1.

Family; Constitutional Mandates; Divorce (1991)

A. How does the 1987 Constitution strengthen
the family
as an Institution?
B. Do the Constitutional policy on the family and
the
provision that marriage is the foundation of the
family and
shall be protected by the State bar Congress
from enacting a
law allowing divorce in the Philippines?

2.
Marriage; Annulment; Effects; Requisites Before
Remarriage (1990)
The marriage of H and W was annulled by the
competent
court. Upon finality of the judgment of nullity. H
began
looking for his prospective second mate. He fell
in love
with a sexy woman S who wanted to be married
as soon as
possible, i.e., after a few months of courtship. As
a young
lawyer, you were consulted by H,
(a) How soon can H be joined in lawful wedlock
to his
girlfriend S? Under existing laws, are there
certain requisites
that must be complied with before he can
remarry? What
advice would you give H?
(b) Suppose that children were born from the
union of H
and W, what would be the status of said children?
Explain
your answer.
(c) If the subsequent marriage of H to S was
contracted before compliance with the statutory
condition
for its validity, what are the rights of the children
of the first
marriage (i.e., of H and W) and of the children of
the
subsequent marriage (of H and S)?

3.
Marriage; Annulment; Grounds (1991)
One of the grounds for annulment of marriage is
that either
party, at the time of their marriage was afflicted
with a
sexually-transmissible disease, found to be
serious and
appears incurable. Two (2) years after their
marriage, which
took place on 10 October 1988, Bethel
discovered that her
husband James has a sexually-transmissible
disease which he
contracted even prior to their marriage although
James did
not know it himself until he was examined two
[2) years

later when a child was already born to them.

Bethel sues
James for annulment of their marriage. James
opposes the
annulment on the ground that he did not even
know that he
had such a disease so that there was no fraud or
bad faith
on his part. Decide.
B. Suppose that both parties at the time of their
marriage
were similarly afflicted with sexuallytransmissible diseases,
serious and incurable, and both knew of their
respective
infirmities, can Bethel or James sue for
annulment of their
marriage?

4.
Marriage; Annulment; Judicial Declaration (1993)
Maria and Luis, both Filipinos, were married by
a Catholic
priest in Lourdes Church, Quezon City in 1976,
Luis was
drunk on the day of his wedding. In fact, he
slumped at the
altar soon after the ceremony. After marriage,
Luis never
had a steady job because he was drunk most of
the time.
Finally, he could not get employed at all because
of
drunkenness. Hence, it was Maria who had to
earn a living
to support herself and her child begotten with
Luis. In 1986,
Maria filed a petition in the church matrimonial
court in
Quezon City to annul her marriage with Luis on
the ground
of psychological incapacity to comply with his
marital
obligation. Her petition was granted by the
church
matrimonial court.
1) Can Maria now get married legally to another
man
under Philippine laws after her marriage to Luis
was
annulled by the church matrimonial court?
Explain.
2) What must Maria do to enable her to get
married
lawfully to another man under Philippine laws?

5.
Marriage; Annulment; Legal Separation; Prescription of
Actions (1996)
2) Bert and Baby were married to each other on
December
23, 1988. Six months later, she discovered that
he was a
drug addict. Efforts to have him rehabilitated
were
unsuccessful.
Can Baby ask for annulment of marriage, or legal
separation? Explain.

6.
Marriage; Annulment; Proper Party (1990)
D and G, age 20 and 19, respectively, and both
single,
eloped and got married to each other without
parental
consent in the case of G, a teenaged student of
an exclusive
college for girls. Three years later, her parents
wanted to
seek judicial annulment on that ground. You
were consulted
and asked to prepare the proper complaint. What
advice
would you give G's parents? Explain your answer.

