Property

Front 1

Examples of immovable property

Back 1

• Sugar quota
  
• uprooted timber
• For Use or Ornamentation. Must be placed by owner, if not the owner, a person that acts as his agent.
• Immovables by Incorporation. Not necessarily by owner, only criterion is the incorporation in the soil.
• Machinery, receptacles, instruments or implements. must be placed by the owner or his agent, the industry must be carried on in a building or on a piece of land, must tend directly to meet the needs of the said industry or works. Work animals are excluded.
• interest in the real property of a business entity

Front 2

Examples of movable property

Back 2

• Steel towers of electric companies
• Growing crops
• cut or uprooted trees or plants (except timber)
• growing crops when sold
• products or fruits, for the purposes of attachment, execution and chattel mortgage
• obligations and actions
• interest in a business (stock, participation, etc)

Front 3

Examples of public land

Back 3

• property is assumed to be State property. burden of proof is on the person applying for registration.
• Shores
• accretion on a sea bank
• foreshore land (land adjacent to sea which is alternately covered and left dry by the ordinary flow of the tides)
• Creek -recess or arm extending from river and participating in the ebb and flow of the sea - its conversion to a fishpond did not alter the nature of the creek as a part of the public domain
• all three elements of a river (running waters, river bed, river bank) - including those banks which are formed when a river leaves its old bed and opens a new course through a private estate (Hilario v City of Manila)
• seashore lands - all lands thrown up by the sea and formed upon the shore by the action of the water, together with the adjacent shore, belong to the national domain and re for public uses
• forest lands. possession, no matter how long, does not ripen to registrable title
• public street is public use
• ports, seaports, airports
• submerged lands
• man-made accretions
• improvements made by the Japanese military forces on private lands belong to the Phil Govt as the victor in the last World War (Saavedra v Pecson)

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Examples of private land

Back 4

• accretions on a bank of a lake (Republic v Vda de Castillo)
  
• channels of creeks and brooks belong to the owners of estates over which they flow (Santos v Moreno)

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conversion from public to private land

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• there must be a law or presidential proclamation officially classifying these reclaimed lands which are lands of the public domain as alienable or disposable and open to disposition or concession
• Public land until formally declared by the government for the land to be no longer needed for public use
• DENR Secretary has no power to convert forest reserves into non-forest reserves
• City council is the authority competent to determine whether or not a certain property is still necessary for public use. such power to vacate a street or alley is discretionary.
• when withdrawn for public use, public land of a municipality becomes patrimonial property which can be the object of an ordinary contract
• when the President says so. The ultimate power over alienable and disposable public land is reposed to the President
• the President shall have the power to reserve for settlement or public use, and for specific public purposes, any of the lands of the public domain
• with the exception of agricultural lands, all other natural resources shall not be alienated
• loses his proprietary right over said canal through prescription by allowing the public to use it for transportation and fishing purposes (Santos v Moreno)

Front 6

Null and void actions/things

Back 6

• Free Patent issued over a private land
• Sale or lease of communal or public property by municipal council (Mun. of Cavite v Tiung Siuko)
• lease or license over land for public use
• property of municipality, whether real or personal, necessary for government purposes cannot be attached and sold at public auction to satisfy a judgement against the municipality

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Prescription

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• right of reversion or reconveyance to the State of the public properties fraudulently registered and which are not capable of private appropriation or private acquisition does not prescribe (Martinez v CA)

Front 8

Terminable things/actions

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• implied agreement of lease of land not included in any of the categories of municipal properties for public use, is not null and void, although terminable upon notice.
  

