidential Proclamation in
cases where the President is duly authorized by law.
9) Prescription Generally:
a. By prescription, one acquires ownership and other real rights through the lapse of time in the manner and
under the action lay down by law.
b. All things which are within the commerce of men are susceptible of prescription, unless otherwise provided.
c. Property of the State or any of its subdivisions not patrimonial in character shall not be the object of
prescription.
d. For purposes of prescription, there is just title when the adverse claimant came into possession of the
property through one of the modes recognized by law for the acquisition of ownership or other real rights, but
the grantor was not the owner or could not transmit any right.
10) Concept of possession for purposes of prescription:
a. Possession in the eyes of the law does not mean that a man has to have his feet on every square meter of
ground before it can be said that he is in possession.
b. Actual possession of land consists in the manifestation of acts of dominion over it of such a nature as a party
would naturally exercise over his own property.
c. To consolidate prescription, the possession must be that of owner, and it must be public, peaceful and
uninterrupted.
d. Acts of a possessory character done by virtue of a license or mere tolerance on the part of the real owner are
not sufficient.
11) Computation of prescription:
a. The present possessor may complete the period necessary for prescription by tacking his possession to that
of his grantor or predecessor-in-interest.
12) Prescription distinguished from laches:
a. Prescription is concerned with the fact of delay; Laches is concerned with the effect of delay.
b. Prescription is a matter of time; Laches is principally a question of inequity of permitting a claim to be
enforced, this inequity being founded on some change in the condition of the property or the relation of the
parties.
c. Prescription is statutory; Laches is not.
d. Prescription applies at law; Laches applies in equity.
e. Prescription is based on a fixed time; Laches is not.
3. Those who have acquired ownership of private lands or abandoned river beds by right of accession or accretion
under the existing laws.
NOTES SECTION 14(3) of PRD:
1) Accession defined
a. Accession is the right of the owner of a thing, real or personal, to become the owner of everything which is:
produced thereby, incorporated attached thereto, Either naturally or artificially.
b.Includes: fruits of, additions to, improvements upon a thing; building, planting and sowing; alluvion, avulsion,
change of course of rivers, formation of islands.
2) Ownership of abandoned river beds by right of accession:
a. Under Article 461 of the Civil Code, river beds which are abandoned through the natural change in the course
of the waters ipso facto belong to the owners whose lands are occupied by the new course in proportion to the
area lost.
b. However, the owners of the lands adjoining the old bed shall have the right to acquire the same by paying the
value thereof, which value shall not exceed the value of the area occupied by the new bed.
c.To illustrate: A and B each owns land on opposite sides of a river. The river changed its course, passing through
the land of C. Who owns the abandoned river bed? C, to compensate him for his loss. Now, suppose that two
owners, C and D, lost portions of their lands. Who owns the river bed? C and D, in proportion to the area lost.
d.Law speaks of change of river course. If a river simply dries up or disappears, the bed left dry will belong to
public dominion (Art 502 of the Civil Code).
3) The requisites for the application of Article 461 of the Civil Code:
a. The change must be sudden in order that the old river may be identified;
b. The changing of the course must be more or less permanent, and not temporary over flooding of
another’s land;
c. The change of the river must be a natural one, i.e., caused by natural forces (and not by artificial means);
d. There must be definite abandonment by the government. (If the government shortly after the change
decides and actually takes steps to bring the river to its old bed, Article 461 will not apply for, here, it cannot be
said that there was abandonment); and
e. The river must continue to exist, that is, it must not completely dry up or disappear.
4) Ownership by right of accretion along river banks:
a. Article 457 of the Civil Code provides that to the owners of lands adjoining the banks of rivers belong the
accretion which they gradually receive from the effects of the current of the waters.
b. In the absence of evidence that the change in the course of the river was sudden or that it occurred through
avulsion, the presumption is that the change was gradual and caused by accretion and erosion.
5) 3 Requisites before an accretion is said to have taken place:
a. That the deposit be gradual and imperceptible;
b. That it be made through the effects of the current of the water; and
c. That the land where accretion takes place is adjacent to the banks of rivers.
6) Accretions affecting lands registered under the Torrens system:
a. In case of diminution of area
Registration does not protect the riparian owner against diminution of the area of his land through gradual
changes in the course of the adjoining stream;
Accretions which the banks of rivers may gradually receive from the effect of the current become the property
of the owners of the banks.
b. In case of increase of area
Although alluvion is automatically owned by the riparian owner, it does not automatically become registered
land, just because the lot which receives such accretion is covered by a Torrens title;
So, alluvial deposit acquired by a riparian owner of registered land by accretion may be subjected to acquisition
through prescription by a third person, by failure of such owner to register such accretion within the prescribed
period.
7) Accretion along the banks of creeks, streams and lakes:
a.Article 84 of the Spanish Law of Waters of 1866, which remains in effect, reads:
Art. 84. Accretions deposited gradually upon lands contiguous to creeks, streams, rivers, and lakes, by accessions
or sediments from the waters thereof, belong to the owners of such lands.”
b. From the foregoing provisions, alluvial deposits along the banks of creeks, streams and lakes do not form part
of the public domain as the alluvial property automatically belongs to the owner of the estate to which it may
have been added.
c. The only restriction is that the owner of the adjoining property must register the same under the Torrens
system; otherwise, the alluvial property may be subject to acquisition through prescription by third
persons. (City Mayor of Paranaque City v. Ebio)
8) Alluvion must be the exclusive work of nature:
a. The requirement that the deposit should be due to the effects of the current of the river is indispensable.
b. Alluvion must be the exclusive work of nature.
c. There must be evidence to prove that the addition to the property was made gradually through the effects of
the current of the river.
9) Reason for the law on accretion:
a . Compensate the riparian owner for the danger of loss that he suffers because of the location of his land;
b. Compensate him for the encumbrances and various kinds of easements to which his property is subject; and
c. Promote the interests of agriculture for the riparian owner it in the best position to utilize the accretion.
10) Accretion does not automatically become registered land:
a. Under Article 457 of the Civil Code, the registered owner of property is considered the lawful owner of the
accretion to his property. But the accretion does not become automatically registered land just because the lot
which receives it is covered by a Torrens title thereby making the alluvial property imprescriptible.
b. Ownership of a piece of land is one thing, and registration under the Torrens system of that ownership is
quite another.
c. Ownership over the accretion received by the land adjoining a river is governed by the Civil Code.
d. Imprescriptibility of registered land is provided in the registration law.
11) Where alluvial increment is not registered, it may be acquired by third persons through prescription:
a. In order that the accretion may be protected by the rule on imprescriptibility, it is necessary that the same be
brought under the operation of the Torrens system.
b. Where the adjoining land owner does not cause the registration of the increment to his property, the same
may be acquired by third persons.
12) Alluvial formation along the seashore forms part of the public domain:
a. In contrast to the rule on accretion, alluvial formation along the seashore is part of the public domain and,
therefore, not open to acquisition by adverse possession by private persons.
b. It is outside the commerce of man, unless otherwise declared by either the executive or legislative branch of
the government.
c. All lands thrown up by the sea and formed upon the shore by the action of the water, together with the
adjacent sore, belong to the national domain and are for public uses. The State shall grant these lands to the
adjoining owners only when they are no longer needed for the purposes mentioned therein.
4. Those who have acquired ownership of land in any other manner provided for by law.
NOTES SECTION 14(4) of PRD:
1) Land Grant by Presidential Proclamation
a. The clear implication is that a land grant having been made by a Presidential proclamation and by legislative
act, the grantee may apply for the registration of the land and bring it under the operation of the Torrens
system.
b. Reservation for a specific public purpose by Presidential proclamation – Lands covered by reservation are
not subject to entry, and no lawful settlement on them can be acquired.
2) Public Grant - a conveyance of public land by government to a private individual.
3) Reclamation
a. Filling of submerged land by deliberate act and reclaiming title thereto
b. Must be initially owned by government
c. May be subsequently transferred to private owners
4) Voluntary Transfer
a. Private grant
b. Voluntary execution of deed of conveyance
c. Contractual relationship between the parties
d. Consensual
5) Involuntary Alienation
a. No consent from the owner of land
b. Forcible acquisition by the State
6) Descent or Devise - Hereditary succession to the estate of deceased owner.
7) Emancipation Patent / Grant(Certificate of Land Ownership Award)
a. To ameliorate the sad plight of tenant-farmers
b. Such grant is not transferable except by hereditary succession
8) Land acquisition by private corporations:
a. By way of exception, juridical persons may apply for registration of leased agricultural and disposable lands
not exceeding 1,000 hectares in area for a period of 25 years and renewable for not more than 25 years (Section
3, Article XII, 1987 Constitution), and except when the land has been previously acquired by prescription by a
natural person and subsequently transferred to a juridical entity (in this case, a corporation may apply for
judicial confirmation of title).
b. Purpose of the prohibition(see Chavez v. PEA)
c. Limitation to ownership of land by corporations:
i. Private Lands
1. At least 60% Filipino (Sec. 7, Article XII, 1987 Constitution);
2. Restricted as to extent reasonably necessary to enable it to carry out purpose for which it was created; and
3. If engaged in agriculture, it is restricted to 1,024 hectares.
ii. Patrimonial property of the State (Sec. 3, Article XII, 1987 Constitution)
1. Lease (CANNOT own land of the public domain) for 25 years renewable;
2. Limited to 1,000 hectares; and
3. Apply to both Filipinos and foreign corporations.
9) A corporation sole is qualified to apply for registration
A. A corporation sole is a special form of corporation usually associated with the clergy.
b. A corporation sole was designed to facilitate the exercise of the functions of ownership carried on by the
clerics for and on behalf of the church which was regarded as the property owner.
c. A corporation sole consist of one person only, and his successors (who will always be one at a time), in some
particular station, who are incorporated by law in order to give them some legal capacities and advantages,
particularly that of perpetuity, which in their natural persons they could not have had.
d. A corporation sole is qualified to own and register private agricultural land.
e. A corporation sole by the nature of its incorporation is vested with the right to purchase and hold real estate
and personal property.
f. Bishops or archbishops, as the case may be, as corporations sole are merely administrators of the church
properties that come to their possession, and which they hold in trust for the church. Thus, church properties
acquired by the incumbent of a corporation sole pass, by operation of law, upon his death not to his personal
heirs but to his successor in office
Where the land is owned in common, all the co-owners shall file the application jointly.
NOTES par. 2, SECTION 14 of PRD:
1) Co-owners shall file application jointly:
a. Under Article 493 of the Civil Code, each co-owner shall have the full ownership of his part and of the fruits
and benefits pertaining thereto, and he may therefore alienate, assign or mortgage it, and even substitute
another person in its enjoyment, except when personal rights are involved.
b. But the effect of the alienation or the mortgage, with respect to the co-owners,shall be limited to the portion
which may be allotted to him in the division upon the termination of the co-ownership.
c. Since a co-owner cannot be considered a true owner of a specific portion until division or partition is effected,
he cannot file an application for registration for the whole area without joining the co-owners as applicants.
Where the land has been sold under pacto de retro, the vendor a retro may file an application for the original
registration of the land, provided, however, that should the period for redemption expire during the pendency
of the registration proceedings and ownership to the property consolidated in the vendee a retro, the latter
shall be substituted for the applicant and may continue the proceedings.
NOTES par. 3, SECTION 14 of PRD:
1) Vendee a retro may file application in his name
a. A sale with pacto de retro transfers the legal title to the vendee and the vendee is subrogated to all the rights
and actions of the vendor, subject to the latter’s right of redemption.
b. Having the legal title to the land, the vendee a retro has therefore a registerable title thereto which may be
the subject of initial registration.
c. The right to redeem the property retained by the vendor a retro should only be noted in the decree and
certificate of title that may be issued.
A trustee on behalf of his principal may apply for original registration of any land held in trust by him, unless prohibited
by the instrument creating the trust.
NOTES par. 4, SECTION 14 of PRD:
1) Trustee may apply for registration on behalf of his principal:
a. A trustee on behalf of his principal may apply for original registration of any land held in trust by him.
b. A person who establishes a trust is called the trustor; one in whom confidence is reposed as regards property
for the benefit of another known as the trustee; and the person for whose benefit the trust has been created is
referred to as the beneficiary or cestui que trust.
c. Whoever claims an interest in registered land by reason of any implied or constructive trust shall file with the
Register of Deeds for registration a sworn statement containing:
i. a description of the land;
ii. the name of the registered owner; and
iii. a reference to the number of the certificate of title.
d. Such claim shall not affect the title of a purchaser for value and in good faith before its registration.
ii. Tan v. Republic, G.R. No. 193443, April 16, 2012
Section 14. Who may apply. The following persons may file in the proper Court of First Instance an application for
registration of title to land, whether personally or through their authorized representatives:
1) Those who by themselves or through their predecessors-in-interest have been in open, continuous, exclusive
and notorious possession and occupation of alienable and disposable lands of the public domain under a bona
fide claim of ownership since June 12, 1945, or earlier.
2) Those who have acquired ownership of private lands by prescription under the provision of existing laws.
3) Those who have acquired ownership of private lands or abandoned river beds by right of accession or
accretion under the existing laws.
4) Those who have acquired ownership of land in any other manner provided for by law.
In other words, for one to invoke the provisions of Section 14(2) and set up acquisitive prescription against the
State, it is primordial that the status of the property as patrimonial be first established. Furthermore, the period
of possession preceding the classification of the property as patrimonial cannot be considered in determining
the completion of the prescriptive period.
iii. Republic v. East Silverlane Realty Development Corp., 666 SCRA 401
Accordingly, there must be an express declaration by the State that the public dominion property is no longer intended
for public service or the development of the national wealth or that the property has been converted into patrimonial.
Without such express declaration, the property, even if classified as alienable or disposable, remains property of the
public dominion, pursuant to Article 420(2), and thus incapable of acquisition by prescription. It is only when such
alienable and disposable lands are expressly declared by the State to be no longer intended for public service or for the
development of the national wealth that the period of acquisitive prescription can begin to run. Such declaration shall
be in the form of a law duly enacted by Congress or a Presidential Proclamation in cases where the President is duly
authorized by law.
iv. Republic v. Candymaker, 492 SCRA 272 (2006)
Applicants for confirmation of imperfect title must, therefore, prove the following: (a)that the land forms part of the
disposable and alienable agricultural lands of the public domain; and (b) that they have been in open, continuous,
exclusive, and notorious possession and occupation of the same under a bona fide claim of ownership either since time
immemorial or since June 12, 1945.
v. Republic v. CA and Naguit, 448 SCRA 442 (2005)
There are three obvious requisites for the filing of an application for registration of title under Section 14(1)- that the
property in question is alienable and disposable land of the public domain; that the applicants by themselves or through
their predecessors-in-interest have been in open, continuous, exclusive and notorious possession and occupation, and;
that such possession is under a bona fide claim of ownership since June 12, 1945 or earlier.
Although tax declarations and realty tax payment of property are not conclusive evidence of ownership, nevertheless,
they are good indicia of the possession in the concept of owner for no one in his right mind would be paying taxes for a
property that is not in his actual or at least constructive possession. They constitute at least proof that the holder has a
claim of title over the property. The voluntary declaration of a piece of property for taxation purposes manifests not
only one’s sincere and honest desire to obtain title to the property and announces his adverse claim against the State
and all other interested parties, but also the intention to contribute needed revenues to the Government. Such an act
strengthens one’s bona fide claim of acquisition of ownership.
vi. Domingo v. Landicho, 531 SCRA 606 (2007)
Section 14 of P.D. No. 1529 provides that to be entitled of a land, the applicant must prove that: (a) the land applied for
forms part of the disposable and alienable agricultural lands of the public domain and (b) he has been in open,
continuous, exclusive and notorious possession and occupation of the same under a bona fide claim of ownership either
since time immemorial or since June 12, 1945.
All lands not otherwise appearing to be clearly within private ownership are presumed to belong to the State, and unless
it has been shown that they have been reclassified by the State as alienable or disposable to a private person, they
remain part of the inalienable public domain. To prove that a land is alienable, an applicant must conclusively establish
the existence of a positive act of government, such as presidential proclamation or an executive order, or administrative
action, investigation reports of the Bureau of Lands investigator or a legislative act or statute.
vii. Republic v. CA and Tancinco, 132 SCRA 514 (1984) Article 457 of the New Civil Code provides:
To the owners of lands adjoining the banks of rivers belongs the accretion which they gradually receive from the effects
of the current of the waters.
The above-quoted article requires the concurrence of three requisites before an accretion covered by this particular
provision is said to have taken place. They are (1) that the deposit be gradual and imperceptible; (2) that it be made
through the effects of the current of the water; and (3) that the land where accretion takes place is adjacent to the
banks of rivers.
The requirement that the deposit should be due to the effect of the current of the river is indispensable. This excludes
from Art. 457 of the New Civil Code all deposits caused by human intervention. Alluvion must be the exclusive work of
nature.
The reason behind the law giving the riparian owner the right to any land or alluvion deposited by a river is to
compensate him for the danger of loss that he suffers because of the location of his land. If estates bordering on rivers
are exposed to floods and other evils produced by the destructive force of the waters and if by virtue of lawful
provisions, said estates are subject to encumbrances and various kinds of easements, it is proper that the risk or danger
which may prejudice the owners thereof should be compensated by the right of accretion. (Cortes v. City of Manila, 10
Phil. 567)
A riparian owner then does not acquire the additions to his land caused by special works expressly intended or designed
to bring about accretion. Indeed, private persons cannot, by themselves, reclaim land from water bodies belonging to
the public domain without proper permission from government authorities. And even if such reclamation had been
authorized, the reclaimed land does not automatically belong to the party reclaiming the same as they may still be
subject to the terms of the authority earlier granted.
viii. Buenaventura v. Republic, 517 SCRA 271 (2207)
In the case of Republic v. CA, it becomes crystal clear from the ruling of the Court that even if the possession of alienable
lands of the public domain commenced only after June 12, 1945, application for registration of the said property is still
possible by virtue of
Section 14(2) of the Property Registration Decree which speaks of prescription.
The records, indeed, reveal that petitioners were in possession of the subject property for more than 30 years, 32 years
to be exact, reckoned from the year 1968, when the subject property was finally declared alienable and disposable by
the DENR to the time they file an application for registration of title over the subject property on June 5, 2000.
Petitioners’ possession of the subject property since 1968 has been characterized as open, continuous, exclusive and
notorious possession and occupation in the concept of an owner.
By this, the subject alienable and disposable public land had been effectively converted into private property over which
petitioners have acquired ownership thru prescription to which they are entitled to have title thru registration
proceedings.
ix. Heirs of Malabanan v. Republic, 587 SCRA 172 (2009)
Applicants under 14(1) of PD 1529 in relation to sec 48(b) of CA 141 acquire ownership of, and registrable title to, such
lands based on the length and quality of their possession. It is sufficient that the land be declared alienable and
disposable at the time of the filing for the application for judicial confirmation of imperfect title and the land need not
be alienable and disposable during the entire period of possession.
Prescription
Applicants who have acquired ownership of private lands by prescription under the provisions of the Civil Code. (Sec.
14(2), P.D. 1529) Possession has to be in the concept of an owner, public, peaceful and uninterrupted. (Article 1118,
NCC). Ownership is acquired through uninterrupted adverse possession for thirty years, without need of title or of good
faith. (Article 1137, NCC)
Lands of the Public Domain are outside the commerce of man and consequently cannot be acquired through
prescription.
Under 14(2) of PD 1529, applicants acquire ownership of the lands through prescription in the Civil Code. However, the
applicants may only acquire patrimonial lands of the public domain, which only become such after they have been
declared alienable and disposable and there must also be an express government manifestation that the property is
already patrimonial or no longer retained for public service or the development of national wealth under Article 422 of
the Civil Code. Only when the land has become patrimonial property can the prescriptive period for the acquisition of
property of the public dominion begin to run.
NOTES:
1) Where the land is owned in common, all the co-owners shall file the application jointly.
2) If the applicant is not a resident of the Philippines, he shall file with his application an instrument in due form
appointing an agent upon whom service shall be made.
3) Applications for judicial confirmation of imperfect through possession shall not extend beyond December 31, 2020.
x. SECTIONS 47, 48, CA 141, as amended
Judicial Confirmation of Imperfect or Incomplete Titles
SECTION 47.
The persons specified in the next following section are hereby granted time, not to extend beyond December 31, 1987
within which to take advantage of the benefit of this chapter: Provided, That this extension shall apply only where the
area applied for does not exceed 144 hectares. Provided, further, That the several periods of time designated by the
President in accordance with section forty-five of this Act shall apply also to the lands comprised in the provisions of this
chapter, but this section shall not be construed as prohibiting any of said persons from acting under this chapter at any
time prior to the period fixed by the President.
SECTION 48.
