a) Maria, wife of Pedro, withdrew P 5 Million from their conjugal funds. With this money, she constructed a building on a lot which she inherited from her father. Is the building conjugal or paraphernal? Reasons. (5%)
b) Cipriano and Lady Miros married each other. Lady Miros then left for the US and there, she obtained American citizenship. Cipriano later learned all about this including the fact that Lady Miros has divorced him in America and that she had remarried there. He then filed a petition for authority to remarry, invoking Par. 2, Art. 26 of the Family Code. Is Cipriano capacitated to re-marry by virtue of the divorce decree obtained by his Filipino spouse who was later naturalized as an American citizen? Explain. (5%)
Suggested answer only. Not an official answer and not legal advice.
(a) The building's character depends on comparing the values of the land and building. (b) Yes, Cipriano is capacitated to remarry.
Under Article 120 of the Family Code, if an improvement built with conjugal funds on separate land is worth more than the land, the property is conjugal; otherwise, it remains paraphernal. Under Article 26(2) of the Family Code and Republic v. Orbecido III, a Filipino may remarry if the spouse was naturalized abroad and obtained a valid divorce.
Here, if the P5 Million building is worth more than Maria's lot, it is conjugal; otherwise, paraphernal. Meanwhile, since Lady Miros obtained a valid US divorce as an American citizen, Cipriano can remarry.
Therefore, the building's nature depends on the Article 120 value test, and Cipriano is capacitated to remarry under Article 26.
This is not an official scoring system and carries no weight with the Supreme Court or any bar review provider. It measures how much of the suggested answer's wording your response covers, not whether your reasoning is correct. For practice only.
Quick check
Under Article 120 of the Family Code, what determines whether a building constructed with conjugal funds on separate land is conjugal or paraphernal?
Under Article 120, the property is conjugal if the value of the improvement exceeds the value of the land, otherwise it remains separate property.
Under Article 120 of the Family Code, if the value of the land is greater than the value of the improvement built with conjugal funds, what is the classification of the building?
If the land value exceeds the value of the improvement, the property remains the separate property of the land-owning spouse.
Under Article 26, Paragraph 2 of the Family Code, what is required for a Filipino spouse to have capacity to remarry after a foreign divorce?
Article 26(2) requires a valid foreign divorce decree obtained by the alien spouse that capacitates them to remarry.
According to Republic v. Orbecido III, does Article 26(2) apply if a spouse was a Filipino at marriage but later naturalized as a foreign citizen before obtaining a divorce?
The Supreme Court held in the Orbecido doctrine that Article 26(2) applies if the spouse was a naturalized alien when obtaining the foreign divorce.
What procedural step must a Filipino spouse take in the Philippines before contracting a new marriage following a valid foreign divorce obtained by an alien spouse?
The Filipino spouse must file a judicial petition in a Philippine court to recognize the foreign divorce decree before remarrying.
Learn more about these topics
1. Reverse Accession Rule
Under Article 120 of the Family Code, when an improvement is constructed using conjugal funds on separate property belonging to one of the spouses, ownership of the land and building depends on their relative values. If the value of the improvement and any resulting increase in the land's value is greater than the value of the principal land, the entire property becomes conjugal, subject to reimbursement. Conversely, if the land is worth more than the improvement, the structure remains paraphernal or exclusive property of the owner-spouse, with the conjugal partnership entitled to reimbursement upon liquidation.
2. Foreign Divorce Capacity
Under Article 26, Paragraph 2 of the Family Code, where a marriage between a Filipino citizen and a foreigner is validly celebrated and a divorce is thereafter validly obtained abroad by the alien spouse capacitating him or her to remarry, the Filipino spouse shall likewise have capacity to remarry under Philippine law. This rule prevents an anomalous situation where the Filipino spouse remains married while the alien spouse is free to remarry. Judicial recognition of the foreign divorce decree before a competent Philippine court is required before the Filipino spouse can legally contract a subsequent marriage.
3. Naturalized Spouse Divorce
In Republic v. Orbecido III, the Supreme Court clarified that Article 26, Paragraph 2 of the Family Code applies even if both spouses were Filipino citizens at the time of their marriage, provided that one spouse subsequently acquires foreign citizenship by naturalization and thereafter obtains a valid divorce decree abroad. The crucial reckoning time is the citizenship of the spouse at the time the foreign divorce decree is obtained. Once naturalized, the former Filipino is considered an alien spouse who may validly obtain a foreign divorce that liberates the Filipino partner to remarry.