7.
Marriage; Annulment; Proper Party (1995)
Yvette was found to be positive for HIV virus,
considered
sexually transmissible, serious and incurable.
Her boyfriend
Joseph was aware of her condition and yet
married her.
After two (2) years of cohabiting with Yvette, and
in his
belief that she would probably never be able to
bear him a
healthy child, Joseph now wants to have his
marriage with
Yvette annulled. Yvette opposes the suit
contending that
Joseph is estopped from seeking annulment of
their
marriage since he knew even before their
marriage that she
was afflicted with HIV virus.
Can the action of Joseph for annulment of his
marriage with
Yvette prosper? Discuss fully.

8.
Marriage; Divorce Decree; Void Marriages (1992)
In 1989, Maris, a Filipino citizen, married her
boss Johnson,
an American citizen, in Tokyo in a wedding
ceremony
celebrated according to Japanese laws. One year
later,
Johnson returned to his native Nevada, and he
validly
obtained in that state an absolute divorce from
his wife
Maris.
After Maris received the final judgment of
divorce, she
married her childhood sweetheart Pedro, also a
Filipino
citizen, in a religious ceremony in Cebu City,
celebrated
according to the formalities of Philippine law.
Pedro later
left for the United States and became naturalized
as an
American citizen. Maris followed Pedro to the
United
States, and after a serious quarrel, Marts filed a
suit and

obtained a divorce decree issued by the court in

the state of
Maryland.
Maris then returned to the Philippines and in a
civil
ceremony celebrated in Cebu City according to
the
formalities of Philippine law, she married her
former
classmate Vincent likewise a Filipino citizen.
b) Was the marriage of Maris and Pedro valid
when
celebrated? Is their marriage still valid existing
now?
Reasons.
c) Was the marriage of Marts and Vincent valid
when
celebrated? Is their marriage still validly existing
now?
Reasons.
d) At this point in time, who is the lawful
husband of
Marts? Reasons.

9.
Marriage; Divorce Decrees; Filiation of Children (2005)
In 1985, Sonny and Lulu, both Filipino citizens,
were
married in the Philippines. In 1987, they
separated, and
Sonny went to Canada, where he obtained a
divorce in the
same year. He then married another Filipina,
Auring, in
Canada on January 1,1988. They had two sons,
James and
John. In 1990, after failing to hear from Sonny,
Lulu
married Tirso, by whom she had a daughter,
Verna. In 1991,
Sonny visited the Philippines where he
succumbed to heart
attack..

a) Discuss the effect of the divorce

obtained by Sonny
and Lulu in Canada. (2%)
b) Explain the status of the marriage
between Sonny
and Auring. (2%)
c) Explain the status of the marriage
between Lulu
and Tirso. (2%)
d) Explain the respective filiation of
James, John and
Verna. (2%)
e) Who are the heirs of Sonny? Explain.
(2%)
Suggested answer:

10.
Marriage; Divorce Decree; Void Marriages (1992)

In 1989, Maris, a Filipino citizen, married her

boss Johnson,
an American citizen, in Tokyo in a wedding
ceremony
celebrated according to Japanese laws. One year
later,
Johnson returned to his native Nevada, and he
validly
obtained in that state an absolute divorce from
his wife
Maris.
After Maris received the final judgment of
divorce, she
married her childhood sweetheart Pedro, also a
Filipino
citizen, in a religious ceremony in Cebu City,
celebrated
according to the formalities of Philippine law.
Pedro later
left for the United States and became naturalized
as an
American citizen. Maris followed Pedro to the
United
States, and after a serious quarrel, Marts filed a
suit and
obtained a divorce decree issued by the court in
the state of
Maryland.
Maris then returned to the Philippines and in a
civil
ceremony celebrated in Cebu City according to
the
formalities of Philippine law, she married her
former
classmate Vincent likewise a Filipino citizen.
b) Was the marriage of Maris and Pedro valid
when
celebrated? Is their marriage still valid existing
now?
Reasons.
c) Was the marriage of Marts and Vincent valid
when
celebrated? Is their marriage still validly existing
now?
Reasons.
d) At this point in time, who is the lawful
husband of
Marts? Reasons.
11.
Marriage; Divorce Decrees; Filiation of Children (2005)
In 1985, Sonny and Lulu, both Filipino citizens,
were
married in the Philippines. In 1987, they
separated, and
Sonny went to Canada, where he obtained a
divorce in the
same year. He then married another Filipina,
Auring, in
Canada on January 1,1988. They had two sons,
James and
John. In 1990, after failing to hear from Sonny,
Lulu
married Tirso, by whom she had a daughter,
Verna. In 1991,