The following-described citizens of the Philippines, occupying lands of the public domain or claiming to own any such
lands or an interest therein, but whose titles have not been perfected or completed, may apply to the Court of First
Instance of the province where the land is located for confirmation of their claims and the issuance of a certificate of
title therefor, under the Land Registration Act, to wit:
a) Those who prior to the transfer of sovereignty from Spain to the prior United States have applied for the
purchase, composition or other form of grant of lands of the public domain under the laws and royal decrees
then in force and have instituted and prosecuted the proceedings in connection therewith, but have with or
without default upon their part, or for any other cause, not received title therefor, if such applicants or grantees
and their heirs have occupied and cultivated said lands continuously since the filing of their applications.
b) Those who by themselves or through their predecessors in interest have been in open, continuous, exclusive,
and notorious possession and occupation of agricultural lands of the public domain, under a bona fide claim of
acquisition or ownership, for at least thirty years immediately preceding the filing of the application for
confirmation of title except when prevented by war or force majeure. These shall be conclusively presumed to
have performed all the conditions essential to a Government grant and shall be entitled to a certificate of title
under the provisions of this chapter.
c) Members of the national cultural minorities who by themselves or through their predecessors-ininterest have been in open, continuous, exclusive and notorious possession and occupation of lands of the
public domain suitable to agriculture, whether disposable or not, under a bona fide claim of ownership for at
least 30 years shall be entitled to the rights granted in sub-section (b) hereof.
NOTES Judicial Confirmation of Imperfect or Incomplete Titles:
1) Governing Provision: Section 48(b), CA No. 141 (Public Land Act)
a. 2 Significant amendments have been introduce by PD No. 1073:
i.First, agricultural lands was changed to alienable and disposable lands of the public domain; and
ii.Second, possession must be since June 12, 1945.
b. As thus amended, Section 48 (b) and (c) of CA No. 141, as amended, reads:
Sec. 48. The following described citizens of the Philippines, occupying lands of the public domain or
claiming to own any such lands or an interest therein, but whose titles have not been perfected or completed,
may apply to the Regional Trial Court of the province or city where the land is located for confirmation of their
claims and the issuance of a certificate of title therefor, under the Property Registration Decree to wit:
Xxx xxx xxx
(b) Those who by themselves or through their predecessors in interest have been in open, continuous, exclusive,
and notorious possession and occupation of alienable and disposable lands of the public domain, under a bona
fide claim of acquisition of ownership, since June 12, 1945, except when prevented by war or force majeure.
These shall be conclusively presumed to have performed all the conditions essential to a Government grant and
shall be entitled to a certificate of title under the provisions of this chapter.
(c) Members of the national cultural minorities who by themselves or through their predecessors-ininterest have been in open, continuous, exclusive and notorious possession and occupation of alienable and
disposable lands of the public domain, under a bona fide claim of ownership, since June 12, 1945, shall be
entitled to the rights granted in sub-section (b) hereof.
c. Period of possession: Historical Background
i. The significance of the date June 12, 1945 appears to have been lost to history. A major concern raised against this
date is that the country was at this time under Japanese occupation, and for some years after, was suffering from the
uncertainties and instabilities that World War II brought. Questions were raised on how one could possibly comply with
the June 12, 1945 or earlier occupation/possession requirement of PD 1073 when the then prevailing situation did not
legally or physically permit it. Without the benefit of congressional records, as the enactment of the law (a Presidential
Decree) was solely through the President’s lawmaking powers under a regime that permitted it, the most logical reason
or explanation for the date is the possible impact of the interplay between the old law and the amendatory law. When
PD 1073 was enacted, the utmost concern, in all probability, was how the law would affect the application of the old law
which provided for a thirty-year possession period. Counting 30 years backwards from the enactment of PD 1073 on
January 25, 1977, PD 1073 should have provided for a January 24, 1947cut-off date, but it did not. Instead, it provided,
for unknown reasons, the date June 12, 1945.
ii. The June 12, 1945 cut-off date raised legal concerns; vested rights acquired under the old law (CA 141, as amended
by RA 1942) providing for a 30-year possession period could not be impaired by the PD 1073 amendment.
iii. From this perspective, PD 1073 should have thus provided January 24, 1947 and not June 12, 1945 as its cutoff date, yet the latter date is the express legal reality. The reconciliation, as properly defined by jurisprudence, is that
where an applicant has satisfied the requirements of Section 48 (b) of CA 141, as amended by RA 1942, prior to the
effectivity of PD 1073, the applicant is entitled to perfect his or her title, even if possession and occupation does not
date back to June 12, 1945.(Concurring and Dissenting Opinion of J. BRION, Heirs of Mario Malabanan v. Republic, 587
SCRA 172)
d. Section 48 (b) of the Public Land Act on judicial confirmation of imperfect or incomplete titles has a counterpart
provision in Section 14(1) of the Property Registration Decree.
e. There are no material differences between Section 14(1) of the Property Registration Decree and Section 48(b) of the
Public Land Act, as amended.
i. True, the Public Land Act does refer to agricultural lands of the public domain, while the Property Registration
Decree uses the term ‘alienable and disposable lands of the public domain.
ii. It must be noted though that the Constitution declares that ‘alienable lands of the public domain shall be
limited to agricultural lands.
f. RA No. 9176 extended the period to file application to December 31, 2020
“On November 13, 2002, RA No. 9176 was enacted:
i. Extending the period to file an application for judicial confirmation of imperfect or incomplete titles to
December 31, 2020;
ii. Further limiting the area applied for to 12 hectares; and
iii. Providing that all pending applications filed before the effectivity of the amendatory Act shall be treated as
having been filed in accordance with the provisions thereof.
iv. The extension of the period fixed by law for the filing of the application for registration is not jurisdictional
but is more of a time limitation.
2)Registration proceeding presupposes that the land is a public agricultural land
a. Public Land Act, as amended, is a special law specifically applying to agricultural lands of the public domain.
b. As a rule, no title or right to, or equity in, any lands of the public domain may be acquired by prescription or
by adverse possession or occupancy except as expressly provided by law.
c. Registration under Section 48(b) of the PLA (No. 141) presumes that the land was originally public agricultural
land but because of adverse possession since June 12, 1945,the land has become private.
d. To entitle him to registration under Section 48(b) of the PLA, the applicant must prove that:
i. The land is alienable public land; and
ii. His possession and occupation has been open, continuous, exclusive, notorious and in the concept of
owner;
iii. Since June 12, 1945.
e. Title is void where land is inalienable and may be cancelled even in the hands of an innocent purchaser for
value:
i. A certificate of title is void when it covers property of public domain classified as forest or timber and
mineral lands.
ii. Any title issued on non-disposable lots even in the hands of an alleged innocent purchaser for value,
shall be cancelled.
3) Requisites for availment of Chapter VIII only when the following conditions are met that the possessor of the land
may acquire, by operation of law, a right to a grant, a government grant, without the necessity of a certificate of title
being issued:
a. That the land forms part of the disposable and alienable agricultural lands of the public domain; and
b. That he has been in open, continuous, exclusive and notorious possession thereof, under a bona fide claim of
ownership, since June 12, 1945.
4) Land must be A and D land at the time the application for confirmation is filed:
a. Section 48(b) of the PLA (Judicial Confirmation of Imperfect or Incomplete Title) applies exclusively
to alienable and disposable agricultural lands of the public domain.
i. Forest or timber lands, mineral lands and lands within national parks are excluded
b. The right to file the application for registration derives from a bona fide claim of ownership going back to June
12, 1945 or earlier, by reason of the claimant’s open, continuous, exclusive and notorious possession of
alienable and disposable lands of the public domain.
c. Section 48(b) of the PLA does not require that the land applied for should have been alienable and disposable
during the entire period of possession. It is sufficient that the land is already classified as alienable and
disposable portion of the public domain at the time the application is filed.
5) Rule different where land is not registrable as when it forms part of the public forest:
a. A different rule obtains for lands which are incapable of registration as when they belong to the category of
forest or timber, mineral lands, and national parks.
b. The reason for this is that, under Section 2, Article XII of the Constitution, only agricultural lands may be the
subject of alienation.
6) Only A and D(alienable & disposable) lands may be the subject of confirmation of title:
a. There can be no imperfect title to be confirmed over lands not yet classified as disposable or alienable.
b. In the absence of such classification, the land remains unclassified public land until released therefrom and
open to disposition.
c. Indeed, it has been held that the rules on the confirmation of imperfect title do not apply unless and until the
land classified as, say, forest land is released in an official proclamation to that effect so that it may form part of
the disposable agricultural lands of the public domain.
7) Where applicant has acquired a right to a government grant, application is a mere formality:
a. When the conditions specified in Section 48(b) of the PLA are complied with, the possessor is deemed to have
acquired, by operation of law, a right to a grant, without the necessity of a certificate of title being issued.
b. The application for confirmation is a mere formality, the lack of which does not affect the legal sufficiency of
the tile as would be evidenced by the patent and the Torrens title to be issued upon the strength of said patent.
c. For all legal intents and purposes, the land is segregated from the public domain, because the beneficiary
is conclusively presumed to have performed all the conditions essential to a Government grant and shall be
entitled to a certificate of title under the provisions of this chapter.
8) Compliance with all requirements for a government grant ipso jure converts land to private property:
a. Where all the requirements for a government grant are complied with, i.e.,possession in the manner and for
the period required by law, the land ipso jure ceases to be public land and becomes private property.
9) Application must conform to the requirements of the Property Registration Decree:
a. Section 50 of the PLA requires that every person claiming any lands or interest in lands under Chapter VIII
must in every case present an application to the RTC, praying that the validity of the alleged title or claim be
inquired into and that a certificate of title be issued to him under the provisions of PD No. 1529.
b. The application shall conform as nearly as may be in its material allegations to the requirements of an
application for registration under Section 15 of the Decree.
10)Hearing:
a. Applications for registration shall be heard in the RTC or, in proper cases, in a First Level Court, in the same
manner and shall be subject to the same procedure as established in the Property Registration Decree.
b. Notice of all such applications, together with a plan of the lands claimed, shall be immediately forwarded to
the Director of Lands, who may appear as a party in such cases.
c . Prior to the publication for hearing, all of the papers in said case shall be transmitted by the clerk to the
Solicitor General or officer acting in his stead, in order that he may, if he deems it advisable for the interests of
the government, investigate all of the facts alleged in the application or otherwise brought to his attention.
i.
The burden is on applicant to prove his positive averments and not for the government or the
private oppositors to establish a negative proposition insofar as the applicants’ specific lots are
concerned.
ii. He must submit convincing proof of his and his predecessor-in- interest’s actual, peaceful and
adverse possession in the concept of owner of the lots during the period required by law.
11) Order for the issuance of a decree:
a. Whenever any judgment of confirmation or other decree of the court under Chapter VIII of the PLA shall
become final, the clerk of court shall certify that fact to the Director of Lands, with a certified copy of the decree
of confirmation or judgment of the court and the plan and technical description of the land.
b. The final decree of the court shall in every case be the basis for the original certificate of title in favor of the
persons entitled to the property under the procedure prescribed in the Property Registration Decree.
12) Land declared public land in a previous registration case may be the subject of judicial confirmation:
a. In Zara v. Director of Lands, a parcel of land which had been declared public land in a previous registration
proceeding was again the subject of application by persons claiming an imperfect title thereto on the basis of
their continuous and adverse possession for more than thirty years. The trial court dismissed the application on
the ground of res judicata. However, the Supreme Court reversed the order of dismissal, holding, that by reason
of the claimant’s possession for thirty years he is conclusively presumed to have performed all the conditions
essential to a Government grant.
b. Note, however, that in Diaz v. Republic, the Court ruled that in registration cases filed under the provisions of
the PLA for the judicial confirmation of an incomplete and imperfect title, an order dismissing an application for
registration and declaring the land as part of the public domain constitutes res judicata, not only against the
adverse claimant, but also against all persons.
xi. Republic v. Muñoz, 536 SCRA 108 (2007)
Commonwealth Act No. 141, also known as the Public Land Act, remains to this day the existing general law governing
the classification and disposition of lands of the public domain, other than timber and mineral lands. Section 6 of CA No.
141 empowers the President to classify lands of the public domain into alienable and disposable lands of the public
domain, which prior to such classification are inalienable and outside the commerce of man. Section 7 of CA No. 141
authorizes the President to declare what lands are open to disposition or concession. Section 8 of CA No. 141 states
that the government can declare open for disposition or concession only lands that are officially delimited and
classified.
To prove that the land subject of an application for registration is alienable, the applicant must establish the existence of
a positive act of the government such as a presidential proclamation or an executive order; an administrative action;
investigation reports of Bureau of Lands investigators; and a legislative act or a statute. The applicant may also secure a
certification from the Government that the land applied for is alienable and disposable.
xii. Republic v. Herbieto, 459 SCRA 183 (2005)
In Relation to the Public Land Act Under CA 141
The CA overlooked the difference between the Property Registration Decree and the Public Land Act. Under the PRD,
there already exists a title which is confirmed by the Court; while under the PLA, the presumption always is that the land
applied for pertains to the State, and that the occupants and possessors only a claim an interest in the same by virtue of
their imperfect title or continuous, open and notorious possession [since June 12, 1945 or earlier].
Since the subject lands are alienable and disposable lands of the public domain, the applicants may acquire title thereto
only under the PLA.
Applicants could not acquire land through adverse possession since the land was only classified as alienable in 1963 AND
their possession only started in 1950.
(Note: Substantial requirements for public lands are in the PLA but the procedural requirements are in the PRD.)
Civil Code provisions on prescription, which is subject to confirmation under the PRD, in general applies to all types of
land. However, excluded therefrom are lands of the public domain which are covered by the PLA [special law v. general
law]
xiii. Republic v. Manna Properties, 450 SCRA 247 (2005)
A party to an action has no control over the Administrator or the Clerk of Court acting as a land court; he has no right to
meddle unduly with the business of such official in the performance of his duties. A party cannot intervene in matters
within the exclusive power of the trial court. No fault is attributable to such party if the trial court errs on matters within
its sole power. It is unfair to punish an applicant for an act or omission over which the applicant has neither
responsibility nor control, especially if the applicant has complied with all the requirements of the law.
NB: Land registration; when periods are merely directory; applicants not bound by mistakes of courts.
xiv. Republic v. San Lorenzo, 513 SCRA 294 (2007)
The reckoning date under the Public Land Act for the acquisition of ownership of public lands is June 12, 1945 or earlier,
and that evidence of possession from that date or earlier is essential for a grant of an application for judicial
confirmation of imperfect title.
The law requires that the possession of lands of the public domain must be from at least June 12, 1945 for the same to
be acquired through judicial confirmation of imperfect title.
A mere showing of possession for thirty years or more is not sufficient. It must be shown too, that possession and
occupation had started on June 12, 1945 or earlier.
xv. Republic v. Alconaba, 427 SCRA 611 (2004)
Applicants for confirmation of imperfect title must, prove the following:
(a) that the land forms part of the disposable and alienable agricultural lands of the public domain; and
(b) that they have been in open, continuous, exclusive, and notorious possession and occupation of the same
under a bona fide claim of ownership either since time immemorial or since 12 June 1945.
Section 48(b) of C.A. No. 141, as amended provides that persons may file in the proper Court of First Instance [now
Regional Trial Court] an application for registration of title to land those who by themselves or through
their predecessors-in-interest have been in open, continuous, exclusive and notorious possession and occupation of
alienable and disposable lands of the public domain under a bona fide claim of ownership since June 12, 1945, or earlier.
The law speaks of possession and occupation. Since these words are separated by the conjunction and, the clear
intention of the law is not to make one synonymous with the other. Possession is broader than occupation because it
includes constructive possession. When, therefore, the law adds the word occupation, it seeks to delimit the allencompassing effect of constructive possession. Taken together with the words open, continuous, exclusive and
notorious, the word occupation serves to highlight the fact that for an applicant to qualify, his possession must not be a
mere fiction.22 Actual possession of a land consists in the manifestation of acts of dominion over it of such a nature as a
party would naturally exercise over his own property.
xvi. Director of Lands v. Daño, 96 SCRA 161 (1980)
Section 47 of Commonwealth Act No. 141, as amended by republic Act No. 2061, approved on June 13,1958, provides:
SEC. 47. The persons specified in the next following section are hereby granted time not to extend beyond
December thirty-one, nineteen hundred and sixty-eight within which to take advantage of the benefit of this chapter:
Provided, That the several periods of time designated by the President in accordance with section forty-five of this Act
shall apply also to the lands comprised in the provisions of this chapter, but this section shall not be construed as
prohibiting an of said persons from acting under this chapter at any time prior to the period fixed by the President.
The "next following section" referred to is section 48 of Commonwealth Act No. 141, as amended by Republic Act No.
1942, which reads as follows:
Sec. 48. The following described citizens of the Philippines, occupying lands of the public domain or claiming to own any
such land or an interest therein, But those titles have not been perfected or completed, may apply to the Court of First
Instance of the province where the land is located for confirmation of their claims and the issuance of a certificate of
title therefor, under the Land Registration Act, to wit:
xxxxxx xxx
(b)Those who by themselves or through their predecessors-in- interest have been in open, continuous, exclusive and
notorious possession and occupation of agricultural lands of the public domain, under a bona fide claim of acquisitionof
ownership, for at least thirty (30) years immediately preceding the filing of the application for confirmation of title
except when prevented by was or force majeure, there shall be conclusively presumed to have performed all the
conditions essential to a government grant and shall be entitled to a certificate of title under the provisions of this
Chapter.
The Court agrees with respondent Court that the period fixed by Section 47 of the Public Land Act CA 141), as amended,
is not jurisdictional but is more of a time limitation. As such, it is a defense or objection which should have been set up
either in a Motion to Dismiss or in an Answer. Inasmuch as petitioner had never pleaded the statute of limitations, he is
deemed to have waived the same.
The rule is that where the defendants never pleaded the statute of limitations that are deemed to have waived it and it
is error for the lower court to dismiss the proceeding on that ground.
xvii. Director v. Buyco, 216 SCRA 78 (1992)
As to the matter to be proved, the applicant must present evidence of an imperfect title such as those derived from the
old Spanish grants. He may also show that he has been in continuous, open and notorious possession and occupation of
agricultural lands of the public domain under a bona fide claim of acquisition of ownership and for the period prescribed
under Section 48(b) of the Public Land Act. Simply put, a person who seeks the registration of title to a piece of land on
the basis of possession by himself and his predecessors-in-interest must prove his claim by clear and convincing
evidence; he should not rely on the weakness of the evidence of the oppositors.
As defined, immemorial simply means beyond the reach of memory, beyond human memory, or time out of mind.
When referring to possession, specifically "immemorial possession," it means possession of which no man living has
seen the beginning and the existence of which he has learned from his elders. Such possession was never present in the
case of the private respondents.
Also, the Court has repeatedly held that the declaration of ownership for purposes of assessment on the payment of the
tax is not sufficient to prove ownership.
Considering that the private respondents became American citizens before such filing, it goes without saying that they
had acquired no vested right, consisting of an imperfect title over to property before they lost their Philippine
citizenship.
xviii. Republic v. CA, 148 SCRA 480 (1987)
A parcel of forest land is within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Bureau of Forestry and beyond the power and
jurisdiction of the cadastral court to register under the Torrens System. Moreover, it is well-settled that a certificate of
title is void, when it covers property of public domain classified as forest or timber and mineral lands. Any title issued on
non- disposable lots even in the hands of an alleged innocent purchaser for value, shall be cancelled. Note that in
granting titles to the land in dispute, the lower court counted the period of possession of private respondents before the
same were released as forest lands for disposition, which release is tantamount to qualifying the latter to a grant on said
lands while they were still non-disposable.
Thus, under the foregoing rulings, even assuming that the transferees are innocent purchasers for value, their titles to
said lands derived from the titles of private respondents which were not validly issued as they cover lands still a part of
the public domain, may be cancelled.
xix. SECTION 12, RA 8371
Registration Under The Indigenous Peoples Rights Act
Section 12. Option to Secure Certificate of Title under Commonwealth Act 141, as amended, or the Land Registration Act
496.
Individual members of cultural communities, with respect to individually-owned ancestral lands who, by themselves or
through their predecessors-in -interest, have been in continuous possession and occupation of the same in the concept
of owner since the immemorial or for a period of not less than thirty (30) years immediately preceding the approval of
this Act and uncontested by the members of the same ICCs/IPs shall have the option to secure title to their ancestral
lands under the provisions of Commonwealth Act 141, as amended, or the Land Registration Act 496.
For this purpose, said individually-owned ancestral lands, which are agricultural in character and actually used for
agricultural, residential, pasture, and tree farming purposes, including those with a slope of eighteen percent (18%) or
more, are hereby classified as alienable and disposable agricultural lands.
The option granted under this Section shall be exercised within twenty (20) years from the approval of this Act.
NOTES REGISTRATION UNDER IPRA:
1) Indigenous Peoples Rights Act:
a. Constitutional Provisions 1987 Constitution:
i. Section 2, Article II
The State recognizes and promotes the rights of indigenous cultural communities within the framework of
national unity and development.
ii. Section 5, Article XII
The State, subject to the provisions of this Constitution and national development policies and programs, shall
protect the rights of indigenous cultural communities to their ancestral lands to ensure their economic, social,
and cultural well-being.