Front 9

Applicability of laws

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• timber and mineral lands shall be governed by special laws

Front 10

Ownership

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• Definition. the exclusive enjoyment and control of a thing subject only to the restrictions or limitations established by law and the rights of others.
• Scope. May be exercised over things or rights, and corporeal or incorporeal.
• the primary right of a private individual who possessed and cultivated the land in good faith much prior to such classification must be recognized and should not be prejudiced by after-events which could not have been anticipated
• writ of possession, as the same may be issued in extrajudicial foreclosure of real estate mortgage only if the debtor is in possession and not third person had intervened
• judgement, with respect to the matter directly adjudged therein, is conclusive between the parties and their successors in interest by title subsequent to the commencement of the action
• agricultural lessee's rights are enforceable against the transferee or the landowner's successor-in-interest
• the exercise of acts of ownership over a vessel registered in another's name, does not overcome the presumption that the registered owner is the legal owner.
• there is presumption of ownership in favor of possessor
• In case of conflicting claims of possession, the present possessor is preferred
  
• the option to sell the land on which another in good faith builds, plants, or sows on, belongs to the landowner
• because the island is longer than the property of the private respondents, they are deemed ipso jure to be the owners of that portion which corresponds to the length of their property along the margin of the river (Jagualing v CA)
• payment of taxes without possession could hardly be construed as an exercise of ownership (Rumarate v Hernandez)

Front 11

Rights of movable property

Back 11

• jus utendi
• jus abutendi
• jus disponendi
• jus vindicandi

Front 12

Rights of ownership, in general

Back 12

PUF A VAD

• jus possidendi - to possess
• jus utendi - to use and enjoy
• jus fruendi - to fruits
• jus abutendi - to consume/destroy by its use
• jus vindicandi - to vindicate or recover
• jus accessionis - to accessories
• jus disponendi - to dispose or alienate

Rights to the expenses and the right to the fruits both pertain to the possessor.

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Accion Reinvidicatoria

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• the recovery of possession over the real property as owner.
• recovery of ownership and possession based on said ownership

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Accion publiciana

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• recovery of possession of the right to possess
• ejectment suit filed after the expiration of one year after the occurrence of the cause of action or from the unlawful withholding of possession of the realty.

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What is the basis of value of property?

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• Assessed value

• assessed value = fair market value * assessment level

• fair market value = price at which a property may be sold by a seller, who is not compelled to sell, and bought by a buyer, who is not compelled to buy

Front 16

Unlawful detainer

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• prior physical possession by the plaintiff is not necessary

Front 17

Absence of title

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• mere absence of title over the lot is not a ground for the courts to withhold relief from the parties in an ejectment case.

Front 18

Tolerance/permission

Back 18

• a person who occupies the land of another at the latter's tolerance or permission, without any contract between them, is necessarily bound by an implied promise that he will vacate upon demand, failing which a summary action for ejectment (unlawful detainer) is the proper remedy against him.

Front 19

Forcible entry

Back 19

• the one-year period within which to bring an action for forcible entry is generally counted from the date of actual entry to the land. unless it was done by stealth, where one-year period is counted from plaintiff having knowledge about it.
• title is not involved
• merely a quieting process and never determines the actual title to an estate
• the plaintiff is deprived of physical possession of his land or building. thus, he must prove prior possession.

Front 20

Doctrine of Self-help

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• Article 429 of the Civil Code
• can only be exercised at the time of actual or threatened dispossession. When possession has already been lost, the owner must resort to judicial process
• Requisites. (1) owner of lawful possessor (2) reasonable force (3) no delay

Front 21

Right of Accession to what is produced by property

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• the ownership of property gives the right by accession to everything which is produced thereby, or which is incorporated or attached thereto, either naturally or artificially