Sonny visited the Philippines where he

succumbed to heart
attack..

a) Discuss the effect of the divorce

obtained by Sonny
and Lulu in Canada. (2%)
b) Explain the status of the marriage
between Sonny
and Auring. (2%)
c) Explain the status of the marriage
between Lulu
and Tirso. (2%)
d) Explain the respective filiation of
James, John and
Verna. (2%)
e) Who are the heirs of Sonny? Explain.
(2%)
Suggested answer:
12.
Declaration of Nullity (1996)
1) On the occasion of Digna's marriage to
George, her
father gave her a donation propter nuptias of a
car.
Subsequently, the marriage was annulled
because of the
psychological immaturity of George.
May Digna's father revoke the donation and get
back the
car? Explain.
13.
Legal Separation: Separation of Property (2003)
Which of the following remedies, i.e., (a)
declaration of
nullity of marriage, (b) annulment of marriage,
(c) legal
separation, and/or (d) separation of property, can
an
aggrieved spouse avail himself/herself of(i) If the wife discovers after the marriage that
her
husband has AIDS.
(ii) If the wife goes (to) abroad to work as a
nurse and
refuses to come home after the expiration of her
three-year contract there.
(iii) If the husband discovers after the marriage
that his
wife has been a prostitute before they got
married.
(iv) If the husband has a serious affair with his
secretary
and refuses to stop notwithstanding advice from
relatives and friends.
(v) If the husband beats up his wife every time he
comes home drunk. 5%
14.
Marriage; Grounds; Nullity; Annulment; Legal Separation
(1997)
Under what conditions, respectively, may drug
addiction be

a ground, if at all, (a) for a declaration of nullity

of marriage,
(b) for an annulment of the marriage contract,
and (c) for
legal separation between the spouses?

3) If you were the judge, how will you

decide the
case? (5%)

15.

Marriage; Non-Bigamous Marriages (2006)

Marvin, a Filipino, and Shelley, an American,
both residents
of California, decided to get married in their
local parish.
Two years after their marriage, Shelley obtained
a divorce in
California. While in Boracay, Marvin met Manel,
a Filipina,
who was vacationing there. Marvin fell in love
with her.
After a brief courtship and complying with all the
requirements, they got married in Hongkong to
avoid
publicity, it being Marvin's second marriage. Is
his marriage
to Manel valid? Explain. (5%)

If drug addiction, habitual alcoholism, lesbianism

or
homosexuality should occur only during the
marriage,
would this constitute grounds for a declaration of
nullity or
for legal separation, or would they render the
marriage
voidable? (1%).
16.
SUGGESTED ANSWER:

1) a) Yes, the abandonment of Rosa by Ariel for

more than
one (1) year is a ground for legal separation
unless upon
returning to the Philippines, Rosa agrees to
cohabit with
Ariel which is allowed under the Muslim Code. In
this case,
there is condonation.
b) Yes. The contracting of a subsequent
bigamous marriage
whether in the Philippines or abroad is a ground
for legal
separation under Article 55(7) of the Family
Code. Whether
the second marriage is valid or not, Ariel having
converted
into Islam, is immaterial.
SUGGESTED ANSWER:

2) No. Under Article 57 of the Family Code, the

aggrieved spouse must file the action within five
(5) years
from the occurrence of the cause. The
subsequent marriage
of Ariel could not have occurred earlier than
1990, the time
he went to Saudi Arabia. Hence, Rosa has until
1995 to
bring the action under the Family Code.
17.
Marriage; Legal Separation; Mutual guilt (2006)
Saul, a married man, had an adulterous relation
with Tessie.
In one of the trysts, Saul's wife, Cecile, caught
them in
flagrante. Armed with a gun, Cecile shot Saul in
a fit of
extreme jealousy, nearly killing him. Four (4)
years after the
incident, Saul filed an action for legal separation
against
Cecile on the ground that she attempted to kill
him.