The Congress may provide for the applicability of customary law governing property rights or relations in
determining the ownership and extent of ancestral domain.
iii. Section 6, Article XIII
The State shall establish a special agency for disabled persons for their rehabilitation, self-development and selfreliance, and their integration into the mainstream of society.
iv. Section 17, Article XIV
The State shall recognize, respect, and protect the rights of indigenous cultural communities to preserve and develop
their cultures, traditions, and institutions. It shall consider these rights in the formulation of national plans and policies.
v. The foregoing provisions are the cornerstone of the IPRA which was enacted to recognize and promote all the rights
of the indigenous cultural communities in the country.
b. Constitutionality of IPRA
i. As the votes were equally divided (7 to 7) and the necessary majority was not obtained, the case was
redeliberated upon. However, after redeliberation, the voting remained the same. Accordingly, pursuant to Rule
56, Section 7 of the Rules of Court, the petition was dismissed, and the questioned law was deemed upheld as
valid. (Cruz v. Secretary, 347 SCRA 128)
ii. In his separate opinion, Justice Puno said that the IPRA is a novel piece of legislation. It grants the ICCs/IPs a
distinct kind of ownership over ancestral domains and ancestral lands. He noted that land titles do not exist in
the indigenous peoples’ economic and social system. The concept of individual land ownership under the civil
law is alien to them. The IPRA categorically declares ancestral lands and domains held by native title as never to
have been public land. Domains and lands held under native title are, therefore, indisputably presumed to have
never been public lands and are private.(Cruz v. Secretary, 347 SCRA 128)
2) Definition of Terms:
a. Indigenous Cultural Communities/Indigenous Peoples – It refers to a group of people or homogenous
societies identified by self-ascription and ascription by others, who have continuously lived as organized
community on communally bounded and defined territory, and who have, under claims of ownership since time
immemorial, occupied, possessed and utilized such territories, sharing common bonds of language, customs,
traditions and other distinctive cultural traits, or who have, through resistance to political, social and cultural
inroads of colonization, non-indigenous religions and cultures, became historically differentiated from the
majority of Filipinos.
b. Ancestral Domains – It refers to all areas generally belonging to ICCs/IPs comprising lands, inland waters,
coastal areas, and natural resources therein, held under a claim of ownership, occupied or possessed by
ICCs/IPs, by themselves or through their ancestors, communally or individually since time immemorial,
continuously to the present except when interrupted by war, force majeure or displacement by force, deceit,
stealth or as a consequence of government projects or any other voluntary dealings entered into by government
and private individuals/corporations, and which are necessary to ensure their economic, social and cultural
welfare. It shall include ancestral lands, forests, pasture, residential, agricultural, and other lands individually
owned whether alienable and disposable or otherwise, hunting grounds, burial grounds, worship areas, bodies
of water, mineral and other natural resources.
c. Ancestral Lands – It refers to land occupied, possessed and utilized by individuals, families and clans who
are members of the ICCs/IPs since time immemorial, by themselves or through their predecessors-ininterest, under claims of individual or traditional group ownership, continuously, to the present except when
interrupted by war, force majeure or displacement by force, deceit, stealth, or as a consequence of government
projects and other voluntary dealings entered into by government and private individuals/corporations,
including, but not limited to, residential lots, rice terraces or paddies, private forests, swidden farms and tree
lots.
d. Native Title – It refers to pre-conquest rights to lands and domains which, as far back as memory reaches,
have been held under a claim of private ownership by ICCs/IPs, have never been public lands and are thus
indisputably presumed to have been held that way since before the Spanish Conquest.
e. Time Immemorial – It refers to a period of time when as far back as memory can go, certain ICCs/IPs are
known to have occupied, possessed in the concept of owner, and utilized a defined territory devolved to them,
by operation of customary law or inherited from their ancestors, in accordance with their customs and
traditions.
3) Indigenous Concept of Ownership:
a. The IPRA recognizes the existence of the indigenous cultural communities or indigenous peoples (ICCs/IPs) as
a distinct sector in Philippine society. It grants these people the ownership and possession of their ancestral
domains and ancestral lands, and defines the extent of these lands and domains.
b. The ownership given is the indigenous concept of ownership under customary law which traces its origin to
native title.
c. Ancestral lands/domains include such concepts of territories which cover not only the physical environment
but the total environment including the spiritual and cultural bonds to the areas which the ICCs/IPs possess,
occupy and use and to which they have claims of ownership.
d. Ancestral lands and ancestral domains are not deemed part of the lands of the public domain but are private
lands belonging to indigenous cultural communities or indigenous peoples (ICCs/IPs) who have actually
occupied, possessed and utilized their territories under claim of ownership since time immemorial.
4) The IPRA connotes group or communal ownership:
a. By virtue of the communal character of ownership, the property held in common is meant to benefit the
whole indigenous community and not merely the individual member.
b. This concept maintains the view that ancestral domains are the ICCs/IPs private but community property. It is
private simply because it is not part of the public domain. But its private character ends there.
c. The ancestral domain is owned in common by the ICCs/IPs and not by one particular person.
d. The domain cannot be transferred, sold or conveyed to other persons by any one person and belongs to the
ICCs/IPs as a community.
5) Ownership over the natural resources belong to the State:
a. While ancestral domains and ancestral lands are considered private in character, it does not necessarily mean
that natural resources found therein belong to the ICCs/IPs as private property.
b. Justice Kapunan, in Cruz v. Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources, opines that the mere fact that
Section 3(a) defines ancestral domains to include the natural resources found therein does not ipso
facto convert the character of such natural resources as private property of the indigenous people.
c. Justice Puno states that the ICCs/IPs rights over the natural resources the form of management or
stewardship.
d. ICCs/IPs have priority rights in the exploitation of natural resources within ancestral domains:
i. ICCs/IPs have priority rights in the harvesting, extraction, development or exploitation of any natural
resources within ancestral domains.
ii. A non-member of the ICCs/IPs may be allowed to take part in the development and utilization of the
natural resources for a period not exceeding 25 years renewable for not more than 25 years.
iii. It is important, however, that a formal written agreement is entered into with the ICCs/IPs
concerned, or that the community, pursuant to its own decision making process, has agreed to allow
such operation.
iv. Meanwhile, the NCCIP (National Commission on Indigenous Peoples) may exercise visitorial powers
and take appropriate action to safeguard the rights of the ICCs/IPs under the same contract.
e . ICCs/IPs do not lose possession over area covered by a TLA (Timber License Agreement):
i. Ancestral domains remain as such even when possession or occupation of the area has been
interrupted by causes provided under the law such as voluntary dealings entered into by the
government and private individuals/corporation.
6) Delineation and recognition of ancestral domains:
a. Under RA No. 8371, self-delineation is the guiding principle in the identification and delineation of ancestral
domains. The sworn statement of the elders as to the scope of the territories and agreements/pacts made with
neighboring ICCs/IPs, if any, will be essential to the determination of these traditional territories. The
government shall take the necessary steps to identify lands which the ICCs/IPs concerned traditionally occupy
and guarantee effective protection of their rights of ownership and possession thereto.
b. Procedures:
i. Ancestral Domains Delineated Prior to this Act - The provisions hereunder shall not apply to ancestral
domains/lands already delineated according to DENR Administrative Order No. 2, series of 1993, nor to
ancestral lands and domains delineated under any other community/ancestral domain program prior to
the enactment of his law.
ii. Petition for Delineation - The process of delineating a specific perimeter may be initiated by the NCIP
with the consent of the ICC/IP concerned, or through a Petition for Delineation filed with the NCIP, by a
majority of the members of the ICCs/IPs;
iii. Delineation Paper - The official delineation of ancestral domain boundaries including census of all
community members therein, shall be immediately undertaken by the Ancestral Domains Office upon
filing of the application by the ICCs/IPs concerned;
iv. Proof required - Proof of Ancestral Domain Claims shall include the testimony of elders or
community under oath, and other documents directly or indirectly attesting to the possession or
occupation of the area since time immemorial by such ICCs/IPs in the concept of owners which shall be
any one (1) of the following authentic documents:
1) Written accounts of the ICCs/IPs customs and traditions;
2) Written accounts of the ICCs/IPs political structure and institution;
3) Pictures showing long term occupation such as those of old improvements, burial grounds,
sacred places and old villages;
4) Historical accounts, including pacts and agreements concerning boundaries entered into by
the ICCs/IPs concerned with other ICCs/IPs;
5) Survey plans and sketch maps;
6) Anthropological data;
7) Genealogical surveys;
8) Pictures and descriptive histories of traditional communal forests and hunting grounds;
9) Pictures and descriptive histories of traditional landmarks such as mountains, rivers, creeks,
ridges, hills, terraces and the like; and
10) Write-ups of names and places derived from the native dialect of the community.
v. Preparation of Maps - On the basis of such investigation and the findings of fact based thereon, the Ancestral
Domains Office of the NCIP shall prepare a perimeter map, complete with technical descriptions, and a description of
the natural features and landmarks embraced therein;
vi. Report of Investigation and Other Documents - A complete copy of the preliminary census and a report of
investigation, shall be prepared by the Ancestral Domains Office of the NCIP;
vii. Notice and Publication - A copy of each document, including a translation in the native language of the ICCs/IPs
concerned shall be posted in a prominent place therein for at least fifteen (15) days. A copy of the document shall also
be posted at the local, provincial and regional offices of the NCIP, and shall be published in a newspaper of general
circulation once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks to allow other claimants to file opposition thereto within fifteen
(15) days from the date of such publication: Provided, That in areas where no such newspaper exists, broadcasting in a
radio station will be a valid substitute: Provided, further, That mere posting shall be deemed sufficient if both
newspaper and radio station are not available;
viii. Endorsement to NCIP - Within fifteen (15) days from publication, and of the inspection process, the Ancestral
Domains Office shall prepare a report to the NCIP endorsing a favorable action upon a claim that is deemed to have
sufficient proof. However, if the proof is deemed insufficient, the Ancestral Domains Office shall require thesubmission
of additional evidence: Provided, That the Ancestral
Domains Office shall reject any claim that is deemed patently false or fraudulent after inspection and verification:
Provided, further, That in case of rejection, the Ancestral Domains Office shall give the applicant due notice, copy
furnished all concerned, containing the grounds for denial. The denial shall be appealable to the NCIP: Provided,
furthermore, That in cases where there are conflicting claims, the Ancestral Domains Office shall cause the contending
parties to meet and assist them in coming up with a preliminary resolution of the conflict, without prejudice to its full
adjudication according to the selection below.
ix. Turnover of Areas Within Ancestral Domains Managed by Other Government Agencies - The Chairperson of the NCIP
shall certify that the area covered is an ancestral domain. The secretaries of the DAR, DENR, DILG, and DOJ, the
Commissioner of NDC, and any other government agency claiming jurisdiction over the area shall be notified thereof.
Such notification shall terminate any legal basis for the jurisdiction previously claimed;
x. Issuance of CADT - ICCs/IPs whose ancestral domains have been officially delineated and determined by the NCIP
shall be issued a CADT in the name of the community concerned, containing a list of all those identified in the census;
and
xi. Registration of CADTs - The NCIP shall register issued certificates of ancestral domain titles and certificates of
ancestral lands titles before the Register of Deeds in the place where the property is situated.
c. The NCIP is the agency authorized to issue a certification precondition in favor of any entity which desires to
undertake operations within the ancestral domains of the indigenous peoples or whose proposed projects will affect the
ancestral domains.
d. The law does not grant the executive department the power to delineate and recognize an ancestral domain claim by
mere agreement or compromise.
7) Identification, delineation and certification of ancestral lands:
a. The allocation of lands within any ancestral domain to individual or indigenous corporate (family or clan)
claimants shall be left to the ICCs/IPs concerned to decide in accordance with customs and traditions;
b. Individual and indigenous corporate claimants of ancestral lands which are not within ancestral domains may
have their claims officially established byfiling applications for the identification and delineation of their claims
with the Ancestral Domains Office. An individual or recognized head of a family or clan may file such application
in his behalf or in behalf of his family or clan, respectively;
c. Proofs of such claims shall accompany the application form which shall include the testimony under oath of
elders of the community and other documents directly or indirectly attesting to the possession or occupation of
the areas since time immemorial by the individual or corporate claimants in the concept of owners which shall
be any of the authentic documents enumerated under Sec. 52 (d) of this act, including tax declarations and
proofs of payment of taxes;
d. The Ancestral Domains Office may require from each ancestral claimant the submission of such other
documents, Sworn Statements and the like, which in its opinion, may shed light on the veracity of the contents
of the application/claim;
e. Upon receipt of the applications for delineation and recognition of ancestral land claims, the Ancestral
Domains Office shall cause the publication of the application and a copy of each document submitted including a
translation in the native language of the ICCs/IPs concerned in a prominent place therein for at least fifteen (15)
days. A copy of the document shall also be posted at the local, provincial, and regional offices of the NCIP and
shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks to allow
other claimants to file opposition thereto within fifteen (15) days from the date of such publication: Provided,
That in areas where no such newspaper exists, broadcasting in a radio station will be a valid substitute:
Provided, further, That mere posting shall be deemed sufficient if both newspapers and radio station are not
available
f. Fifteen (15) days after such publication, the Ancestral Domains Office shall investigate and inspect each
application, and if found to be meritorious, shall cause a parcellary survey of the area being claimed.
The Ancestral Domains office shall reject any claim that is deemed patently false or fraudulent after inspection
and verification. In case of rejection, the Ancestral Domains office shallgive the applicant due notice, copy
furnished all concerned, containing the grounds for denial. The denial shall be appealable to the NCIP. In case of
conflicting claims among individual or indigenous corporate claimants, the Ancestral domains Office shall cause
the contending parties to meet and assist them in coming up with a preliminary resolution of the conflict,
without prejudice to its full adjudication according to Sec. 62 of this Act; and
g. The Ancestral Domains Office shall prepare and submit a report on each and every application surveyed and
delineated to the NCIP, which shall, in turn, evaluate or corporate (family or clan) claimant over ancestral lands.
8) Registration of CADTs and CALTs:
a. The NCIP, through the ADO, shall register all CADTs and CALTs with the Register of Deeds of the place where
the properties are located.
b. The recordings of the CADT and CALT does not result in the issuance of a
Torrens certificate of title, like a Torrens title issued through regular registration proceedings.
c. The purpose of registration is simply to apprise the public of the fact of recognition by the NCIP of specific
claims to portions of ancestral domains or ancestral lands.
d. It is to be noted that no part of the ancestral domains may be the subject of alienation or disposition because
these are communally owned although private in nature.
e. On the other hand, ancestral lands may be the subject of registration under the Public Land Act or Property
Registration Decree.
f. In the event any part of the ancestral land is the subject of a subsequent “dealing,” like sale, mortgage,
or lease, the instrument embodying the transaction, together with the owner’s duplicate certificate shall be
presented to the Register of Deeds for him to annotate the encumbrance created by the instrument on said title
or to issue a new title to the person to whom the land has been conveyed.
9) Modes of Acquisition:
a. 2 Modes of Acquisition:
i. By Native Title over both ancestral lands and domains:
1.Native title refers to pre-conquest rights to lands and domains which, as far back as memory
reaches, have been held under a claim of ownership by indigenous cultural communities. Native
title presumes that the land is private and was never public.
ii. By Torrens Title under the Public Land Act (CA No. 141, as amended) or the Property Registration
Decree (PD No. 1529) with respect to ancestral lands only:
1. A Torrens certificate of title accumulates in one document a precise and correct statement of the
exact status of the fee simple title which an owner possesses. The certificate, once issued, is the
evidence of the title which the owner has. What appears on the title is controlling on questions of
ownership since the certificate of title is an absolute and indefeasible evidence of ownership of the
property in favor of the person whose name appears therein.
b. The IPRA converts ancestral land as public agricultural land for registration purposes:
i. There is no need to secure a separate certification that the ancestral land is A and D in character, it
being sufficient to show that the land is duly identified, delineated and certified as such.
ii. Unlike regular registration proceedings where the applicant must prove possession of public
agricultural land since June 12, 1945 as well as the classification of the land as A and D land at least at
the time the application for registration is filed, the registration of ancestral lands is different in the
sense that:
1. The applicant is a member of an indigenous cultural group;
2. He must have been in possession of an individually-owned ancestral land for not less than
thirty (30) years; and
3. By operation of law (IPRA), the land is already classified as alienable and disposable (A and D)
land, even if it has a slope of 18% or over, hence, there is no need to submit a separate
certification that the land has been classified as A and D land.
c. Effect of Registration:
i. A duly issued Torrens certificate of title covering ancestral lands has the same efficacy, validity and
indefeasibility as any title issued through regular registration proceedings.
ii. It is generally conclusive evidence of ownership.
iii. The title shall not be subject to collateral attach nor can it be impugned, altered, changed, modified,
enlarged or diminished except in a direct proceeding permitted by law.
iv. It is moreover subject to the rule on imprescriptibility.
v. The land shall not be subject to any burden except those noted on the certificate.
d. Transfer of Land or Property Rights:
i. The right of ownership and possession of the ICCs/IPs to their ancestral lands shall be recognized and
protected. These lands may be transferred subject to the following limitations:
1. Only to the members of the same ICCs/IPs;
2. In accord with customary laws and traditions; and
3. Subject to the right of redemption of the ICCs/IPs for a period of fifteen (15) years if the land
was transferred to a non- member of the ICCs/IPs.
ii. Unlike the ICCs/IPs private but communal ownership over ancestral domains which belong to all
generations and therefore cannot be sold, disposed or destroyed, ownership over the ancestral domains
allows the transfer of ancestral land or property rights thereto to members of the same group. This is in
keeping with the option given to ICCs/IPs to secure a Torrens title over the ancestral lands, but not to
domains.
e. Generally, no ancestral land shall be opened for mining operations:
i. No ancestral land shall be opened for mining operations without the prior consent of the indigenous
cultural community concerned. (Sec. 16 of RA No. 7942, Philippine Mining Act of 1995)
ii. In the event of an agreement for mining operations, the royalty payment, upon utilization of the
minerals, shall be agreed upon by the parties, and shall form part of a trust fund for the socioeconomic well- being of the indigenous cultural community.(Sec. 17 of RA No. 7942, Philippine Mining
Act of 1995)
iii. No ancestral land may be declared as a people’s small-scale mining area without the prior consent of
the cultural communities concerned. If ancestral lands are declared as people’s small-scale mining areas,
the members of the cultural communities therein shall be given priority in the awarding of smallscale mining contracts. (Section 7 of RA No. 7076, People’s Small-Scale Mining Act of 1991)
f. Authority of PEZA to issue building permits:
i. By specific provision of law, it is the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) which has authority to issue
building permits for the construction of structures within the areas owned or administered by it, whether on
public or private lands.
ii. PEZA may require owners of structures built without said permit to remove such structures.
iii. A certificate of ancestral land claim (CALC) is merely “a registered claim and not a proof of ownership.”
10) National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP):
a. Specific powers and functions:
i. Formulation of policies, issuance of rules and regulations:
1.The NCIP has been granted administrative, quasi-legislativeand quasi-judicial powers to carry out its
mandate.
2.It is the primary agency charged with the formulation and implementation of policies, plans, programs
and projects for the economic, social and cultural development of the ICCs/IPs and to monitor the
implementation thereof.
3.It is mandated to promulgate the necessary rules and regulations for the implementation of the Act.
ii. Resolution of conflicts:
1.The NCIP is vested with jurisdiction over all claims and disputes involving the rights of ICCs/IPs.
2.The only condition precedent to the NCIP’s assumption of jurisdiction over such disputes is that the
parties thereto shall have exhausted all remedies provided under their customary laws and have
obtained a certification from the Council of Elders/Leaders who participated in the attempt to settle the
dispute that the same has not been resolved.
3. The NCIP has the authority to decide all appeals from the decisions and acts of all the various offices
within the Commission.
4. Any decision, order, award or ruling of the NCIP on any ancestral domain dispute or on any matter
pertaining to the application, implementation, enforcement and interpretation of the Act may be
brought by a petition for review to the Court of Appeals within fifteen (15) days from receipt of a copy
thereof.
iii. Issuance of CADT/CALT:
1.The NCIP has the authority to issue certificates of ancestral domain title (CADT) or certificates of ancestral land title
(CALT).
iv. Cancellation of ancestral domain and ancestral land titles:
1. The NCIP has exclusive and original jurisdiction over petitions for the cancellation of Certificate of Ancestral
Domain Titles/Certificate of Ancestral Land Titles (CADTs/CALTs) alleged to have been fraudulently acquired by,
and issued to, any person or community as provided for under Section 54 of RA No. 8371, provided that such
action is filed within one (1) year from the date of registration.