Front 22

Right of Accession w/ respect to Immovables - Accession Industrial

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• Lease is an interest in real property, jurisdiction of which belongs to the RTC
• Judgement in a detainer case is effective in respect of possession only, not rights of lease.
• Owner of land on which improvement was built by another in good faith is entitled to removal of improvement only after landowner has opted to sell the land and the builder refused to pay for the same
• Where the land's value is considerably more than the improvement, the landowner cannot compel the builder to buy the land. In such event, a "forced lease" is created and the court shall fix the terms thereof in case the parties fail to agree upon the terms of lease.
• Article 448 may apply even when there was co-ownership if good faith has been established.
• Defendants may demolish or remove the intruding portion of their house, at their own expense, if they so decide.
• plaintiffs have the right to appropriate said portion of the house of the defendants upon payment of indemnity to defendants as provided for in Art 546 of Civil Code. Otherwise, the plaintiffs may oblige the defendants to pay the price of the land occupied by their house
• landowner on which a building has been constructed in good faith by another has the option to buy the building or sell his land to the builder, he cannot refuse to exercise either option
• Owner is only entitled to compel builder in good faith to remove the improvement only when, after having chosen to sell his land, the other party fails to pay for the same
• builder or planter cannot be obliged to buy the land if its value is considerably more than that of the building or trees.

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Right of retention

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• considered as one of the measures devised by the law for the protection of builders in good faith.
• objective is to guarantee full and prompt reimbursement as it permits the actual possessor to remain in possession while he has not been reimbursed (by the person who defeated him in the case for possession of property) for those necessary expenses and the useful improvements made by him on the thing possessed
• builder in good faith cannot be compelled to pay rentals during the period of retention nor be disturbed in his possession by ordering him to vacate.
• Owner of the land is prohibited from offsetting or compensating the necessary and useful expenses with the fruits received by the builder-possessor in good faith. (fruits were born out of the efforts of the builder-possessor in good faith)

Front 24

Article 448

Back 24

• to fall within the provision of this article, the construction must be of permanent character, attached to the soil with an idea of perpetuity; but if it is of a transitory character or is transferable, there is no accession, and the builder must remove the construction. The proper remedy of the land owner is an action to eject the builder from the land.

Front 25

Right to Possess/ Possession

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• May be in the concept of owner or mere holder.
• Possession can also be acquired, not only by material occupation, but also by the fact that a thing is subject to the action of one's will or by the proper acts and legal formalities established for acquiring such right. (execution of deed of sale, for example)
• Actual or physical possession is not always necessary.

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Builder in good faith

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• one who builds with the belief that the land he is building on is his, or that by some title one has the right to build thereon
• good faith is always presumed, and upon him who alleges bad faith on the part of the possessor rests the burden of proof

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Accretion/Alluvion

Back 27

is presumed

must be the exclusive work of nature

Requisites

(1) deposit be gradual and imperceptible

(2) effects of the current of the water

(3) land where accretion takes place is adjacent to the bank of the river

An accretion does not automatically become registered land, just because the lot which receives such accretion is covered by a Torrens title (Grande v CA)

To obtain the protection of accretion being imprescriptible by occupation of third parties, the land must be placed under the protection of the registration laws (Grande v CA)

Front 28

Director of Lands

Back 28

shall have direct executive control of the survey, classification, lease, sale or any other form of concession or disposition and management of the lands of the public domain

Front 29

Rivers

Back 29

Public domain

3 parts

• running waters
• river bank
• river bed

there is all the more reason for the riparian owner to be compensated when the change in the course of the river is effected through artificial means. (Baes v CA)

Front 30

Right of Accession with respect to movable property

Back 30

• if the commingling of two things is made in bad faith, the one responsible for it will lose his share (Siari Valley Estate, Inc. v Lucasan)

• if by the will of their owners, two things of identical or dissimilar nature are mixed, or if the mixture occurs accidentally, if in the latter case the things cannot be separated without injury, each owner shall acquire a right in the mixture proportionate to the part belonging to him, according to the value of the things mixed or commingled (Civil Code)

Front 31

Quieting of title

Back 31

• 2 indispensible requisites: (1) plaintiff has a legal or an equitable title to or interest in the real property subject of the action (2) deed,claim,encumbrance or proceeding claimed to be casting cloud on his title must be shown to be in fact invalid or inoperative despite its prima facie appearance of validity or legal efficacy

• An action to quiet title to property in one's possession is imprescriptible (Coronel v IAC)

• Torrens system of registration could not be utilized to perpetrate fraud

• Simple possession of a certificate of title, under the Torrens system, does not necessarily make the possessor a true owner of all the property described therein. (Coronel v IAC)

• A Land Registration Court has no jurisdiction to decree a lot to person who have never asserted any right of ownership over it.