(1) If you were Saul's counsel, how will

you argue his
case? (2.5%)
(2) If you were the lawyer of Cecile, what
will be your
defense? (2.5%)

18.

19.
Marriage; Property Relations; Void Marriages (1991)
In June 1985, James married Mary. In September
1988, he
also married Ophelia with whom he begot two
(2) children,
A and B. In July 1989, Mary died. In July 1990,
he married
Shirley and abandoned Ophelia, During their
union. James
and Ophelia acquired a residential lot worth
P300,000.00.
Ophelia sues James for bigamy and prays that his
marriage
with Shirley be declared null and void. James, on
the other
hand, claims that since his marriage to Ophelia
was
contracted during the existence of his marriage
with Mary,
the former is not binding upon him, the same
being void ab
initio he further claims that his marriage to
Shirley is valid
and binding as he was already legally
capacitated at the time
he married her.
a) Is the contention of James correct?
b) What property Relations governed the union
of James
and Ophelia?
c) Is the estate of Mary entitled to a share in the
residential lot acquired by James and Ophelia?
20.
Marriage; Psychological Incapacity (1996)
On April 15, 1983, Jose, an engineer, and Marina,
a nurse,
were married to each other in a civil ceremony in
Boac.
Marinduque. Six months after their marriage,
Jose was
employed in an oil refinery in Saudi Arabia for a
period of
three years. When he returned to the Philippines,
Marina

was no longer living in their house, but in

Zamboanga City,
working in a hospital. He asked her to come
home, but she
refused to do so, unless he agreed not to work
overseas
anymore because she cannot stand living alone.
He could
not agree as in fact, he had signed another three
year
contract. When he returned in 1989, he could not
locate
Marina anymore. In 1992, Jose filed an action
served by
publication in a newspaper of general
circulation. Marina
did not file any answer, a possible collusion
between the
parties was ruled out by the Public Prosecutor.
Trial was
conducted and Marina neither appeared nor
presented
evidence in her favor.
If you were the judge, will you grant the
annulment.
Explain.
21.
Marriage; Psychological Incapacity (2006)
Gemma filed a petition for the declaration of
nullity of her
marriage with Arnell on the ground of
psychological
incapacity. She alleged that after 2 months of
their marriage,
Arnell showed signs of disinterest in her,
neglected her and
went abroad. He returned to the Philippines
after 3 years
but did not even get in touch with her. Worse,
they met
several times in social functions but he snubbed
her. When
she got sick, he did not visit her even if he knew
of her
confinement in the hospital. Meanwhile, Arnell
met an
accident which disabled him from reporting for
work and
earning a living to support himself.
Will Gemma's suit prosper? Explain. (5%)
22.
Marriage; Psychological Incapacity (2006)
Article 36 of the Family Code provides that a
marriage
contracted by any party who, at the time of the
celebration,
was psychologically incapacitated to comply with
the
essential marital obligations of marriage, shall
be void.
Choose the spouse listed below who is
psychologically
incapacitated. Explain. (2.5%)
a) Nagger
b) Gay or Lesbian
c) Congenital sexual pervert
d) Gambler
e) Alcoholic