2. It should be noted however that jurisdiction over actions or incidents affecting a certificate of title issued
through registration proceedings is vested in the courts of justice.
v. Issuance of certification as a precondition to the grant of permit:
1.The NCIP has the authority to issue the appropriate certification as a pre-condition to the grant of permit,
lease, grant, or any other similar authority for the disposition, utilization and management of portions of the
ancestral domain with the consensus approval of the ICCs/IPs concerned.
vi. Power to cite for contempt, issue restraining order; Among the other powers of the NCIP are the following:
1. To promulgate rules and regulations governing the hearing and disposition of cases filed before it as well as
those pertaining to its internal functions and such rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry out the
purposes of this Act;
2. To administer oaths, summon the parties to a controversy, issue subpoenas requiring the attendance and
testimony of witnesses or the production of such books, papers, contracts, records, agreements, and other
document of similar nature as may be material to a just determination of the matter under investigation or
hearing conducted in pursuance of this Act;
3. To hold any person in contempt, directly or indirectly, and impose appropriate penalties therefor; and
4. To enjoin any or all acts involving or arising from any case pending before it which, if not restrained forthwith,
may cause grave or irreparable damage to any of the parties to the case or seriously affect social or economic
activity.
b. Regional Hearing Offices:
i. Original and Exclusive Jurisdiction:
1. All disputes and controversies involving ancestral lands /domains;
2. Violations of the requirement of free and prior and informed consent of ICCs/IPs;
3. Actions for the enforcement of decisions of ICCs/IPs involving violations of customary laws or
desecration of ceremonial sites, sacred places, or rituals;
4. Actions for redemption/reconveyance under Section 8(b) of RA No. 8371;
5. And cases analogous to the foregoing.
ii. Original Jurisdiction:
1. Cases affecting
a. property rights
b. claims of ownership
c. hereditary succession
d. and settlement of land disputes between and among ICCs/IPs that have not been settled under
customary laws
2. Actions for damages arising out of any violation of Republic Act No. 8371.
c. Ancestral Domains Office:
i. One of the offices under the NCIP;
ii. The ADO shall be responsible for the identification, delineation and recognition of ancestral lands/domains.
iii. ADO shall also be responsible for the management of ancestral lands/domains in accordance with a master
plan as well as the implementation of the ancestral domain rights of the ICCs/IPs as provided in Chapter III of the
IPRA.
iv. ADO shall also issue, upon the free and prior informed consent of the ICCs/IPs concerned, certification prior
to the grant of any license, lease or permit for the exploitation of natural resources affecting the interests of
ICCs/IPs or their ancestral domains and to assist the ICCs/IPs in protecting the territorial integrity of all ancestral
domains.
v.ADO shall likewise perform such other functions as the NCIP may deem appropriate and necessary.
ADDITIONAL NOTES SEC. 14 of the PRD:
1) System of Registration:
a. There are two systems of registration: one for registered lands under PD No. 1529 (Property Registration
Decree) and the other for unregistered lands under Act No. 3344.
b. If a parcel of land covered by a Torrens title is sold, but the sale is registered under Act No. 3344 and not
under the Property Registration Decree, the sale is not considered registered.
c. There can be no constructive notice through registration under Act No. 3344 if the property is registered
under the Torrens system, nor can the registration be effective for purposes of Article 1544 of the Civil Code on
double sale.
d. The recording of instruments relating to unregistered lands is governed by Section 113 of PD No. 1529 which
provides that no deed, conveyance, mortgage, lease or other voluntary instrument affecting land not registered
under the Torrens system shall be valid, except as between the parties thereto, unless such instrument shall
have been recorded in the office of the Register of Deeds.
e. The recording, however, shall be without prejudice to a third party with a better right.
2) Laws governing land registration:
a. Public Land Act (CA No. 141)
i. Approved on November 7, 1936, but which became effective on December 1, 1936;
ii. Voluntary;
iii. The Public Land Act governs the judicial confirmation of imperfect or incomplete titles on the basis of
possession and occupation o alienable portions of the public domain in the manner and for the length of time
required by law;
iv.The relevant provisions are Sections 47 to 57, Chapter VIII of the Act.
b. Property Registration Decree (PD No. 1529)
i. Issued on June 11, 1978;
ii. Voluntary;
iii. The Property Registration Decree is a codification of all laws relative to registration of property,
and supersedes all other laws relative to registration of property;
iv. It has substantially incorporated the provisions of Act No. 496, or the Land Registration Act.
c. Cadastral Act (Act No. 2259)
i. Enacted on February 11, 1913;
ii. Compulsory as it is the government itself which initiates the petition;
iii. Cadastral Act is an offspring of the system of registration under the Land Registration Act.
iv. It aims to serve public interests by requiring that the title to any lands be titled and adjudicated;
v. It may be noted, however, that salient provisions in the Cadastral Act have now been carried over in the
present Property Registration Decree, particularly in Sections 35 to 38 of the Decree.
d. Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (RA No. 8371)
i. Approved on October 29, 1997;
ii. Voluntary;
iii. IPRA recognizes the rights of ownership and possession of indigenous cultural communities or indigenous
peoples (ICCs/IPs) to their ancestral domains and ancestral land on the basis of native title, and defines the
extent of these lands and domains.
iv. For purposes of registration, the IPRA expressly converts ancestral lands into public agricultural lands, and
individual members of cultural communities, with respect to their individually-ownedancestral lands, shall have
the option to secure title to their ancestral lands under the provisions of the Public Land Act of the Property
Registration Decree.
v. This option is limited to ancestral lands only, not domains, and such lands must be individually, not
communally, owned.
3) Vested rights cannot be impaired by subsequent law:
a. Vested rights may not be impaired without violating one’s right to due process;
b. A right is vested when the right to enjoyment, present or prospective, has become the property of some
particular person or persons as a present interest.
c. It is some right or interest in property which has become fixed and established and is no longer open to doubt
or controversy.
d. A State may not impair vested rights by legislative enactment by the enactment or by the subsequent repeal
of a municipal ordinance, or by a change in the constitution of the State, except in a legitimate exercise of the
police power.
B. Forms and Contents Dealing With Land
i. Section 15. Form and Contents.
The application for land registration shall be in writing, signed by the application or the person duly authorized in his
behalf, and sworn to before any officer authorized to administer oaths for the province or city where the application was
actually signed. If there is more than one applicant, the application shall be signed and sworn to by and in behalf of
each. The application shall contain a description of the land and shall state the citizenship and civil status of the
applicant, whether single or married, and, if married, the name of the wife or husband, and, if the marriage has been
legally dissolved, when and how the marriage relation terminated. It shall also state the full names and addresses of all
occupants of the land and those of the adjoining owners, if known, and, if not known, it shall state the extent of the
search made to find them.
The application, shall, in form, be substantially as follows:
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
REGIONAL TRIAL COURT of _________________
The undersigned,____________________hereby applies (or apply) to have the land hereinafter described brought under
the operation of the Property Registration Decree, and to have the title thereto registered and confirmed:
AND DECLARE . . . . .
1.That the applicants/s is/are the owners of the land (by virtue of inheritance or deed of sale or conveyance and/or
possession in accordance with Section 14 of said Decree), together with the building and improvements thereon, with
the exception of the following:_____________________ which is/are the property of __________________
residing at __________________ The said land, consisting of __________________ parcel/s is/are situated, bounded
and described as shown on the plan and technical descriptions attached hereto and made a part hereof, with the
following exception:_________________________.
2.That said land at the last assessment for taxation was assessed at P ____, Philippine currency, and the buildings and
other improvements at P ___________, Philippine currency.
3.That to the best of my/our knowledge and belief, there is no mortgage or encumbrance of any kind whatsoever
affecting said land, nor any other person having any interest therein, legal or equitable, or in possession, other than as
follows:__________________________________.
4.That the applicant/s has/have acquired said land in the following manner: ________________________________.
(Note: Refer to Sec. 14 of said Decree. State also whether the property is conjugal, paraphernal or exclusive property of
the applicant/s)
5.That said land is occupied by the following person: _________________.
6.That the names in full and addresses, as far as known to the undersigned, of the owners of all adjoining properties, of
the persons mentioned in paragraphs 3 and 5, and of the persons shown on the plan as claimants, are as follows:
_________________________________________.
7.That the applicant/s is/are single or married to____________________ (Note: if marriage has been legally dissolved,
state when and how the marriage relation terminated.)_______________________.
8.That the applicant's/s' full name, age, citizenship, residence, and postal address/es is/are as follows:
_______________________________.
9.That (Note: If the land included in the application is bounded by a public or private way or road, there should be stated
in this paragraph whether or not the applicant claims any and what land within the limits of the way or road and
whether the applicant desires to have the line of the way or road determined.)
______________________________.
10.That the following documents are attached hereto and made a part hereof:
___________________________________.
Signed at ___________________ this _____________________ day of ____________________, in the year twenty
hundred and ______________________.
__________________________
Applicant
_________________________
(Post Office Address)
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
PROVINCE (OR CITY) OF _______________
On this ___ day of _________,20 ___ personally appeared before me the above- named ____________________ known
to me to be the person/s who executed the foregoing application and made oath that the statements therein are true of
his/their knowledge, information and belief.
The Residence Certificate/s __________ of the applicant/s __________ was/were exhibited to me being No. _______
issued at _________ dated _______, 20___.
________________________
(Notary Public, or other Officer authorized to administer oaths)
PTR NO. _________________
NOTES SECTION 15 of PRD:
1) Requisite steps in bringing land under the Torrens System. Subject to the conditions provided for in Section 15 of the
PRD, application for land registration shall provide information on the following:
a. Survey of land by the Lands Management Bureau or a duly licensed private surveyor;
b. Filing of application for registration by the applicant;
c. Setting of the date for the initial hearing of the application by the court;
d. Transmittal of the application and the date of initial hearing together with all the documents or other
evidences attached thereto by the Clerk of Court to the Land Registration Authority;
e. Publication of the notice of the filing of the application and date and place of the hearing in the Official
Gazette and in a newspaper of general circulation;
f. Service by mailing of notice upon contiguous owners, occupants and those known to have interests in the
property;
g. Posting by the sheriff of the notice in a conspicuous place on the land and in the bulletin board of the
municipal building or city where the land is situated;
h. Filing of answer to the application by any person whether named in the notice or not;
i. Hearing of the case by the court;
j. Promulgation of judgment by the court;
k. Issuance of an order for the issuance of a decree declaring the decision final and instructing the Land
Registration Authority to issue the decree of confirmation and registration;
l. Entry of the decree of registration in the Land Registration Authority;
m. Sending of copy of the decree of registration to the corresponding Register of Deeds; and
n. Transcription of the decree of registration in the registration book and the issuance of the owner’s duplicate
original certificate of title to the applicant by the Register of Deeds, upon payment of the prescribed fees.
2)Form and contents of the application for registration:
a. Full description of the land as evidenced by a survey plan duly approved by the Director of Lands, surveyor’s
certificate, and technical description;
b. Citizenship and civil status of the applicant, whether single or married, and, if married, the name of the wife
or husband, and, if the marriage has been legally dissolved, when and how the marriage relation terminated;
c. Full names and addresses of all occupants of the land and those of the adjoining owners, if known, and, if not
known, it shall state the extent of the search made to find them;
d. Assessed value of the land and the buildings and improvements thereon;
e. Whether or not there are mortgages or encumbrances of any kind whatsoever affecting the land, or any
other person having any interest therein, legal or equitable, or in possession, thereof;
f. The manner by which the applicant has acquired the land (refer to Section14, PD No. 1529);
g. Whether or not the property is conjugal, paraphernal or exclusive property of the applicant;
h. Names of all occupants of the land, if any;
i. Original muniments of title and other related documents supporting applicants claim of ownership; and
i. Muniments of Title- are instruments or written evidence which applicant holds or possesses to enable him to
substantiate and prove title to his estate.
j. If the land is bounded by a public or private way or road, whether or not the applicant claims any and what
portion of the land within the limits of the way or road, and whether the applicant desires to have the line of the
way or road determined.
Section 16. Non-resident applicant.
If the applicant is not a resident of the Philippines, he shall file with his application an instrument in due form appointing
an agent or representative residing in the Philippines, giving his full name and postal address, and shall therein agree
that the service of any legal process in the proceedings under or growing out of the application made upon his agent or
representative shall be of the same legal effect as if made upon the applicant within the Philippines. If the agent or
representative dies, or leaves the Philippines, the applicant shall forthwith make another appointment for the
substitute, and, if he fails to do so the court may dismiss the application.
NOTES SECTION 16 of PRD:
1) Non-resident applicant may be represented by an attorney-in-fact:
a. A special power of attorney executed before a notary public or other competent official in a foreign country
cannot be admitted in evidence unless it is duly certified in accordance with Section 24, Rule 132 of the Rules of
Court, i.e., by the secretary of embassy or legation, consul general, consul, vice consul or consular agent or
by any officer in the foreign service of the Philippines stationed in the foreign country in which the record is
kept, and authenticated by the seal of his office.
Section 17. What and where to file.
The application for land registration shall be filed with the Court of First Instance of the province or city where the land
is situated. The applicant shall file together with the application all original muniments of titles or copies thereof and a
survey plan of the land approved by the Bureau of Lands.
The clerk of court shall not accept any application unless it is shown that the applicant has furnished the Director of
Lands with a copy of the application and all annexes.
NOTES SECTION 17 of PRD:
1)The application for registration must be accompanied by a survey plan of the land duly approved by the Director of
Lands, together with the claimant’s muniments of title to prove ownership.
2)No plan or survey may be admitted in land registration proceedings until approved by the Director of Lands.
Section 18. Application covering two or more parcels.
An application may include two or more parcels of land belonging to the applicant/s provided they are situated within
the same province or city. The court may at any time order an application to be amended by striking out one or more of
the parcels or by a severance of the application.
Section 19. Amendments.
Amendments to the application including joinder, substitution, or discontinuance as to parties may be allowed by the
court at any stage of the proceedings upon just and reasonable terms.
Amendments which shall consist in a substantial change in the boundaries or an increase in area of the land applied for
or which involve the inclusion of an additional land shall be subject to the same requirements of publication and notice
as in an original application.
NOTES SECTIONS 18 & 19 of PRD:
1) A single application may be filed for two or more parcels:
a. Where during the pendency of an application for registration, the applicant sold the property to another
under pacto de retro, but owing to the lapse of the redemption period, ownership became consolidated in the
vendee, the latter as the new and lawful owner is entitled to be subrogated in place of the applicant and may
continue the proceedings in the case and finally obtain title as owner.
2) Substantial amendment of boundaries or area requires publication and notice:
a. It is not permissible to make amendments or alterations in the description of the land after its publication in
the newspapers and after the registration of the property has been decreed, without the publication of new
notifications and advertisements making known to everyone the said alterations and amendments.
i. Otherwise, the law would be infringed with respect to the publicity which characterizes the
procedure, and third parties who have not had an opportunity to present their claims, might be
seriously affected in their rights, through failure of opportune notice.
b. Publication is one of the essential bases of the jurisdiction of the court in land registration and cadastral
cases, and additional territory cannot be included by amendment of the plan without new publication.
c. If new survey plans do not conform to the plans earlier presented and affect the rights of third
persons, notice shall be given them and an opportunity to present whatever opposition they may have to the
registration of the land included in the new plans.
d. If the amendment does not involve an addition, but on the contrary, a reduction of the original area that was
published, no new publication is required.
Section 20. When land applied for borders on road.
If the application describes the land as bounded by a public or private way or road, it shall state whether or not the
applicant claims any and what portion of the land within the limits of the way or road, and whether the applicant desires
to have the line of the way or road determined.
Section 21. Requirement of additional facts and papers; ocular inspection.
The court may require facts to be stated in the application in addition to those prescribed by this Decree not
inconsistent therewith and may require the filing of any additional paper. It may also conduct an ocular inspection, if
necessary.
Section 22. Dealings with land pending original registration.
After the filing of the application and before the issuance of the decree of registration, the land therein described may
still be the subject of dealings in whole or in part, in which case the interested party shall present to the court the
pertinent instruments together with a subdivision plan approved by the Director of Lands in case of transfer of portions
thereof and the court, after notice to the parties, shall order such land registered subject to the conveyance or
encumbrance created by said instruments, or order that the decree of registration be issued in the name of the person
to whom the property has been conveyed by said instruments.
NOTES SECTION 22 of PRD:
1) Dealings with the land while its registration is pending:
a. Whatever may be the nature of the transaction, the interested party should submit to the court the pertinent
instruments evidencing the transaction to be considered in the final adjudication of the case.
b. The applicant or the parties to the transaction ay file the corresponding motion or manifestation, indicating
the relief desired.
c. In case of transfer of a portion of the land, the corresponding subdivision plan should also be presented.
d. Upon notice to the parties, the court shall:
i. Order the land registered subject to the conveyance or encumbrance created by such instruments, or
ii. Order that the decree of registration be issued in the name of the person to whom the property has
been conveyed.
e. It should be noted that the adjudication of land in a land registration or cadastral proceeding does not
become final, in the sense of incontrovertibility, until after one year from the entry of the final decree prepared
by the LRA.
f. As long as the final decree has not been entered, and the one-year period has not elapsed from such entry,
the title is not deemed finally adjudicated and the decision in the registration proceeding continues to be under
the control of the court.
g. Hence, transactions affecting the property pending registration should be made known to the court for
appropriate consideration.
2) Dealings or transactions entered into pending registration do not require amendment of application:
a. Section 22 should be differentiated from Section 19 which refers to amendments to the application by
joinder, substitution or discontinuance of the parties.
b. On the other hand, Section 108 involves amendments after entry of the certificate of title.
c. Section 22 does not require amendment of the application, it being sufficient that the court, by motion or
other appropriate pleading, be presented with the instruments evidencing the transaction, and the approved
subdivision plan where a portion of the land is conveyed to another.
d. The law does not require that the application for registration be amended by substituting the buyer or the
person to whom the property has been conveyed for the applicant.
i. Neither does it require that the buyer or the person to whom the property has been conveyed be a
party to the case.
ii. He may thus be a total stranger to the land registration proceedings.
iii. The only requirements of the law are:
1.That the instrument be presented to the court by the interested party together with a motion
that the same be considered in relation with the application; and
2.That prior notice be given to the parties to the case.
e. A motion to lift order of general default and motion under Section 22 may not be filed after the finality of the
judgment in the registration case.
ii. Divina v. CA, 352 SCRA 527 (2001)
Section 15 of P.D. 1529 is explicit in requiring that in the application for registration of land titles, the application "shall
also state the full names and addresses of all occupants of the land and those of the adjoining owners if known, and if
not known, it shall state the extent of the search made to find them.
As early as Francisco vs. Court of Appeals, 97 SCRA 22 [1980], we emphasized that a mere statement of the lack of
knowledge of the names of the occupants and adjoining owners is not sufficient but "what search has been made to find
them is necessary."
The trial court was correct when it took notice that respondent's sister Lydia Gajo- Anonuevo admitted that she had a
conversation with petitioner's cousin elena Dumalaon about the latter's apprehension that their land may have been
included in respondent's application for registration of the disputed land. Respondent's omission of this material
information prevented petitioner from having his day in court.
The trial court in its decision more than amply supported its conclusion with jurisprudence to the effect that it is fraud to
knowingly omit or conceal a fact upon which benefit is obtained to the prejudice of a third person. Such omission cannot
but be deliberate misrepresentation constituting fraud, a basis for allowing a petition for review of judgment under
Section 38 of Act No. 496, The Land Registration Act.
iii. Republic v. Vda. De Neri, 424 SCRA 676 (2004)
Applicants for land registration are required to append a survey plan to their application, duly approved by the Bureau
of Lands which is mentioned in Sec. 17. Of the PD 1529stating that the application for land registration shall be filed with
the Court of First Instance of the province or city where the land is situated. The applicant shall file together with the
application all original muniments of titles or copies thereof and a survey plan approved by the Bureau of Lands.
The submission of the plan approved by the Director of the Bureau of Lands is a statutory requirement which is
mandatory in nature. The plan approved by the Land Registration Commission is of no value. It behooved the trial court
not to take cognizance of any application for land registration in the absence of a survey plan duly approved by the
Director of the Bureau of Lands appended thereto.
No plan or survey may be admitted in land registration proceedings until approved by the Director of Lands. The
submission of the plan is a statutory requirement of mandatory character. Unless a plan and its technical description are
duly approved by the Director of
Lands, the same are of no value. It is a rule that "void ab initio land titles issued cannot ripen into private ownership
therefore, said lands cannot be registered under the respondents’ name.
iv. Caoibes, Jr. v. Caoibes-Pantoja, 496 SCRA 273 (2006)
The law does not require that the application for registration be amended by substituting the "buyer" or the "person to
whom the property has been conveyed" for the applicant. Neither does it require that the "buyer" or the "person to
whom the property has been conveyed" be a party to the case.
He may thus be a total stranger to the land registration proceedings. The only requirements of the law are: (1) that the
instrument be presented to the court by the interested party together with a motion that the same be considered in
relation with the application; and (2) that prior notice be given to the parties to the case.
Sec. 22 of P.D. 1529 (Property Registration Decree which became effective on June 11, 1978), provides:
SEC. 22. Dealings with land pending original registration. After the filing of the application and before the issuance of
the decree of registration, the land therein described may still be the subject of dealings in whole or in part, in which
case the interested party shall present to the court the pertinent instruments together with the subdivision plan
approved by the Director of Lands in case of transfer of portions thereof, and the court, after notice to the parties, shall
order such land registered subject to the conveyance or encumbrance created by said instruments, or order that the
decree of registration be issued in the name of the person to whom the property has been conveyed by said
instruments.
v. Republic v. Muñoz, 536 SCRA 108 (2007)
It bears stressing that the constructive seizure of land accomplished by posting of notices and processes upon all persons
mentioned in notices by means of publication and sending copies to said persons by registered mail in effect gives the
court jurisdiction over the lands sought to be registered.
It is true that the best evidence to identify a piece of land for registration purposes is the original tracing cloth plan from
the Bureau of Lands, but blueprint copies and other evidence could also provide sufficient identification.