• Statutory period of prescription, if land is not in possession of plaintiff, commences to run against him when he is made aware of a claim adverse to his own (Caragay-Lagno v CA)

• after the expiration of the 1-year redemption period forecloses the obligor's right to redeem and that the sale thereby becomes absolute, the issuance thereafter of a final deed of sale is at best a mere formality and mere confirmation of the title that is already vested in the purchaser. (Calacala v Republic)

• An action for reconveyance of a parcel of land based on implied or constructive trust prescribes in ten years, the point of reference being the date of registration of the deed of sale or the date of the issuance of the certificate of title over the property (Heirs of Jose Olviga v CA)

• Ground. The ground or reason for filing a complaint for quieting of title must therefore be PRICE: proceeding, record, instrument, claim, encumbrance (Titong v CA)

• Prescriptive title to real estate is not acquired by mere possession thereof under claim of ownership for a period of ten years unless such possession was acquired with color of title and good faith. (Titong v CA)

Front 32

Laches

Back 32

• Definition. failure or neglect, for an unreasonable and unexplained length of time, to do that which by exercising due diligence could or should have been done earlier; it is negligence or omission to assert a right within a reasonable time, warranting a presumption that the party entitled to assert it either has abandoned it or declined to assert it
• Elements. (1)conduct of a party on the basis of which the other party seeks remedy; (2) delay in asserting one's rights, despite having had knowledge or notice of the other party's conduct and having been afforded an opportunity to institute a suit; (3) lack of knowledge or notice on the part of a party that the person against whom laches is imputed would assert the right; (4) injury or prejudice to the party asserting laches in the even the suit is allowed to prospter (Rumarate v Hernandez)

Front 33

Partition among heirs

Back 33

• not legally deemed a conveyance of real property, but a confirmation or ratification of title or right of property that an heir is renouncing in favor of another heir who accepts and receives the inheritance

Front 34

Lease

Back 34

• no inducement or misrepresentation from the lessor is necessary for this purpose, for it is not only a matter of necessity that a lessee should redesign its place of business but a business strategy as well.

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Good faith

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• to be entitled to reimbursement for improvements introduced on the property, petitioner must be considered a builder in good faith.

Front 36

Chattel mortgage

Back 36

• not binding on third persons
• real estate mortgage will also include machinery and equipment that are permanent

Front 37

Real properties treated as personal property

Back 37

• the parties to a contract of chattel mortgage may, by agreement, treat as personal property that which by nature would be real property, such as "leasehold rights and building" (Standard Oil Co v Jaramillo)
• an object placed on land by one who has only a temporary right to the same such as the lessee or usufructuary, does not become immobilized by attachment (Davao Sawmill Co., Inc. v Castillo)
  
• when said properties appear to be immovable, they may be considered personal property as when they are used as security for the payment of an obligation over which a chattel mortgage is executed (Tsai v CA)

Front 38

Classes of Immovable Property

Back 38

NIDA

• by nature - cannot be carried
• by incorporation - attached to an immovable in a fixed manner
• by destination - placed in an immovable for the utility it gives
• by analogy - by express provision of law

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Incidental movables

Back 39

• businesses can continue or carry on their functions without these equipments.
• if the machinery is merely stored in a building by the owner, and not intended to be used by him, it is movable property although it tends directly to meet the needs of the industry or work carried therein.

Front 40

3 tests to determine WON it is movable property

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1. WON it can be transported or carried from place to place
2. WON location can be changed without injuring the immovable to which it is attached
3. does not fall within the ten cases enumerated in Art. 415

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Public land

Back 41

• Alienable land of the public domain may be disposed of only by lease and not otherwise. it is not capable of private appropriation
  
• outside the commerce of man
• cannot be the subject matter of contracts
• vs Govt lands. Broader than Public lands. Includes public lands and other real estate which is not a part thereof.
• Public agricultural land. all natural resources belong to the State. With the exception of public agricultural lands, they are not subject to alienation.
• Patrimonial property. owned by the State in its private and proprietary capacity. for the attainment of the State's economic ends. The State may dispose of it.
• Exempt from real property tax. Generally exempted except when the beneficial use thereof has been granted for consideration or otherwise to a taxable person.