The Court held in Recto v. Republic that the blueprint copy of the cloth plan together with the lot’s technical
description duly certified as to their correctness by the Bureau of Lands are adequate to identify the land applied for
registration.
C. Publication, Opposition and Default
i. Section 23. Notice of initial hearing, publication, etc.
The court shall, within five days from filing of the application, issue an order setting the date and hour of the initial
hearing which shall not be earlier than forty- five days nor later than ninety days from the date of the order.
The public shall be given notice of the initial hearing of the application for land registration by means of (1) publication;
(2) mailing; and (3) posting.
1. By publication.
Upon receipt of the order of the court setting the time for initial hearing, the Commissioner of Land Registration
shall cause notice of initial hearing to be published once in the Official Gazette and once in a newspaper of
general circulation in the Philippines: Provided, however, that the publication in the Official Gazette shall be
sufficient to confer jurisdiction upon the court. Said notice shall be addressed to all persons appearing to have
an interest in the land involved including the adjoining owners so far as known, and "to all whom it may
concern". Said notice shall also require all persons concerned to appear in court at a certain date and time to
show cause why the prayer of said application shall not be granted.
2.By mailing.
a) Mailing of notice to persons named in the application. The Commissioner of Land Registration shall also,
within seven days after publication of said notice in the Official Gazette, as hereinbefore provided, cause a copy
of the notice of initial hearing to be mailed to every person named in the notice whose address is known.
b) Mailing of notice to the Secretary of Public Highways, the Provincial Governor and the Mayor. If the applicant
requests to have the line of a public way or road determined, the Commissioner of Land Registration shall cause
a copy of said notice of initial hearing to be mailed to the Secretary of Public Highways, to the Provincial
Governor, and to the Mayor of the municipality or city, as the case may be, in which the land lies.
c) Mailing of notice to the Secretary of Agrarian Reform, the Solicitor General, the Director of Lands, the
Director of Public Works, the Director of Forest Development, the Director of Mines and the Director of Fisheries
and Aquatic Resources. If the land borders on a river, navigable stream or shore, or on an arm of the sea where
a river or harbor line has been established, or on a lake, or if it otherwise appears from the application or the
proceedings that a tenant-farmer or the national government may have a claim adverse to that of the applicant,
notice of the initial hearing shall be given in the same manner to the Secretary of Agrarian Reform, the Solicitor
General, the Director of Lands, the Director of Mines and/or the Director of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, as
may be appropriate.
3.By posting.
The Commissioner of Land Registration shall also cause a duly attested copy of the notice of initial hearing to be
posted by the sheriff of the province or city, as the case may be, or by his deputy, in a conspicuous place on each
parcel of land included in the application and also in a conspicuous place on the bulletin board of the municipal
building of the municipality or city in which the land or portion thereof is situated, fourteen days at least before
the date of initial hearing.
The court may also cause notice to be served to such other persons and in such manner as it may deem proper.
The notice of initial hearing shall, in form, be substantially as follows:
(Caption and Title)
NOTICE OF INITIAL HEARING
To (here insert the names of all persons appearing to have an interest and the adjoining owners so far as known, and to
all whom it may concern):
An application (or petition) having been filed in the above-entitled case by (full name and address) praying for the
registration and confirmation (or for the settlement and adjudication, in case of petition in cadastral proceedings) of title
to the following described lands:
(Insert description)
You are hereby served this notice to appear before this Court at its session to be held at ____________ on the____ day
of_________, 20 ___, at_______ o'clock in the _________ then and there to present such claims as you may have to
said lands or any portion thereof, and to submit evidence in support of such claim; and unless you appear at said Court
at the time and place aforesaid, your default will be recorded and the title to the lands will be adjudicated and
determined in accordance with law and the evidence before the Court, and thereafter you will forever be barred from
contesting said application (or petition) or any decree entered thereon.
Witness, the Hon. ________________ Judge of the Regional Trial Court of _______ this ____ day of_____________, in
the year 20____.
Attest:
Administrator, Land Registration Authority
NOTES SECTION 23 of PRD:
1)Notice of Initial Hearing
a.The duty and the power to set the hearing date lie with the land registration court. After an applicant has filed
his application, the law requires the issuance of a court order setting the initial hearing date. The notice of initial
hearing is signed by the judge and copy of the notice is mailed by the clerk of court to the LRA. This involves a
process to which the party applicant absolutely has no participation.(see Republic v. Manna Properties, Inc.,)
b.Publication
i. Purpose of publication – Two-Fold:
1. To confer jurisdiction upon the court over the res, and
2. To apprise the whole world of the pending registration case so that they may assert their
rights or interests in the land, if any, and oppose the application, if so minded.
a. Constructive seizure of the land for registration is effected through publication of the application for
registration and posting and service of notice to affected parties.
ii.Publication of notice of initial hearing(see Section 23 [1] of the PRD)
iii.Publication in a newspaper is necessary to accord with due process requirement:
1.While publication of the notice in the Official Gazette is sufficient to confer jurisdiction upon
the court, publication in a newspaper of general circulation remains an indispensable procedural
requirement. Couched in mandatory terms, it is a component of procedural due process and
aimed at giving as wide publicity as possible so that all persons having an adverse interest in
the land subject of the registration proceedings may be notified thereof. Although jurisdiction of
the court is not affected, the fact that publication was not made in a newspaper of general
circulation is material and relevant in assessing the applicant’s right or title to the land. (Roxas v.
Court of Appeals) (see also Director or Lands v. CA and Abistado)
iv.Publication in the Official Gazette does not dispense with the requirement of notice by mailing and
posting
1.This is obvious from Section 23 itself which stresses in detail the requirements of mailing of
notices to all persons named in the petition who, per Section 15, include owners of adjoining
properties, and occupants of the land.
v. Lack of personal notice does not vitiate the proceedings
1.A proceeding in rem, dealing with a tangible res, may be instituted and carried to judgment,
without personal service upon the claimants, for jurisdiction is secured by the power of the
court over the res.
2.Personal notice is not necessary unless required by the court.
3.see Adez Realty, Inc. v. CA
Vi .Purpose of notice by all three modes
1.The purpose of the law in requiring the giving of notice by all three modes is to strengthen the
Torrens system through safeguards to prevent anomalous titling of real property.
vii. New publication necessary to include additional area
1.
The purpose of the new publication is to give notice to all persons concerned regarding the
amended application.
Without a new publication the registration court cannot acquire jurisdiction over the area or
parcel of land that is added to the area covered by the original application, and the decision of
the registration court would be a nullity insofar as the decision concerns the newly included
land.
2. But if the amendment consists in the exclusion of a portion of the area covered by the
original application and the original plan as previously published, a new publication is not
necessary. In this case, the jurisdiction of the court over the remaining area is not affected by
the failure of a new publication.
3. Where the identity and area of the claimed property are not the subject of amendment but
merely other collateral matters, a new publication is not needed.
4. The right of the land registration court to correct an error of closure is authorized by law,
provided such correction does not include land not included in the original petition.
viii. Effect of non- or defective publication
1.Where there is no publication of the notice of initial hearing, the decision of the land
registration court is void.
The requirement of publication is one of the essential bases of the jurisdiction of the registration
court; it is a jurisdictional requisite.
2.A mere defect of publication deprives the court of jurisdiction. And when the court a quo lacks
jurisdiction to take cognizance of a case, the same lacks authority over the whole case and all its
aspects.
c.Mailing
i.Mailing to persons named in the application
1.This requirement is mandatory.
ii.Mailing to the Secretary of Public (Works) and Highways, Governor and Mayor
1.If the applicant requests to have the line of a public way or road determined.
iii.Mailing to the Secretary of Agrarian Reform, Solicitor General, Director of Lands, Etc.
1.If the land borders on a river, navigable stream or shore, or an arm of the sea; or
2.If it otherwise appears that a tenant-farmer, or the national government, may have a claim adverse to the
applicant.
iv.Role of the Solicitor General
1.In practice, the Solicitor General is invariably furnished with a copy of the notice of initial hearing. The reason
for this is that under the Administrative Code of 1987, the Solicitor General is bound to represent the
Government in all land registration and related proceedings.
2.As a rule, only notices of court proceedings and related processes actually served upon the Solicitor
General are binding on his office.
3.The Solicitor General, therefore, has control and supervision over the special attorney or prosecutor who has
been deputized to appear for him.
4.Service of orders and decision on the OSG, and not merely on its deputized special attorneys, in court cases
involving land registration and naturalization proceedings, is mandatory.
5.The Solicitor General is the only legal counsel of the government in land registration cases and as such, he
alone may withdraw the government’s appeal with binding effect on the latter.
d.Posting
i. This requirement is also mandatory.
Section 24. Proof of publication and notice.
The certification of the Commissioner of Land Registration and of the sheriff concerned to the effect that the notice of
initial hearing, as required by law, has been complied with shall be filed in the case before the date of initial hearing, and
shall be conclusive proof of such fact.
NOTES SECTION 24 of PRD:
1)The certification by the LRA Administrator as to the fact of publication and mailing, and that of the sheriff as to
posting, as required by law, are conclusive.
Section 25. Opposition to application in ordinary proceedings.
Any person claiming an interest, whether named in the notice or not, may appear and file an opposition on or before the
date of initial hearing, or within such further time as may be allowed by the court. The opposition shall state all the
objections to the application and shall set forth the interest claimed by the party filing the same and apply for the
remedy desired, and shall be signed and sworn to by him or by some other duly authorized person.
If the opposition or the adverse claim of any person covers only a portion of the lot and said portion is not properly
delimited on the plan attached to the application, or in case of undivided co-ownership, conflicting claims of ownership
or possession, or overlapping of boundaries, the court may require the parties to submit a subdivision plan duly
approved by the Director of Lands.”
NOTES SECTION 25 of PRD:
1) Requisites for opposing application:
a. For an opposition then to be considered, the following requisites must concur:
i.The oppositor must have an interest in the land applied for;
ii.He should state the grounds for his objection as well as the nature of his claimed interest;
iii.He should indicate the desired relief; and
iv.The opposition should be signed and sworn to by him or by his duly authorized representative.
b. It has been held, however, that unverified oppositions in land registration proceedings are nevertheless
sufficient to confer standing in court to oppositors who may be allowed to verify their oppositions later on,
especially where said defect is deemed waived by the applicant’s failure to invoke said requirement seasonably.
c. It was a substantial compliance with the law that required a formal answer.
2) Nature of interest to support opposition:
a. Opposition to an application for registration of the title must be based on the right of dominion or some other
real right opposed to the adjudication or recognition of the ownership of the applicant, whether it be limited or
absolute.
b. To give a person a legal standing to object to the application for registration, he must make some claim to the
property.
c. All that is necessary to enable one to exert the faculty of opposition is that he should appear to have an
interest in the property. It is immaterial whether this interest is in the character of legal owner or is of a purely
equitable nature as where he is the beneficiary in a trust.
d. A claim merely noted on the survey plan cannot prevail over the actual decree of registration as reproduced
in the certificate.
e. The phrase claim of ownership means the possession of a piece of property with the intention of claiming it
in hostility to the true owner.It is also defined as a party’s manifest intention to take over land, regardless of
title or right.
3) Failure to file opposition, effect of:
a. Where no answer in writing or any opposition is made to an application for registration of property, all the
allegations contained in the application shall be held as confessed by reason of the absence of denial on the part
of the opponent.
b. It has been held that a claimant having failed to present his answer or objection to the registration of a parcel
of land under the Torrens system or to question the validity of such registration within a period of one (1) year
after the certificate of title had been issued, is deemed to have forever lost his right in said land even granting
that he had any right therein.
c. Persons deemed to have legal standing to file opposition:
i. A homesteader who has not yet been issued his title but has fulfilled all the conditions required by law
for the issuance of patent;
ii. A purchaser of friar land who is deemed to have an equitable title to the land even before the
issuance of the patent;
iii. An awardee in a sales application who, by virtue of the award, is authorized to take possession of the
land to enable him to comply with the requirements for the issuance of patent;
iv. A person claiming to be in possession of the land and has applied with the Lands Management
Bureau for its purchase.
d. Private persons may not file opposition for the Government:
i. A private person may not oppose an application for registration on behalf of the government on the
ground that the land belongs to the government.
4) Opposition by the Government:
a. Absence of opposition by the government does not justify outright registration
i. Notwithstanding the absence of opposition from the government, the applicant in land registration
cases is not relieved of the burden of proving the imperfect right or title sought to be confirmed.
ii. He must show, even though there is no opposition, to the satisfaction of the court, that he is the
absolute owner, in fee simple.
iii. It is precisely the character of the land as private which the applicant has the obligation of
establishing.
b. Hearing necessary to determine validity of ownership claim
i.Under Section 1, Rule 131 of the Rules of Court, each party, whether applicant or oppositor, must
prove his own affirmative allegations by the amount of evidence required by law to obtain a favorable
judgment.
c. Failure to appear on the day of initial hearing is not a ground for default where opposition or answer had
been filed
i. Where an opposition or answer, which is based on substantial grounds, has been formally filed, it is
improper for the court to declare the oppositor in default simply because he failed to appear on the day
set for the initial hearing.
d. Government may appeal despite failure of agency to file opposition
i. The failure of the government agency concerned to file an opposition to the application for
registration or to appeal from the adverse decision of the registration court is not fatal.
ii. The reason for this is that the government is usually not estopped by the mistake or error of its
officials or agents.
iii.It is hornbook law that the principle of estoppel does not operate against the government for the act
of its agents.
5) Motion to dismiss based on res judicata proper in a registration proceeding
a. The Property Registration Decree does not provide for a pleading similar or corresponding to a motion to
dismiss.
b. Two distinct concepts of res judicata:
i.Bar by former judgment; and
1.Res judicata absolutely bars any subsequent action when the following requisites concur:
a. The former judgment or order was final;
b. It adjudged the pertinent issue or issues on their merits;
c. It was rendered by a court that had jurisdiction over the subject matter and the
parties; and
d. Between the first and the second actions, there was identity of parties, of subject
matter, and of causes of action.
Ii .Conclusiveness of judgment
1.Where no identity of causes of action but only identity of issues exists
2.The rule bars the re-litigation of particular facts or issues involving the same parties even if
raised under different claims or causes of action.
c. The opposition in a registration case partakes of the nature of an answer with a counterclaim.
d.Defense of res judicata may be waived if not set up in a motion to dismiss
i.In a registration case, it was held that the defense of res judicata when not set up either in a motion to
dismiss or in answer is deemed waived.
ii.It cannot be pleaded for the first time on appeal.
6) Submission of subdivision plan- The registration court may require the submission by the parties of a subdivision
plan, duly approved by the Director of Lands, in the following instances:
a. If the opposition or adverse claim covers only a portion of the lot applied for which is not delimited on the
plan accompanying the application;
b.In case of undivided co-ownership, conflicting claims of ownership or possession, or overlapping of
boundaries.
Section 26. Order of default; effect.
If no person appears and answers within the time allowed, the court shall, upon motion of the applicant, no reason to
the contrary appearing, order a default to be recorded and require the applicant to present evidence. By the description
in the notice "To all Whom It May Concern", all the world are made parties defendant and shall be concluded by the
default order.
Where an appearance has been entered and an answer filed, a default order shall be entered against persons who did
not appear and answer.
NOTES SECTION 26 of PRD:
1) Order of default, when entered
a. Order of General Default – addressed to the whole world:
i. If no person appears and answers within the time allowed, the court shall, upon motion of the applicant,
order a default to be entered and require the applicant to present evidence. By description in the notice :To all
whom it may concern, all the world are made parties defendant and shall be concluded by the default order.
b. Order of Special Default “ directed only against those who did not enter their appearance and file answer:
i.When an appearance has been entered and answer filed, a default order shall be entered against
persons who did not appear and answer.
c. When the court issues an order of default, it is presumed to have regularly performed its task in accordance with law
especially with regard to notice requirements.
d. When no answer in writing or any opposition is made to an application for the registration of a property, all the
allegations contained in the application shall be held as confessed by reason of the absence thereof.
e. A person who has not challenged an application for registration cannot allege damage or error against the judgment
ordering registration.
f. But a declaration of default is not a guarantee that the application for registration will be granted.
g. It is still the burden of the applicant to prove that he is entitled to registration by well-nigh incontrovertible proof.
2) Motion to lift order of general default
a. An order of general default is interlocutory in character, subject to the control of the court, and may be
modified or amended as the court may deem proper at any time prior to the rendition of judgment.
b. The interests of substantial justice and the speedy determination of the controversy should be the guiding
principle of the trial court in lifting an order of general default to allow a party to file an opposition to the
application
c. But the motion to lift the order of general default should be filed before entry of final judgment.
d. A motion to set aside the order of default filed prior to the rendition of the judgment on the merits should be
considered with liberality.
3) Party in default can appeal judgment
a. A defendant party declared in default retains the right to appeal from the judgment by default on the ground
that the plaintiff failed to prove the material allegations of the complaint, or that the decision is contrary to law,
even without need of the prior filing of a motion to set aside the order of default.
4)Government not estopped by the mistake or error of its agents
a. Order of default issued by the court should not prejudice the Government under the well-known and settled
rule that the Republic, or its Government, is usually not estopped by the mistake or error on the part of its
officials or agents.
ii. Republic v. San Lorenzo, 513 SCRA 294 (2007)
The duty and the power to set the hearing date lie with the land registration court. After an applicant has filed his
application, the law requires the issuance of a court order setting the initial hearing date. The notice of initial hearing is a
court document. The notice of initial hearing is signed by the judge and copy of the notice is mailed by the clerk of court
to the LRA [Land Registration Authority]. This involves a process to which the party applicant absolutely has no
participation.
In land registration cases, the applicant must strictly comply with the jurisdictional requirements.
The Court held that a party to an action has no control over the Administrator or the Clerk of Court acting as a land
court; he has no right to meddle unduly with the business of such official in the performance of his duties. A party
cannot intervene in matters within the exclusive power of the trial court. No fault is attributable to such party if the trial
court errs on matters within its sole power. It is unfair to punish an applicant for an act or omission over which the
applicant has neither responsibility nor control, especially if the applicant has complied with all the requirements of the
law.
It is evident in land registration proceedings that what is more important than the date on which the initial hearing is set
is the giving of sufficient notice of the registration proceedings via publication.
iii. Republic v. Herbieto, 459 SCRA 183 (2005)
Publication, Mailing, Posting
The misjoinder of causes of action and parties does not affect the jurisdiction of the courts to hear and proceed with the
application for registration of the two respondents who applied for registration on two separate lands.
The late publication of the Notice of Initial Hearing in the newspaper of general circulation is tantamount to no
publication at all, having the same ultimate result. Owing to such defect, the MTC failed to constructively seize the lands
and acquire jurisdiction over the applications for registration. Therefore, the orders of the court were void for having
been issued by the MTC without jurisdiction.
NOTE:
The notice of initial hearing shall be published once in the Official Gazette and once in a newspaper of general
circulation in the Philippines: Provided, however, that the publication in the Official Gazette shall be sufficient to confer
jurisdiction upon the court.
The notice of initial hearing shall also be posted in a conspicuous place on each parcel of land included in the application
and also in a conspicuous place on the bulletin board of the municipal building of the municipality or city. (Sec. 24)
iv. Director v. CA and Abistado, 276 SCRA 276 (1997)
It should be noted further that land registration is a proceeding in rem. Being in rem, such proceeding requires
constructive seizure of the land as against all persons, including the state, who have rights to or interests in the
property. An in rem proceeding is validated essentially through publication. This being so, the process must strictly be
complied with. Otherwise, persons who may be interested or whose rights may be adversely affected would be barred
from contesting an application which they had no knowledge of.
The Court ruled that Section 23 of PD No. 1529 indeed clearly provides that publication in the Official Gazette suffices to
confer jurisdiction upon the land registration court. However, absent any publication of the notice of initial hearing in a
newspaper of general circulation, the land registration court cannot validly confirm and register the title of the
applicants.
It may be asked why publication in a newspaper of general circulation should be deemed mandatory when the law
already requires notice by publication in the Official Gazette as well as by mailing and posting, all of which have already
been complied with in the case at hand. The reason is due process and the reality that the Official Gazette is not as
widely read and circulated as newspapers and is oftentimes delayed in its circulation, such that the notices published
therein may not reach the interested parties on time, if at all.
v. Adez Realty v. CA, 212 SCRA 623 (1992)
A land registration proceeding is a proceeding in rem, not in personam, and therefore it is not necessary to give personal
notice to the owners or claimants of the land sought to be registered, in order to vest the courts with power and
authority over the res. The failure to give notice does not amount to jurisdictional defect. It is the publication of such
notice that brings in the whole word as a party in the case and vests the court with jurisdiction to hear and decide it.
Thus, notice of hearing by proper publication in the Official Gazette is sufficient to clothe the court with jurisdiction, and
the mere fact that a person purporting to have a legitimate claim in the property did not receive personal notice is not
sufficient ground to invalidate the proceedings.
D. Hearing, Judgment and Decree of Registration
i. Section 27. Speedy hearing; reference to a referee.
The trial court shall see to it that all registration-proceedings are disposed or within ninety days from the date the case is
submitted for decision,
The Court, if it deems necessary, may refer the case or any part thereof to a referee who shall hear the parties and their
evidence, and the referee shall submit his report thereon to the Court within fifteen days after the termination of such
hearing. Hearing before a referee may be held at any convenient place within the province or city as may be fixed by him
and after reasonable notice thereof shall have been served the parties concerned. The court may render judgment in
accordance with the report as though the facts have been found by the judge himself: Provided, however, that the court
may in its discretion accept the report, or set it aside in whole or in part, or order the case to be recommitted for further
proceedings.
NOTES SECTION 27 of PRD:
1) Hearing Section 27
2) Proof required in registration proceedings, generally – The burden is on applicant to prove his positive
averments and not for the government or the private oppositors to establish a negative proposition. He must submit
convincing proof of his and his predecessors-in-interest’s actual, peaceful and adverse possession in the concept of
owner of the lots during the period required by law. The applicant must show, even in the absence of opposition, that he
is the absolute owner, fee simple, of such land.
a. Citizenship Requirement
i. The Krivenko doctrine: aliens disqualified from acquiring public and private lands. (see the case of
Krivenko v. Register of Deeds)
ii. The prohibition is a declaration of imperative national policy
This fundamental policy of preserving the nation’s lands for Filipino citizens. Thus, as the rule
now stands, the fundamental law explicitly prohibits non-Filipinos from acquiring or holding title
to private lands, except only by way of legal succession or if the acquisition was made by a
former natural-born citizen.
ii.
A natural-born Filipino citizen who has lost his citizenship may be a transferee of private
land(see Citizenship Requirement Individual under Roman Numeral II-B[ix],Section 10 of Foreign
Investment Act)
iv. Capacity to own land is determined as of the time of its acquisition and not
registration(see Republic v. CA and Lapiña and Director of Lands v. Buyco)
v.Aliens may lease private lands
1. While aliens are disqualified from acquiring lands of the public domain, they may however
lease private lands.
2. A lease to an alien for reasonable period is valid. So is an option giving an alien the right to
buy real property on condition that he is granted Philippine citizenship.
3. Aliens are not completely excluded by the Constitution from the use of lands for residential
purposes. They may be granted temporary rights such as a “Lease Contract”.
vi. Foreigners allowed to purchase condominium units
1. Under RA No. 4726, foreign national can own Philippine real estate through the purchase of
condominium units or townhouses pursuant to Section of this Act. (see Roman Numeral II-C [iv]
[4])
2.It expressly allows foreigners to acquire condominium units and shares in condominium
corporations up to not more than 40% of the total and outstanding capital stock of a Filipinoowned or controlled corporation.
3. Under this set up, the ownership of the land is legally separated from the unit itself. The land
is owned by the condominium corporation and the unit owner is simply a member in this
condominium corporation. As long as 60% of the members of this condominium corporation are
Filipinos, the remaining members can be foreigners.
4. Considering that the rights and liabilities of the parties under the contract to sell is covered by
the Condominium Act wherein petitioner as unit owner is simply a member of the condominium
corporation, then the constitutional proscription against aliens owning real property does not
apply.
vii. Donation in favor of a religious corporation controlled by non- Filipinos not registrable
1.Section 8, Article XII, 1987 Constitution provides that Save in cases of hereditary succession,
no private agricultural land shall be transferred or assigned except to individuals, corporations
or associations qualified to acquire or hold lands of the public domain in the Philippines.
2.The Constitution makes no exception in favor of religious associations.
3.Such prohibition is not violative of the freedom of religion guaranteed by the Constitution as
the land ownership is not indispensable to the free exercise and enjoyment of religious
profession or worship.
viii. Land acquired by an American citizen in 1945 can be registered under the Ordinance appended to
the 1935 Constitution
1.While aliens are disqualified to acquire lands under the 1935 Constitution, the Ordinance
appended thereto provided that until the final withdrawal of the United States sovereignty over
the Philippines, citizens and corporations of the United States could enjoy all the same civil
rights as Philippine citizens.
2.The 1935 Constitution provides that upon the proclamation of Philippine Independence (July
4, 1946) all existing property rights of citizens or corporations of the United States shall be
acknowledged, respected, and safeguarded to the same extent as property rights of citizens of
the Philippines.
ix. A corporation sole may acquire and register private agricultural land
1. A corporation sole, which consists of one person only, is vested with the right to purchase
and hold real estate and to register the same in trust for the faithful or members of the religious
society or church for which the corporation was organized.
2. It is not treated as an ordinary private corporation because whether or not it be so treated,
the constitutional proscription against private corporations acquiring public agricultural lands
will not apply.
3.The reason for this is that a corporation sole has no nationality and the framers of the
Constitution did not have in mind the religious corporation sole when they provided that 60 per
centum of the capital thereof be owned by Filipino citizens.
x. Can a Filipino vendor recover land sold to an alien?
1. The question was answered in the negative in the early case of Rellosa v. Gaw Chee
Hun because the Filipino vendor was in pari delicto with the alien vendee
2. However, Rellosa was reversed by Philippine Banking Corporation v. Lui She where the Court
declared that the pari delicto rule may not be applied in said case since:
a. The original parties who were guilty of a violation of the fundamental charter have
died and have since been substituted by their administrators to whom it would be
unjust to impute their guilt; and
b. As an exception to the rule on pari delicto, when the agreement is not illegal per
se but is merely prohibited and the prohibition by law is designed for the protection of
the plaintiff, he may, if public policy is thereby enhanced, recover what he has paid or
delivered. Public policy referred here is of preserving lands for Filipinos.
3. If land is invalidly transferred to an alien who subsequently becomes a Filipino citizen or
transfers it to a Filipino, the flaw in the original transaction is considered cured and the title of
the transferee is rendered valid. As the property in dispute is already in the hands of a qualified
person, a Filipino citizen, there would be no more public policy to be protected. The objective of
the constitutional provision to keep our lands in Filipino hands has been achieved.
xi. Rule restated -- On the basis of their capacity to acquire or hold lands of the public domain, the
following ay acquire private lands:
1.Filipino citizens
2.Filipino corporations and association as defined in Section 2, Article XII of the Constitution;
and, by exception;
3.Aliens, but only byhereditary succession; and
4.A natural-born citizen of the Philippines who has lost his citizenship under the terms of Section
8, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution.
a. Filipino citizens can both acquire or otherwise hold lands of the public domain.
b. Filipino corporations cannot acquire lands of the public domain but they can
hold such lands by modes other than acquisition, such as lease.
5. NB: A foreign corporation is disqualified to own lands in the Philippines. It is also disqualified
to own rights to ownership to such lands.
b.Classification of Public Lands
i. Classification of public land is an executive prerogative CA No. 141 (Public Land Act), as amended, remains to this day
the existing general law governing the classification and disposition of lands of the public domain, other than timber and
mineral lands. The classification of public lands is an exclusive prerogative of the executive department of the
government and not of the courts.
1. System of classification
a. The President is authorized, from time to time, to classify the lands of the public domain into alienable and
disposable, timber, or mineral lands.
b. Alienable and disposable lands of the public domain are further classified according to their uses into:
i. Agricultural
ii. Residential, commercial, industrial, or for similar productive purposes;
iii. Educational, charitable, or other similar purposes; or
iv. Reservations for town sites and for public and quasi-public uses.
c. The Secretary, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), is the only other public official
empowered by law to approve a land classification and declare such land as alienable and disposable.
2. Requirements to establish classification
a.Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) or Community Environment and Natural
Resources Officer (CENRO) to certify that land is alienable and disposable (A and D);
b.Applicant must prove that the DENR Secretary had approved the land classification and released the land of
the public domain as A and D land;
c.That the land falls within the land classification map as verified through survey by the PENRO or CENRO;
d.The applicant must present a certified copy of the DENR Secretary’s declaration or the President’s
proclamation classifying the land as alienable and disposable.
3. Only A and D lands may be the subject of disposition
a. Before the government could alienate or dispose of lands of the public domain, the President must first
officially classify these lands as alienable and disposable, and then declare them open to disposition or cession.
4.Classification of Boracay Island
a. President Arroyo issued Proclamation No. 1064 classifying Boracay Island into 400 hectares of reserved forest
land (protection purposes) and 628.96 hectares of agricultural land (alienable and disposable).
b. Except for lands already covered by existing titles, Boracay was an unclassified land of the public domain prior
to Proclamation No. 1064. Under PD No. 705, or Revised Forestry Code, all unclassified lands are considered
public forest.
5. Public Lands and Governmental Land distinguished
a. A public land is equivalent to public domain. It does not by any means include all lands of government
ownership, but only so much of said lands as are thrown open to private appropriation and settlement by
homestead and other like general laws.
b. Government land includes not only public lands but also other lands of the government already reserved or
devoted to public use or subject to private right.
6. Cadastral survey of a municipality does not automatically classify lands within the cadastre as A and D lands
a. A survey made in a cadastral proceeding merely identifies each lot preparatory to a judicial proceeding for
adjudication of title to any of the land upon claim of interested parties.
b. Where the subject property is still unclassified, whatever possession applicants may have had, and, however
long, cannot ripen into private ownership.
ii. Under the Spanish regime, all Crown lands were per se alienable and subject to adjudication by the courts unless
falling under timber or mineral zones, or otherwise reserved for some public purpose in accordance with law.
iii.Burden of proof rests with applicant to overcome presumption of State ownership
1.Must prove that the land subject of the application for registration is alienable and disposable;
2.Applicant must establish the existence of a positive act of the government such as a presidential proclamation
or an executive order; an administrative action; investigation reports of Bureau of Lands investigators; and a
legislative act or a statute; and
3.Applicant must also secure a certification from the government that the land claimed to have been possessed
for the required number of years is alienable and disposable.
c.Non-Registrable Properties
1)Those intended for public use, such as roads, rivers, torrents, ports and bridges constructed by the State, banks,
shores, roadsteads, and others of
similar character;
Article 420 of the Civil Code
2) Those which belong to the
State, without being for public
use, and are intended for
some
public service or for the
development of the national
wealth.
Page 90 of 121
Marvyn Rose Arbes
1) Rivers and their natural beds;
2) Continuous or
intermittent
waters of springs and brooks
running in their natural beds
and the beds themselves;
3) Natural lakes and lagoons;
All other categories of
4) surface
waters such as water flowing
over lands, water from
rainfall
whether natural or artificial,
and water fromagriculture
runoff, seepage and
drainage;
Articles 5 & 6, PD No. 1067,
Water
Code
5) Atmospheric water;
Subterranean or ground
6) water;
7) Seawater.
Found in Private Land:
8) Continuous or
intermittent
waters rising on such lands;
9) Lakes and lagoons naturally
waters rising on such lands;
Rain water and falling on
10) such
lands;
Subterranean or ground
11) waters;
and
Water in swamps and
12) marshes
Forest or
1) timberland;
Regalian Doctrine under the
1935,
Public
2) forest;
1973 and 1987 Constitution
Forest reserves
3) lands;
4) Mineral lands.
d.Specific Evidence of Ownership
i. What must the applicant for land registration prove? DIP
1. Declassification – That the land applied for has been declassified and is a public agricultural land, alienable
and disposable or otherwise capable of registration;
2. Identity of the land; and
3. Possession and occupation of the land for the length of time and in the manner required by law.
Evidence of Declassification
ii. What may constitute sufficient proof to establish declassification of land from forest to alienable or disposable, or
agricultural? PAEB- CIL
1.Presidential proclamation
2.Administrative Order issued by the Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources
3.Executive Order
4.Bureau of Forest Development (BFD) Land Classification Map
5.Certification by the Director of Forestry, and reports of District Forester
6.Investigation reports of Bureau of Lands Investigator
7.Legislative Act, or by Statute
Evidence of Identity of Land
iii.What may be presented as proof of the identity of the land sought to be registered? STTT
1.Survey plan in general
2.Tracing cloth plan and blue print copies of plan
3.Technical description of the land
4.Tax Declarations
iv.In an application for judicial confirmation of imperfect title, is submission of the original tracing cloth plan mandatory?
1.Yes. The Supreme Court declared that the submission of the tracing cloth plan is a statutory requirement of mandatory
character. The plan of the land must be duly approved by the Director of Lands, otherwise the same have no probative
value.
Note: However, under LRA Circular 05-2000, only a certified copy of the original tracing cloth plan need be forwarded to
the LRA. (Agcaoili, Reviewer)
Although mere blue print copies were presented in court as evidence, the original tracing cloth plan was attached to the
application for registration and was available to the court for comparison. Hence, the approval of registration was
proper.
(Republic v. IAC)
v. In case of conflict between areas and boundaries, which prevails?
1.General Rule: Boundaries prevail over area.
a.Exception: Boundaries relied upon do not identify land beyond doubt.
Boundaries given in the registration plan do not coincide with outer boundaries of the land covered and
described in the muniments of title.
Evidence of Possession and Occupation
vi.What may constitute proof of possession?
1.To prove possession, it is not enough to simply declare one’s possession and that of the applicant’s predecessorsin-interest to have been adverse, continuous, open, public, peaceful and in concept of owner for the required number of
years. The applicant should present specific facts to show such nature of possession because bare allegations, without
more, do not amount to preponderant evidence that would shift the burden to the oppositor.(Diaz v. Republic)
vii. What are some specific overt acts of possession which may substantiate a claim of ownership?
1.Introducing valuable improvements on the property like fruit- bearing trees;
2.Fencing the area;
3.Constructing a residential house thereon; or
4.Declaring the same for taxation purposes.
Note: Evidence to be admissible must, however, be credible, substantial and satisfactory (Agcaoili Reviewer)
viii. What are insufficient proofs of possession?
1. Mere Casual cultivation of portions of the land by claimant
Reason:Possession is not exclusive and notorious so as to give rise to a presumptive grant from the State.
2. Possession of other persons in the land applied for impugns the exclusive quality of the applicant’s
possession.
3.Mere failure of Fiscal representing the State tocross-examine the applicant on the claimed possession.
4.Tax declaration of land sought to be registered which is not in the name of applicant but in the name of the
deceased parents of an oppositor.
Reason: Possession of applicant is not completely adverse or open, nor is it truly in the concept of an owner.
5. Holding of property by mere tolerance of the owner
Reason: Holder is not in the concept of owner and possessory acts no matter how long do not start the running of
the period of prescription.
6. Where applicants tacked their possession to that of their predecessor-in-interest but they did not present him as
witness or when no proofs of what acts of ownership and cultivation were performed by the predecessor.
Reason
Evidence of Private Ownership
ix. What are the proofs of private ownership of land?
1.S panish title, impending cases.
Note: However, Spanish titles are now inadmissible and ineffective as proof of ownership in land registration
proceedings filed after Aug. 16, 1976. It is mere indicia of a claim of ownership that the holder has a claim of title over
the property.
2.T ax declaration and tax payments.
Note: While tax declarations and real estate tax receipts are not conclusive evidence of ownership, if presented as
documentary evidence coupled with proof of actual possession for the period required by law of the land, they are good
evidence of ownership.
Even if belatedly declared for taxation purposes, it does not negate possession especially if there is no other claimant of
the land.
Mere failure of the owner of the land to pay the realty tax does not warrant a conclusion that there was abandonment
of his right to the property.
3. Other kinds of proof.
E.g. Testimonial evidence (i.e. accretion is on a land adjacent to a river).
Note: Any evidence that accretion was formed through human intervention negates the claim.
4.Presidential issuances and legislative acts.
Note: It is constitutive of a fee simple title or absolute title in favor of the grantee.
x. Are tax declarations or payment of realty tax conclusive evidence of ownership?
1. No. Tax declarations or realty tax payment of property are not conclusive evidence of ownership. However, they are
good indicia of possession in the concept of an owner, for no one in his right mind would be paying taxes for a property
that is not in his actual or at least constructive possession. They constitute at least proof that the holder has a claim of
title over the property.
Note: The voluntary declaration of a piece of property for taxation purposes manifests not only one’s sincere and
honest desire to obtain title to the property and announces his adverse claim against the State and all other interested
parties, but also the intention to contribute needed revenues to the Government. Such an act strengthens one’s
bona fide claim of acquisition of ownership. (Agcaoili Reviewer; Aquino, p.75-76)
xi. What proofs are insufficient to establish private ownership or right over land?
1. Compromise agreement among parties to a land registration case where they have rights and interest over the land
and allocated portions thereof to each of them.
Note: Assent of Director of Lands and Director of Forest Management to compromise agreement did not and could not
supply the absence of evidence of title required of the applicant.
2. Decision in an estate proceeding of a predecessor-in-interestof an applicant that involves a property over which the
decedent has no transmissible rights, and in other cases where issue of ownership was not definitely passed upon.
3. Survey plan of an inalienable land.
Note: Such plan does not convert such land into alienable land, much less private property.
Section 28. Partial judgment.
In a case where only a portion of the land subject of registration is contested, the court may render partial judgment
provided that a subdivision plan showing the contested and uncontested portions approved by the Director of Lands is
previously submitted to said court.
Section 29. Judgment confirming title.
All conflicting claims of ownership and interest in the land subject of the application shall be determined by the court. If
the court, after considering the evidence and the reports of the Commissioner of Land Registration and the Director of
Lands, finds that the applicant or the oppositor has sufficient title proper for registration, judgment shall be rendered
confirming the title of the applicant, or the oppositor, to the land or portions thereof.
NOTES SECTION 28 & 29 of PRD:
1)After due hearing for registration, what will the court do?
a. IF the court, after considering the evidence and report of the LRA, finds that the applicant or the oppositor has
sufficient title proper for registration, it shall render judgment confirming the title of the applicant, or the oppositor, to
the land or portions thereof, as the case may be.
Section 30. When judgment becomes final; duty to cause issuance of decree.
The judgment rendered in a land registration proceedings becomes final upon the expiration of thirty days(now fifteen
days) to be counted from the data of receipt of notice of the judgment. An appeal may be taken from the judgment of
the court as in ordinary civil cases.
After judgment has become final and executory, it shall devolve upon the court to forthwith issue an order in
accordance with Section 39 of this Decree to the Commissioner for the issuance of the decree of registration and the
corresponding certificate of title in favor of the person adjudged entitled to registration.
Section 31. Decree of registration.
Every decree of registration issued by the Commissioner shall bear the date, hour and minute of its entry, and shall be
signed by him. It shall state whether the owner is married or unmarried, and if married, the name of the husband or
wife: Provided, however, that if the land adjudicated by the court is conjugal property, the decree shall be issued in the
name of both spouses. If the owner is under disability, it shall state the nature of disability, and if a minor, his age. It
shall contain a description of the land as finally determined by the court, and shall set forth the estate of the owner, and
also, in such manner as to show their relative priorities, all particular estates, mortgages, easements, liens, attachments,
and other encumbrances, including rights of tenant-farmers, if any, to which the land or owner's estate is subject, as
well as any other matters properly to be determined in pursuance of this Decree.
The decree of registration shall bind the land and quiet title thereto, subject only to such exceptions or liens as may be
provided by law. It shall be conclusive upon and against all persons, including the National Government and all branches
thereof, whether mentioned by name in the application or notice, the same being included in the general description
"To all whom it may concern".
NOTES SECTIONS 30 & 31 of PRD:
1)J udgment --It is a decision of court constituting its opinion after taking into consideration the evidence submitted.
a.What must a judgment in land registration proceeding contain?
i.When judgment is rendered in favor of the plaintiff, the court shall order the entry of a new certificate of title
and the cancellation of the original certificate and owner’s duplicate of the former registered owner.
b. It becomes final upon the lapse of 15 days counted from the receipt of notice of the judgment.
c. However, notwithstanding the lapse of the 15-day period from receipt of judgment by the parties, the court continues
to retain control over the case until the expiration of one (1) year after the entry of decree of registration by the LRA.
2)Post-Judgment Incidents
a. Writ of Possession is a writ employed to enforce a judgment to recover the possession of land, commanding
the sheriff to enter into the land and give the possession thereof to the person entitled under the judgment.
Note: It may be issued only pursuant to a decree of registration in an original land registration proceeding.
b. Writ of Possession – order to sheriff to deliver the land to the successful party litigant; no prescription
against: (1) the loser and (2) anyone unlawfully and adversely occupying.
i.When writ may not issue: When a party entered into property after issuance of final decree, is not an oppositor in
registration proceeding, and is in possession of land for at least 10 years.
c. Writ of Demolition – the complement of writ of possession; to demolish improvements introduced by
oppositor or his successor in interest.
d. How may possession of property be obtained?
i. Possession of the property may be obtained by filing an ex parte motion with the RTC of the province
or place where the property is situated. Upon filing of the motion and the required bond, it becomes a
ministerial duty of the court to order the issuance of a writ of possession in favor of the purchaser. After
the expiration of the 1-year period without redemption being effected by the property owner, the right
of the purchaser to the possession of the foreclosed property becomes absolute.
e. Against whom may a writ of possession be issued?
i.In a registration case, a writ of possession may be issued against:
1.The person who has been defeated in a registration case; and
2.Any person adversely occupying the land or any portion thereof during the land registration
proceedings up to the issuance of the final decree.
f. If the court granted the registration, must the applicant move for the issuance of a writ of possession in case
he is deprived of possession over the land subject of the registration proceedings?
i. Yes, if it is against:
1. The person who has been defeated in a registration case; and
2. Any person adversely occupying the land or any portion thereof during the land registration
proceedings up to the issuance of the final decree.
ii.No, if it is against person who took possession of the land after final adjudication of the same in a registration
proceeding. In which case, the remedy is file a separate action for:
1.Unlawful entry;
2.Unlawful detainer;
3.Reinvindicatory action, as the case may be, and only after a favorable judgment can the prevailing
party secures a writ of possession.
g.Does petition for the issuance of a writ of possession prescribe?
i.General Rule: No
Exception: If a party has once made use of the benefit of a writ of possession, he cannot again ask for it, if
afterwards he loses possession of the property obtained by virtue of the original writ.