Front 42

Is Art. 422 of the NCC self-executing?

Back 42

No. there must be a formal declaration by the executive or possibly legislative department of the government that the property of the State is no longer needed for public use or for public service before the same can be classified as patrimonial or private property of the State.

Front 43

Property of political subdivisions

Back 43

• Property for public use, or patrimonial.
• Property for public service is considered patrimonial, and therefore not public.
• Control by Congress. if the property is owned by the municipality (meaning municipal corporation) in its public and governmental capacity, the property is public and Congress has absolute control over it. But if the property is owned in its private or proprietary capacity, then it is patrimonial and Congress has no absolute control.
• Conversion to public domain. in order to be property of public domain, an intention to devote it to public use is sufficient.

Front 44

What is the purpose of Article 426 of the NCC?

Back 44

• it is to protect the interest of the transferor by preventing the conveyance of objects which are not intended to be transferred.
• "Muebles" = "Furniture"

Front 45

Beneficial ownership

Back 45

• Definition. Ownership recognized by law and capable of being enforced in court. Right to a property's enjoyment is in one person where the legal title is in another.
• 2 senses. It is used in 2 senses: (1) to indicate the interest of a beneficiary in trust property ("equitable ownership"); (2) power of shareholder of a corporation to buy or sell the shares though the shareholder is not registered in the corporation's books as the owner.

Front 46

Naked ownership

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• Definition. Enjoyment of all benefits and privileges of ownership, as against the bare title to property.

Front 47

Right to use and enjoy

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• Necessarily includes the right to transform and the right to exclude any person
• may use such force as may be reasonably necessary to repel or prevent an actual or threatened unlawful physical invasion or usurpation of his property.

Front 48

Action available to recover possession of personal property

Back 48

• Writ of replevin

Front 49

What should be included in the affidavit for writ of replevin?

Back 49

• Plaintiff is rightful owner
• Particular description of property
• market value of property
• property was wrongfully detained

Front 50

Writ of Replevin

Back 50

• principal and provisional remedy

Front 51

Can a property that is properly in custodia legis be a subject of a replevin suit?

Back 51

• No. A property that is validly in custodia legis cannot be the subject of a replevin suit (Calub v CA)

Front 52

What are the 4 actions or remedies to judicially recover possession of real property?

Back 52

• Accion interdictal: (1) forcible entry (2) unlawful detainer
• (3) Accion publiciana - action to recover possession
• (4) Accion reinvidicatoria/ accion de reivindicacion - action to recover possession based on ownership

Front 53

Accion interdictal

Back 53

• Two kinds. Forcible Entry, and Unlawful Detainer
• ejectment suit
• summary proceeding
• Who may institute. (1) a person deprived of possession by FISTS: force, intimidation, stealth, threat, strategy; (2) landlord, vendor, vendee or other person against whom the possession of land or building is unlawfully withheld after the expiration or termination of the right to hold possession, by virtue of any contract, expressed or implied; (3) legal representatives of 1 and 2.
• Issue. the only issue in an ejectment case is mere physical or material possession (possession de facto).
• Prescriptive period.

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Article 432

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• Based on doctrine of state of necessity
• Requisites for application. (1) interference necessary (2) damage to another greater than damage to property
  

Front 55

What are the two kinds of accession?

Back 55

• Accession discreta - as to the products, for just purposes

• Accession continua - as to that which is incorporated or attached, for practical purposes

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How can accession continua take place?

Back 56

1. As to real property: (1) accession industrial (2) accession natural
2. As to personal property: (1) conjunction or adjunction (2) commixtion or confusion (3) specification