3)Means to Recover Possession:
a.Forcible entry
b.Unlawful Detainer
c.Accion Publiciana
d.Accion Reivindicatoria
4)What must a judgment in land registration proceedings contain?
a. When judgment is rendered in favor of the plaintiff, the court shall order the entry of a new certificate of title
and the cancellation of the original certificate and owner’s duplicate of the former registered owner.
5)Decree of Registration – It is a document prepared in the prescribed form by the LRA Administrator, signed by him in
the name of the court, embodying the final disposition of the land by the court and such other data found in the record,
including the name and other personal circumstances of the adjudicate, the technical description of the property, liens
and encumbrances affecting it, and such other matters as determined by the court in its judgment.
a.The decree issued by the LRA pursuant to the order of the court;
b.Binds the land, quiets title thereto, subject only to such exceptions or liens as may be provided by law;
c.Conclusive upon all persons including the government.
6)What does a decree of registration cover?
a.Only claimed property or a portion thereof can be adjudicated. A land registration court has no jurisdiction to
adjudge a land to a person who has never asserted any right of ownership thereof.
7) What is the effect of a decree of registration?
a.The decree of registration binds the land, quiets title, subject only to such exceptions or liens as may be
provided by law.
b.It is conclusive upon all persons including the national government and all branches thereof. And such
conclusiveness does not cease to exist when the title is transferred to a successor.
c.Note: Title once registered cannot be impugned, altered, changed, modified, enlarged or diminished, except in
a direct proceeding permitted by law.
8) What are the effects of the entry of the decree of registration in the National Land Titles and Deeds Registration
Authority?
a.This serves as the reckoning date to determine the 1-year period from which one can impugn the validity of
the registration.
b.1 year after the date of entry, it becomes incontrovertible, and amendments will not be allowed except
clerical errors. It is deemed conclusive as to the whole world.
c.Puts an end to litigation.
9 )What is decree of confirmation and registration?
a.It is issued by LRA after finality of judgment, and contains technical description of land. It is subject only to an
appeal.
b.It is conclusive evidence of the ownership of the land referred to therein and becomes indefeasible and
incontrovertible after one year from the issuance of the decree.
10) Differentiate decree of confirmation and registration from decree of registration?
a.Decree of registration is issued pursuant to the Property Registration Decree, where there already exists a title
which is confirmed by the court.
b.Decree of confirmation and registration of title is issued pursuant to the Public Land Act, where the
presumption always is that the land applied for pertains to the State, and that the occupants and possessors
only claim an interest in the same by virtue of their imperfect title or continuous, open and notorious
possession.
11) What is the doctrine of non-collateral attack of a decree or title?
a.A decree of registration and registered title cannot be impugned, enlarged, altered, modified, or diminished
either in collateral or direct proceeding, after the lapse of one year from the date of its entry.
12)Differentiate direct from collateral attack.
Direct Attack
Collateral Attack
The issues are raised in a direct
It is made when, in another action
to
proceeding in an action instituted for obtain a different relief, an attack
that
on
purpose.
the judgment is mad as an incident
in
said action.
e.g. Torrens title is questioned in
the
ordinary civil action for recovery of
possession.
a.In a case for recovery of possession based on ownership, is a third-party complaint to nullify the title of the thirdparty defendant considered a direct attack on the title?
i.If the object of the third-party complaint is to nullify the title of the third-party defendant, the thirdparty complaint constitutes a direct- attack on the title because the same is in the nature of an original
complaint for cancellation of title.
b.If an attack is made thru a counterclaim, should it be disregarded for being a collateral attack?
i.No. A counterclaim is also considered an original complaint, and as such, the attack on the title is direct and not
collateral.
Section 32. Review of decree of registration; Innocent purchaser for value.
The decree of registration shall not be reopened or revised by reason of absence, minority, or other disability of any
person adversely affected thereby, nor by any proceeding in any court for reversing judgments, subject, however, to the
right of any person, including the government and the branches thereof, deprived of land or of any estate or interest
therein by such adjudication or confirmation of title obtained by actual fraud, to file in the proper Court of First Instance
a petition for reopening and review of the decree of registration not later than one year from and after the date of the
entry of such decree of registration, but in no case shall such petition be entertained by the court where an innocent
purchaser for value has acquired the land or an interest therein, whose rights may be prejudiced. Whenever the phrase
"innocent purchaser for value" or an equivalent phrase occurs in this Decree, it shall be deemed to include an innocent
lessee, mortgagee, or other encumbrancer for value.
Upon the expiration of said period of one year, the decree of registration and the certificate of title issued shall become
incontrovertible. Any person aggrieved by such decree of registration in any case may pursue his remedy by action for
damages against the applicant or any other persons responsible for the fraud.
NOTES:
1) Indefeasibility
After the lapse of one year from the entry of the decree of registration, said the decree of registration and the certificate
of title issued shall become incontrovertible.(Sec 32, P.D. 1529)
2) Purchaser in good faith
a. An innocent purchaser for value is one who buys the property of another without notice that some other
person has a right to or interest in it, and who pays a full and fair price at the time of the purchase or before
receiving any notice of another person’s claims.
b.When the buyer enters into a contract of sale, he assumes 2 obligations
i.First, the payment of the consideration; and
ii.Second, the performance of such first obligation in good faith, and implied obligation but just as
binding and as important as the first.
c.While good faith is presumed, conversely, bad faith must be established by competent proof by the party
alleging the same.
d.Property Registration 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 encumbrances except those set forth on the
certificate of title and those expressly mentioned in the decree as having been preserved against it.
e.Purchaser is not required to explore further than what title indicates for hidden defects
i.Every person dealing with registered land may safely rely on the correctness of the certificate of title
and is no longer required to look behind the certificate in order to determine the actual owner.
ii.But one who buys from one who is not the registered owner is expected to examine not only the
certificate of title but all factual circumstances necessary for him to determine if there are any flaws in
the title of the transferor, or in his capacity to transfer the land.
iii.A purchaser of a property cannot be in good faith where the title thereof shows that it was
reconstituted.
iv.In a series of transfers, in order that a purchaser may be considered in good faith, it is enough that he
examines the latest certificate of title.
f. A purchaser who has knowledge of defect of his vendor’s title cannot claim good faith.
g. As between two persons in good faith, the lawful holder of a title is preferred.
i. As between two persons both of whom are in good faith and both innocent of any negligence, the law must
protect and prefer the lawful holder of registered title over the transferee of a vendor bereft of any
transmissible rights.
h. Purchaser charged only with notice of liens noted on the title
i.A person dealing with registered land is only charged with notice of the burdens on the property which
are noted on the face of the register or the certificate of title.
ii.This rule however refers only to properties registered under the Torrens system, not to those under
Act No. 3344.
iii.A person dealing with registered land has a right to rely on the Torrens certificate of title and to
dispense with the need of inquiring further except when the party has actual knowledge of facts and
circumstances that would impel a reasonably cautious man to make such inquiry or when the purchaser
has knowledge of a defect or the lack of title in his vendor or of sufficient facts to induce a reasonably
prudent man to inquire into the status of the title of the property in litigation.
iv.Article 526 of the Civil Code says that one who is unaware of any flaw in his title, or mode of
acquisition, by which it is invalidated, shall be deemed a possessor in good faith. But one who is aware
of such flaw is deemed a possessor in bad faith.
i.Rule of œcaveat emptor (buyer beware)
i.The rule of caveat emptor requires the purchaser to be aware of the supposed title of the vendor and one who
buys without checking the vendor’s title takes all the risks and losses consequent to such failure.
j.Sale of property pending litigation
i.The annotation of an adverse claim is a measure designed to protect the interest of a person over a piece of
real property, and serves as a notice and warning to third parties dealing with said property that someone is
claiming an interest on the same or may have a better right than the registered owner thereof.
ii.A bona fide purchaser for value of property at an auction sale acquires good title as against a prior transferee
of the same property if such transfer was unrecorded at the time of the auction sale.
iii.The rule of caveat emptor applies to execution sale.
k. Prior registration of a lien
i.Registration is not the operative act for a mortgage to be binding between the parties. But to third persons, it is
indispensable.
l. Rule of good faith equally applies to mortgagees of real property
i.The phrase innocent purchaser for value in Section 32 of the PRD includes an innocent lessee, mortgagee, or
other encumbrancer for value.
ii.The right or lien of an innocent mortgagee for value upon the land mortgaged must be respected and
protected, even if the mortgagor obtained his title thereto thru fraud.
iii.Where the bank had exercised the due care demanded of it relative to real estate loans, it will be considered
an innocent mortgagee for value. Unlike private individuals, banks are expected to exercise greater care and
prudence in their dealings, including those involving registered lands.
m. Good faith is a question of fact
i. There is a question of fact when the doubt or difference arises as to the truth of the falsity of the statement of facts
while a question of law exists when there is doubt or controversy as to what the law is on a certain state of facts.
n. Burden of proof
i. The burden of proving the status of a purchaser in good faith lies upon one who asserts that status and this onus
probandi cannot be discharged by mere invocation of the legal presumption of good faith.
o.Rule on double sale of property
i.Between two buyers of the same immovable property registered under the Torrens system, the law gives
ownership priority to:
1.The first registrant in good faith;
2.Then, the first possessor in good faith; and
3.Finally, the buyer who in good faith presents the oldest title.
ii.This provision, however, does not apply if the property is not registered under the Torrens system.
p.Principle of prior est temporae, prior est in jura
i.In a situation where not all the requisites are present which would warrant the application of Article 1544, the
principle of prior tempore, potior jure or he who is first in time is preferred in right, should apply.
ii.The only essential requisite of this rule is priority in time; in other words, the only one who can invoke this is
the first vendee.
iii.The principle of first in time, stronger in right gains greater significance in case of double sale of immovable
property. When the thing sold twice is an immovable, the one who acquires it and first records it in the Registry
of Property, both made in good faith, shall be deemed the owner. Verily, the act of registration must be coupled
with good faith.
iv.Knowledge gained by the first buyer of the second sale cannot defeat the first buyer’s right except only as
provided by the Civil Code and that is where the second buyer first registers in good faith the second sale ahead
of the first.
Section 33. Appeal from judgment, etc.
The judgment and orders of the court hearing the land registration case are appealable to the Court of Appeals or to the
Supreme Court in the same manner as in ordinary actions.
Section 34. Rules of procedure.
The Rules of Court shall, insofar as not inconsistent with the provision of this Decree, be applicable to land registration
and cadastral cases by analogy or in a suppletory character and whenever practicable and convenient.
NOTES SECTIONS 32, 33 & 34 of PRD:
1)What are the remedies of an aggrieved party in registration proceedings:
a.Relief from judgment
b.Appeal
c.Action for Damages
d.Action for Compensation from the Assurance Fund
e.Action for Reconveyance
f.Cancellation of suits
g.Annulment of judgment
h.New Trial
i.Quieting of Title
j.Petition for Review (of a Decree)
2)Relief from judgment; relief from denial of appeal
a.When a judgment or final order is entered, or any proceedings is thereafter taken against a party in any court
through, accident, mistake, or excusable negligence, he may file a petition in such court and in the same case
praying that the judgment, order or proceeding be set aside.
b.When a judgment or final order is rendered by any court in a case, and a party thereto, by fraud, accident,
mistake, or excusable negligence, has been prevented from taking an appeal, he may file a petition in such court
and in the same case praying that the appeal be given due course.
c.Time for filing petition
i.A petition for relief from judgment or from denial of appeal under Sections 1 and 2, Rule 38, must be
verified, filed within sixty (60) days after the petitioner learns of the judgment, final order, or other
proceeding to be set aside, and not more than six (6) months after such judgment or final order was
entered, or such proceeding was taken.
ii.The date of finality of the judgment or final order shall be deemed to be the date of its entry.
d.Petition for relief and motion for new trial/reconsideration are exclusive of each other
i.A party who has filed a timely motion for new trial cannot file a petition for relief after his motion has
been denied. These two remedies are exclusive of each other. He should appeal from the judgment and
question such denial.
ii.Relief will not be granted to a party who seeks to be relieved from the effects of a judgment when the
loss of the remedy at law was due to his own negligence, or a mistaken mode of procedure.
3)Appeal
a.It must be filed within 15 days from receipt of the judgment or final order appealed from
b.Under PD 1529, judgments and orders in land registration cases are appealable to the CA or to the SC in the
same manner as ordinary actions.
c.Who may file an appeal in land registration cases?
i.Only those who participated in the proceedings can interpose an appeal.
d.In land registration cases, may a party validly move for execution pending appeal?
i.No. A motion for execution pending appeal is not applicable to land registration proceedings. The
reason is to protect innocent purchasers.
4)Petition for Review:
a.Requisites:
i.Petitioner has a real right;
ii.He has been deprived thereof;
iii.The deprivation is through fraud (actual/extrinsic);
iv.Petition is filed within 1 year from issuance of the decree; and
v.The property has not yet passed to an innocent purchaser for value.
b.In land registration cases, when may a petition for review may be filed? Any person may file a petition for
review to set aside the decree of registration on the ground that he was deprived of their opportunity to be
heard in the original registration case not later than 1 year after the entry of the decree.
c. Grounds for filing a petition for review:
i.That a land belonging to a person has been registered in the name of another or that an interest has
been omitted in the application;
ii.Registration has been procured thru actual fraud;
iii.Petitioner is the owner of the said property or interest therein;
iv.Property has not been transferred to an innocent purchaser for value;
v.Action is filed within one year from the issuance ad entry of the decree of registration; or
vi.Actual fraud must be utilized in the procurement of the decree and not thereafter.
Note: What is contemplated by law is extrinsic fraud.
5) Reconveyance:
a.Reconveyance is an action seeking to transfer or reconvey the land from the registered owner to the rightful
owner.
b.Purpose: An action for reconveyance does not aim or purport to re-open the registration proceedings and set
aside the decree of registration but only to show that the person who secured the registration of the questioned
property is not the real owner thereof. The action, while respecting the decree as incontrovertible, seeks to
transfer or reconvey the land from the registered owner to the rightful owner.
Note: This action may be filed even after the lapse of 1 year from entry of the decree of registration as
long as the property has not been transferred or conveyed to an innocent purchaser for value.
c.What are the grounds and their corresponding period for filing an action for reconveyance?
GROUNDS
PRESCRIPTIVE PERIOD
4 years from the discovery of the
fraud (deemed to have taken place
from the issuance of the original
certificate of title)
Fraud
Note:
The State has
an imprescriptible right
to cause the reversion of a piece of
property belonging to the public
domain if title has been acquired
through fraudulent means.
10 years from the date of the
issuance
of the OCT or TCT. It does not apply
where the person enforcing the
trust is
Implied or Constructive Trust
in actual possession of the property
because he is in effect seeking to
quiet
title to the same which is
imprescriptible.
Express Trust
Not barred by prescription
Void Contract
Imprescriptible
d.If the ground relied upon for an action for reconveyance is fraud, what is the period for filing the same?
i.If ground relied upon is fraud, action may be filed within 4 years from discovery thereof. Discovery is
deemed to have taken place when said instrument was registered. It is because registration constitutes
constructive notice to the whole world.
e.May the court cancel the notice of lis pendens even before final judgment is rendered?
i.A notice of lis pendens may be cancelled even before final judgment upon proper showing that the
notice if for the purpose of molesting or harassing the adverse party or that the notice of lis pendens is
not necessary to protect the right of the party who cause it to be registered.
6)Damages
a.When may an action for damages be resorted to in land registration cases?
i.It may be resorted to when a petition for review and an action for reconveyance is no longer possible because
the property has passed to an innocent purchaser for value and in good faith.
b.When will an action for damages in land registration cases prescribe?
i.An ordinary action for damages prescribes in ten (10) years after the issuance of the Torrens title over the
property.
7)Cancellation Suit
a.What is cancellation suit?
i.It is an action for cancellation of title brought by a private individual, alleging ownership as well as the
defendant’s fraud or mistake, as the case may be, in successfully obtaining title over a disputed land claimed
by the plaintiff.
b.When is resort to a cancellation suit proper?
i.When two certificates of title are issued to different persons covering the same parcel of land in whole or in
part;
ii.When certificate of title is issued covering a non-registrable property; or
iii.Other causes such as when the certificate of title is issued pursuant to a judgment that is not final or when it is
issued to a person who did not claim and applied for the registration of the land covered.
c.What are the rules as regards cancellation of certificates of title belonging to different persons over the same land?
i.Where two certificates are issued to different persons covering the same land, the title earlier in date must
prevail. The latter title should be declared null and void and ordered cancelled.
d.What is meant by prior est temporae, prior est in jura?
i.It is a principle which means he who is first in time is preferred in right.
8)New trial or reconsideration
a.Within the period for taking an appeal, the aggrieved party may move the trial court to set aside the judgment
or final order and grant a new trial for one or more of the causes materially affecting the substantial rights of
said party.
b.If the motion for new trial is granted, the judgment is set aside; if the motion for reconsideration is granted,
the judgment is merely amended.
c.The period for filing either motion is within the period for taking, not perfecting, an appeal.
d.Grounds:
i.Fraud, accident, mistake or excusable negligence;
ii.Newly discovered evidence, which he could not, with reasonable diligence, have discovered, and
produced at the trial, and which if presented would probably alter the result;
1.Within the same period, the aggrieved party may also move for reconsideration upon the
grounds that the damages awarded are excessive, that the evidence is insufficient to justify the
decision or final order or that decision or final order is contrary to law.
e.Contents:
1.The motion shall be made in writing stating the ground or grounds therefor, a written notice of which
shall be served by the movant on the adverse party.
2.A pro forma motion for new trial or reconsideration shall not toll the reglementary period of appeal.
3.No motion for extension of time to file a motion for new trial or reconsideration shall be allowed.
f.Affidavits of merit
i.A motion for new trial grounded on fraud, accident, mistake or excusable negligence should ordinarily
be accompanied by two affidavits;
1.One, setting forth the facts and circumstances alleged to constitute such fraud, accident,
mistake, or excusable negligence;
a.Reason:It is to enable the court to determine if the movant’s claim of fraud, etc. is not
mere conclusion but is indeed borne out by the relevant facts.
2.And the other, an affidavit setting forth the particular facts claimed to constitute the movant’s
meritorious cause of action or defense.
a.Reason: Equally evident as it would be useless, a waste of time, to set aside the
judgment and reopen the case to allow the movant to adduce evidence when he has no
valid causes of action or meritorious defense.
g.Definition of Terms:
i.Fraud to be ground for nullity of a judgment must be extrinsic to the litigation.
1.Extrinsic fraud- refers to any fraudulent act of the successful party in a litigation which is committed
outside the trial of a case against the defeated party, or his agents, attorneys or witnesses, whereby said
defeated party is prevented from presenting fully and fairly his side of the case.
2.Intrinsic fraud- refers to acts of a party in a litigation during the trial, such as the use of forged
instruments or perjured testimony, which did not affect the presentation of the case, but did prevent a
fair and just determination of the case.
ii.Accident or surprise- It must appear that there was accident or surprise which ordinary
prudence could not have guarded against and by reason of which the party applying has
probably been impaired in his rights.
iii.Mistake -- It is some unintentional act, omission, or error arising from ignorance, surprise,
imposition or misplaced confidence.
iv.Excusable neglect- It means a failure to take the proper steps at the proper time, not in consequence of the party’s
own carelessness, inattention, or willful disregard of the process of the court, but in consequence of some unexpected
or unavoidable hindrance or accident, or reliance on the care and vigilance of his counsel or on promises made by the
adverse party.
9)Quieting of Title
a.What is action for quieting of title?
i.It is an action that is brought to remove clouds on the tile 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.
b.Who may file an action to quiet title?
i.Registered owner;
ii.A person who has an equitable right or interest in the property; or
iii.The State.
c.Note:
i.Criminal action- State may criminally prosecute for perjury the party who obtains registration through fraud,
such as by stating false assertions in the sworn answer required of applicants in cadastral proceedings.
ii.Action for damages-Filed in an ordinary action for damages if the property has passed unto the hands of an
innocent purchaser for value.
10)Remedy in Case of Loss or Destruction of Certificate of Title:
a.What is the remedy in case a person lost his certificate of title?
i.It depends.
1.If what is lost is the OCT or TCT – Reconstitution of certificate of title;
2.If, however, it is the duplicate of the OCT or TCT –Replacement of lost duplicate certificate of title.
11)Reconstitution of Certificate of Title
a.What is the remedy in case a certificate of title is lost or destroyed?
i.Remedy is reconstitution of lost or destroyed certificate of title in the office of Register of Deeds in
accordance with R.A. 26
b.What is reconstitution of certificate of title?
i.The restoration of the instrument which is supposed to have been lost or destroyed in its original form
and condition, under the custody of Register of Deeds.
c.What is the purpose of reconstitution of title?
i.To have the same reproduced, after proper proceedings, in the same form they were when the loss or
destruction occurred.
d.Does reconstitution determine ownership of land covered by a lost or destroyed certificate of title?
i.A reconstituted title, by itself, does not determine or resolve the ownership of the land covered by the
lost or destroyed title. The reconstitution of a title is simply the re-issuance of a lost duplicate certificate
of title in its original form and condition. It does not determine or resolve the ownership of the land
covered by the lost or destroyed title. A reconstituted title, like the original certificate of title, by itself
does not vest ownership of the land or estate covered thereby.
e.May a writ of possession be issued in a petition for reconstitution?
i.No, because, reconstitution does not adjudicate ownership over the property. A writ of possession is
issued to place the applicant-owner in possession.
f.What are the elements of reconstitution of certificates of title?
i.Certificate has been lost or destroyed;
ii.Petitioner is the registered owner or has an interest therein; and
iii.Certificate was in force at the time it was lost or destroyed.
g.What are the jurisdictional requirements in petitions for reconstitution of title?
i.Notice thereof shall be:
1.Published twice in successive issues of the Official Gazette;
2.Posted on the main entrance of the provincial building and of the municipal building of the
municipality or city, where the land is situated; and
3.Sent by registered mail to every person named in said notice.
Note: The above requirements are mandatory and jurisdictional
h.What are the kinds of reconstitution of title?
i.Judicial - partakes the nature of a land registration proceeding in rem. The registered owners, assigns,
or any person having an interest in the property may file a petition for that purpose with RTC where
property is located. RD is not the proper party to file the petition.
ii.Administrative may be availed of only in case of:
1.Substantial loss or destruction of the original land titles due to fire, flood, or other force
majeure as determined by the Administrator of the Land Registration Authority
2.The number of certificates of title lost or damaged should be at least 10% of the total number
in the possession of the Office of the Register of Deeds
3.In no case shall the number of certificates of title lost or damaged be less than P500
4.Petitioner must have the duplicate copy of the certificate of title (RA No. 6732)
12)Replacement of Lost Duplicate Certificate of Title
a.If what is lost or destroyed is the duplicate title, is reconstitution the proper remedy?
i.No. When the duplicate title of the landowner is lost, the proper petition is not reconstitution of title, but one
filed with the court for issuance of new title in lieu of the lost copy.
b.Who are the persons entitled to a Duplicate Certificate of Title?
i.Registered owner
ii.Each co-owner
c.What are the requirements for the replacement of lost duplicate certificate of title?
i.Due notice under oath shall be sent by the owner or by someone is 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.
ii.Petition for replacement should be filed with the RTC of the province or city where the land lies.
iii.Notice to Solicitor General by petitioner is not imposed by law but it is the Register of Deeds who should
request for representation by the Solicitor General.
iv.A proceeding where the certificate of title was not in fact lost or destroyed is null and void for lack of
jurisdiction and the newly issued duplicate is null and void.
13)Amendment or Correction of Title
a.What are the grounds for amendment or correction of certificate of title?
i.When registered interests of any description, whether vested, contingent or inchoate have terminated and
cease;
ii.When new interests have arisen or been created which do not appear upon the certificate;
iii.When any error, omission or mistake was made in entering a certificate or any memorandum thereon or on
any duplicate certificate;
iv.When the name of any person on the certificate has been changed;
v.When the registered owner has been married, or registered as married, the marriage has terminated and no
right or interest of heirs or creditors will thereby be affected;
vi.When a corporation, which owned registered land and has been dissolved, has not conveyed the same within
3 years after its dissolution; or
vii.When there is a reasonable ground for the amendment or alteration of title.
b.What are the requisites for the amendment or correction of title?
i.It must be filed in the original case;
ii.By the registered owner or a person in interest;
iii.On grounds enumerated
iv.All parties must be notified;
v.There is unanimity among them; and
vi.Original decree must not be opened.
14)Cancellation of Title
a.What are the grounds for cancellation of title?
i.When title is void;
ii.Title is replaced by one issued under a cadastral proceeding; or
iii.When condition for its issuance has been violated by the registered owner.
15)Surrender of Withheld Duplicate Certificate of Title
a.What are the grounds for surrender of withheld duplicate certificate of title?
i.When it is necessary to issue a new certificate of title pursuant to any involuntary instrument which divests the
title of the registered owner against his consent;
ii.Where a voluntary instrument cannot be registered by reason of the refusal or failure of the holder to
surrender the owner’s duplicate certificate of title; or
iii.Where the owner’s duplicate certificate is not presented for amendment or alteration pursuant to a court
order.
16)Reversion
a.What is meant by reversion?
i.It is an action instituted by the government, through the Solicitor General, for cancellation of certificate of title
and the consequential reversion of the land covered thereby to the State.
ii.Note: The difference between reversion suit and action for declaration of nullity of title is that in the former,
the allegations in the complaint would admit State ownership of the disputed land. On the other hand, action
for declaration of nullity of title requires allegation of the plaintiff’s ownership of the contested lot prior to the
issuance of free patent and certificate of title.
b.When does reversion apply?
i.Generally, reversion applies in all cases where lands of public domain and the improvements thereon and all
lands are held in violation of the Constitution.
c.What are the grounds for reversion of lands covered by a patent?
i.Violation of Sections 118, 120, 121 and 122, Public Land Act (e.g. alienation or sale of homestead executed
within the 5 year prohibitory period)
ii.When land patented and titled is not capable of registration
iii.Failure of the grantee to comply with the conditions imposed by law to entitle him to a patent grant
iv.When the area is an expanded area
v.When the land is acquired in violation of the Constitution (e.g. land acquired by an alien may be reverted to
the State)
ii.Ting v. Heirs of Diego Lirio, 518 scra 334 (2007)
Section 30 of Presidential Decree No. 1529 or the Property Registration Decree provides:
The judgment rendered in a land registration proceeding becomes final upon the expiration of thirty days to be counted
from the date of receipt of notice of the judgment.
In a registration proceeding instituted for the registration of a private land, with or without opposition, the judgment of
the court confirming the title of the applicant or oppositor, as the case may be, and ordering its registration in his name
constitutes, when final, res judicata against the whole world. It becomes final when no appeal within the reglementary
period is taken from a judgment of confirmation and registration.
iii. Gomez v. CA, 168 SCRA 503 (1988)
Unlike ordinary civil actions, the adjudication of land in a cadastral or land registration proceeding does not become
final, in the sense of incontrovertibility until after the expiration of one (1) year after the entry of the final decree of
registration. The Court, in several decisions, has held that as long as a final decree has not been entered by the Land
Registration Commission (now NLTDRA) and the period of one (1) year has not elapsed from date of entry of such
decree, the title is not finally adjudicated and the decision in the registration proceeding continues to be under the
control and sound discretion of the court rendering it.
It is a settled rule that a homestead patent, once registered under the Land Registration Act, becomes indefeasible and
incontrovertible as a Torrens title, and may no longer be the subject of an investigation for determination or judgment in
cadastral proceeding.
E.CADASTRAL REGISTRATION PROCEEDINGS
A. ORDER FOR SPEEDY SETTLEMENT AND ADJUDICATION; SURVEY; NOTICES
i. Section 35. Cadastral Survey Preparatory to filing of petition.
(a) When in the opinion of the President of the Philippines public interest so requires that title to any unregistered lands
be settled and adjudicated, he may to this end direct and order the Director of Lands to cause to be made a cadastral
survey of the lands involved and the plans and technical description thereof prepared in due form.
(b) Thereupon, the Director of Lands shall give notice to persons claiming any interest in the lands as well as to the
general public, of the day on which such survey will begin, giving as fully and accurately as possible the description of the
lands to be surveyed. Such notice shall be punished once in the Official Gazette, and a copy of the notice in English or
the national language shall be posted in a conspicuous place on the bulletin board of the municipal building of the
municipality in which the lands or any portion thereof is situated. A copy of the notice shall also be sent to the mayor of
such municipality as well as to the barangay captain and likewise to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan and the Sangguniang
Bayan concerned.
(c)The Geodetic Engineers or other employees of the Bureau of Lands in charge of the survey shall give notice
reasonably in advance of the date on which the survey of any portion of such lands is to begin, which notice shall be
posted in the bulletin board of the municipal building of the municipality or barrio in which the lands are situated, and
shall mark the boundaries of the lands by monuments set up in proper places thereon. It shall be lawful for such
Geodetic Engineers and other employees to enter upon the lands whenever necessary for the purposes of such survey
or the placing of monuments.
(d)It shall be the duty of every person claiming an interest in the lands to be surveyed, or in any parcel thereof, to
communicate with the Geodetic Engineer upon his request therefor all information possessed by such person
concerning the boundary lines of any lands to which he claims title or in which he claims any interest.
(e)Any person who shall willfully obstruct the making of any survey undertaken by the Bureau of Lands or by a licensed
Geodetic Engineer duly authorized to conduct the survey under this Section, or shall maliciously interfere with the
placing of any monument or remove such monument, or shall destroy or remove any notice of survey posted on the
land pursuant to law, shall be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand pesos or by imprisonment for not more
than one year, or both.
B.PETITION; LOT NUMBERS
ii. Section 36. Petition for registration.
When the lands have been surveyed or plotted, the Director of Lands, represented by the Solicitor General, shall
institute original registration proceedings by filing the necessary petition in the Court of First Instance of the place where
the land is situated against the holders, claimants, possessors, or occupants of such lands or any part thereof, stating in
substance that public interest requires that the title to such lands be settled and adjudicated and praying that such titles
be so settled and adjudicated:
The petition shall contain a description of the lands and shall be accompanied by a plan thereof, and may contain such
other data as may serve to furnish full notice to the occupants of the lands and to all persons who may claim any right or
interest therein.
Where the land consists of two or more parcels held or occupied by different persons, the plan shall indicate the
boundaries or limits of the various parcels as accurately as possible. The parcels shall be known as "lots" and shall on the
plan filed in the case be given separate numbers by the Director of Lands, which numbers shall be known as "cadastral
lot numbers". The lots situated within each municipality shall, as far as practicable, be numbered consecutively
beginning with number "one", and only one series of numbers shall be used for that purpose in each municipality.
However in cities or townsites, a designation of the landholdings by blocks and lot numbers may be employed instead of
the designation by cadastral lot numbers.
The cadastral number of a lot shall not be changed after final decision has been entered decreasing the registration
thereof, except by order of court. Future subdivisions of any lot shall be designated by a letter or letters of the alphabet
added to the cadastral number of the lot to which the respective subdivisions pertain. The letter with which a
subdivision is designated shall be known as its "cadastral letter": Provided, however, that the subdivisions of cities or
townsites may be designated by blocks and lot numbers.
C.ANSWER
iii.Section 37. Answer to petition in cadastral proceedings.
Any claimant in cadastral proceedings, whether named in the notice or not, shall appear before the court by himself or
by some other authorized person in his behalf, and shall file an answer on or before the date of initial hearing or within
such further time as may be allowed by the court. The answer shall be signed and sworn to by the claimant or by some
other authorized person in his behalf, and shall state whether the claimant is married or unmarried, and if married, the
name of the spouse and the date of marriage, his nationality, residence and postal address, and shall also contain:
(a)The age of the claimant;
(b)The cadastral number of the lot or lots claimed, as appearing on the plan filed in the case by the Director of Lands, or
the block and lot numbers, as the case may be;
(c)The name of the barrio and municipality in which the lots are situated;
(d)The names and addresses of the owners of the adjoining lots so far as known to the claimant;
(e)If the claimant is in possession of the lots claimed and can show no express grant of the land by the government to
him or to his predecessors-in-interest, the answer shall state the length of time he has held such possession and the
manner in which it has been acquired, and shall also state the length of time, as far as known, during which the
predecessors, if any, held possession;
(f)If the claimant is not in possession or occupation of the land, the answer shall fully set forth the interest claimed by
him and the time and manner of his acquisition;
(g)If the lots have been assessed for taxation, their last assessed value; and
(h) The encumbrances, if any, affecting the lots and the names of adverse claimants, as far as known.
D. HEARING; JUDGMENT; DECREE
iv. Section 38. Hearing, Judgment, Decree.
The trial of the case may occur at any convenient place within the province in which the lands are situated and shall be
conducted, and orders for default and confessions entered, in the same manner as in ordinary land registration
proceedings and shall be governed by the same rules. All conflicting interests shall be adjudicated by the court and
decrees awarded in favor of the persons entitled to the lands or to parts thereof and such decrees shall be the basis for
issuance of original certificates of title in favor of said persons and shall have the same effect as certificates of title
granted on application for registration of land under ordinary land registration proceedings.
v. Tan Sing Pan v. Republic, 496 SCRA 189 (2006)
Cadastral proceedings, like ordinary registration proceedings, are proceedings in rem, and are governed by the usual
rules of practice, procedure and evidence. A cadastral decree and a certificate of title are issued only after the applicants
prove all the requisite jurisdictional facts: that they are entitled to the claimed lot; that all parties are heard; and that
evidence is considered.
It is incumbent upon the petitioners to establish by positive proof that the publication requirement has been complied
with, what with the fact that they are the ones who stood to be benefited by the adjudication of the subject lot.
Regrettably, they failed to present proof of publication of the Notice of Initial Hearing.
All told, there being no indication at all from the records of the case that notice of the Order for Initial Hearing was
published in the Official Gazette and in a newspaper of general circulation, without which the trial court did not acquire
jurisdiction over the case, the decision rendered by the 7th MCTC of Atimonan-Plaridel, Quezon, confirming petitioners'
title over the subject lot is void ab initio for having been rendered without jurisdiction.
vi. Rodil v. Benedicto, 95 SCRA 137, (1980)
The Court is convinced that the respondent Judge committed an error in denying the petition for the issuance of a writ
of possession. The findings of the respondent Judge that a writ of possession cannot be issued in the cadastral case
because the respondents were not parties in said registration proceedings, or that they were not occupants of the land
during the registration proceedings prior to the issuance of the final decree of registration is not supported by the
evidence and law.
The respondent heirs of Alejandro Abes cannot be said to be strangers to the registration proceedings. A cadastral
proceeding is a proceeding in rem and against everybody, including the respondents herein, who are deemed included
in the general order of default entered in the case. Besides, it appears that the said respondent heirs of
Alejandro Abes filed a petition for the review of the decree of registration, thereby becoming a direct party in the
registration proceedings by their voluntary appearance.
The respondent heirs of Alejandro Abes, being in possession of the lots in questionunlawfully and adversely, during the
registration proceedings, may be judicially evicted by means of a writ of possession and it is the duty of the registration
court to issue said writ when asked for by the successful claimant.
The respondents claim that the petition for the issuance of a writ of possession was filed out of time, the said petition
having been filed more than five years after the issuance of the final decree of registration.In the case of Manlapas and
Tolentino vs. Lorente, which has not yet been abandoned, the Court stated that the right of the applicant or a
subsequent purchaser to ask for the issuance of a writ of possession of the land never prescribes.
NOTES SECTIONS 35 38 of PRD:
1)What is cadastral registration?
a.It is a proceeding in rem, initiated by the filing of a petition for registration by the government, not by the
persons claiming ownership of the land subject thereof, and the latter are, on the pain of losing their claim
thereto, in effect compelled to go to court to make known their claim or interest therein, and to substantiate
such claim or interest.
2)Nature and purpose of cadastral proceedings
a.The purpose, as stated in Section 35(a), is to serve the public interest by requiring that the titles to any
unregistered lands be settled and adjudicated.
b.The piecemeal and isolated registration of lands, so inadequate in more ways than one, is avoided. The
principal aim is to settle as much as possible all disputes over land and to remove all clouds over land titles, as
far as practicable, in a community.
c.The object of a cadastral petition is to have the title to the various lots embraced in the survey be settled and
adjudicated.
d.It is in the nature of a proceeding in rem, promoted by the Director of Lands, somewhat akin to a judicial
inquiry and investigation leading to a judicial decree.
3)Procedure leading to the adjudication of property through cadastral proceedings
a.Cadastral survey preparatory to filing of petition
b.Notice of survey and publication
c.Filing of petition for registration
d.Publication
e.Filing of answer
f.Hearing of the petition
g.Judgment; when title deemed vested
i.In the absence of fraud, title to land in a cadastral proceeding is vested on the owner upon the expiration of
the period to appeal from the decision or adjudication by the cadastral court, without such appeal being
perfected; and from that time the land becomes registered property which cannot be lost by adverse
possession. The certificate of tile would then be necessary for purposes of effecting registration of subsequent
disposition of the land where court proceedings would no longer be necessary.
4)Actions taken in a cadastral proceeding
a.First - adjudicates ownership in favor of one of the claimants. This constitutes the decision the judgment the
decree of the court, and speaks in a judicial manner.
b.Second action is the declaration by the court that the decree is final and its order for the issuance of the
certificate of title by the Administrator of the Land Registration Authority.
c.Third and last action devolves upon the Land Registration Authority. This office has been instituted in order to
have a more efficient execution of the laws relative to the registration of lands and to issue decrees of
registration pursuant to final judgments of the courts in land registration proceedings.
5)Only unregistered lands may be the subject of a cadastral survey
a.As provided for in Section 35, the law would limit the cadastral survey to any unregistered lands such that private
lands are excluded. This interpretation appears to be reasonable considering that the object of cadastral proceedings is
to settle and adjudicate to lands. Private lands are obviously not contemplated since ownership thereof had already
been finally determined and adjudicated.
6)Lands already titled cannot be the subject of cadastral proceedings
a.Lands already decreed and registered in an ordinary registration proceeding cannot again be subject of
adjudication or settlement in a subsequent cadastral proceeding.
b.A registration court has no jurisdiction to decree again the registration of land already decreed in an earlier
land registration case and a second decree for the same land is null and void. This is so because when once
decreed by a court of competent jurisdiction, the title to land thus determined is already res judicata, and
binding on the whole world, the proceeding being in rem.
7)Jurisdiction of the cadastral court over previously titled lands limited to the correction of technical errors in the
description of the land
a.Provided that such corrections do not impair the substantial rights of the registered owner of his title;
b.The cadastral court has jurisdiction to determine the priority or relative weight of two or more certificates of
title for the same land.
8)New titles may be issued for private lands within the cadastral survey
a.No modification or alteration can be permitted to be made in the Torrens title for the sole purpose of making
the area of the and described therein agree with that given in the cadastral survey plan
b.The new title issued under the cadastral system to a person who already holds a valid Torrens title must
include the whole land specified in the latter.
c.A decree entered by the court cannot be considered as permanent if the limits of the land therein registered
may be changed or the area thereof altered by a subsequent adjudication by the court.
9)Cadastral answer may not be thrown out upon a mere motion of adverse claimants
a.Suppressing the presentation of evidence in support of claims would perpetuate conflicts over lands.
10)Amendment of the plan to include additional territory
a.An order of a court in a cadastral case amending the official plan so as to make it include land not previously
included therein is a nullity unless new publication is made.
b.Publication is one of the essential bases of the jurisdiction of the court in land registration and cadastral cases,
and additional territory cannot be included by amendment of the plan without new publication.
11)When title to land in a cadastral case is vested
a.In a cadastral case, title of ownership on the land is vested upon the owner upon the expiration of the period
to appeal from the decision or adjudication by the cadastral court, without such an appeal having been
perfected.
b.In other words, upon the promulgation of the order issuance of a decree, the land, for all intents and
purposes, had become, from that time, registered property which could not be acquired by adverse possession.
c.The certificate of title would then be necessary for purposes of effecting registration of subsequent disposition
of the land where court proceedings would no longer be necessary.
d.As a general rule, registration of title under the cadastral system is final, conclusive and indisputable, after the
lapse of the period allowed for an appeal.
12)Decision declaring land as public land not a bar to a subsequent action for confirmation of title over the same land
13)Neither prescription nor laches may render inefficacious a decision in a land registration case
a.In line with the doctrine of the inapplicability of prescription and laches in registration cases, it has been held
that the failure on the part of the administrative authorities to do their part in the issuance of the decree of
registration cannot oust the prevailing party from ownership of the land.
14)Cadastral court has no jurisdiction over a petition for reconstitution
a.A reconstituted title is ordered issued in an ordinary civil case, not in a cadastral proceeding for judicial
confirmation of imperfect title over unregistered property.
15)Neither prescription nor laches may render inefficacious a judgment in acadastral case
a.The mere fact that there has been a delay in the issuance of the corresponding certificate of title pursuant to a
decree of registration in a cadastral case will not render inefficacious the decision rendered by the court on
account of prescription or laches. The rule is that the failure on the part of the administrative authorities to do
their part in the issuance of the decree of registration cannot oust the prevailing party from ownership of the
land.
16)Issuance of writ of possession imprescriptible
a.It has been held that where respondent heirs were in possession of the lots in question, unlawfully and adversely,
during the cadastral proceedings, they may be judicially evicted by means of a writ of possession, the issuance of which
never prescribes. Respondent heirs cannot be said to be strangers since a cadastral proceeding is a proceeding in
rem and against everybody.