23.
Marriage; Requisites (1995)
Isidro and Irma, Filipinos, both 18 years of age,
were
passengers of Flight No. 317 of Oriental Airlines.
The plane
they boarded was of Philippine registry. While en
route
from Manila to Greece some passengers hijacked
the plane,
held the chief pilot hostage at the cockpit and
ordered him
to fly instead to Libya. During the hijacking
Isidro suffered
a heart attack and was on the verge of death.
Since Irma was
already eight months pregnant by Isidro, she
pleaded to the
hijackers to allow the assistant pilot to solemnize
her
marriage with Isidro. Soon after the marriage,
Isidro
expired. As the plane landed in Libya Irma gave
birth.
However, the baby died a few minutes after
complete
delivery.
Back in the Philippines Irma immediately filed a
claim for
inheritance. The parents of Isidro opposed her
claim
contending that the marriage between her and
Isidro was
void ab initio on the following grounds: (a) they
had not
given their consent to the marriage of their son;
(b) there
was no marriage license; (c) the solemnizing
officer had no
authority to perform the marriage; and, (d) the
solemnizing
officer did not file an affidavit of marriage with
the proper
civil registrar.
1. Resolve each of the contentions ([a] to [d])
raised by the
parents of Isidro. Discuss fully.
24.
Marriage; Requisites (1999)
What is the status of the following marriages and
why?
(a) A marriage between two 19-year olds without
parental
consent, (2%)
(b) A marriage between two 21-year olds without
parental
advice. (2%)
(c) A marriage between two Filipino first cousins
in
Spain where such marriage is valid. (2%)
(d) A marriage between two Filipinos in
Hongkong
before a notary public. (2%)
(e) A marriage solemnized by a town mayor three
towns
away from his jurisdiction, (2%)
Marriage; Requisites; Marriage License (1996)

On Valentine's Day 1996, Ellas and Fely, both

single and 25
years of age, went to the city hall where they
sought out a
fixer to help them obtain a quickie marriage. For
a fee, the
fixer produced an ante-dated marriage license
for them,
Issued by the Civil Registrar of a small remote
municipality.
He then brought them to a licensed minister in a
restaurant
behind the city hall, and the latter solemnized
their marriage
right there and then.
1) Is their marriage valid, void or voidable?
Explain.
25.
Marriage; Requisites; Marriage License (2002)
On May 1, 1978 Facundo married Petra, by
whom he had a
son Sotero. Petra died on July 1, 1996, while
Facundo died
on January 1, 2002. Before his demise, Facundo
had
married, on July 1, 2002, Quercia. Having lived
together as
husband and wife since July 1, 1990, Facundo
and Quercia
did not secure a marriage license but executed
the requisite
affidavit for the purpose.
To ensure that his inheritance rights are not
adversely
affected by his father second marriage, Sotero
now brings a
suit to seek a declaration of the nullity of the
marriage of
Facundo and Quercia, grounded on the absence
of a valid
marriage license. Quercia contends that there
was no need
for a marriage license in view for her having
lived
continuously with Facundo for five years before
their
marriage and that has Sotero has no legal
personality to seek
a declaration of nullity of the marriage since
Facundo is now
deceased.
A. Is the marriage of Facundo and Quercia valid,
despite the absence of a marriage license?
Explain. (2%)
B. Does Sotero have the personality to seek the
declaration
of nullity of the marriage, especially now that
Facundo is
already deceased? Explain. (3%)
26.
Marriage; Requisites; Solemnizing Officers (1994)
1} The complete publication of the Family Code
was made
on August 4, 1987. On September 4, 1987, Junior
Cruz and
Gemma Reyes were married before a municipal
mayor. Was
the marriage valid?

2) Suppose the couple got married on September

1, 1994 at
the Manila Hotel before the Philippine Consul
General to
Hongkong, who was on vacation in Manila. The
couple
executed an affidavit consenting to the
celebration of the
marriage at the Manila Hotel. Is the marriage
valid?
27.
Marriage; Requisites; Void Marriage (1993)
A and B, both 18 years old, were sweethearts
studying in
Manila. On August 3, 1988, while in first year
college, they
eloped. They stayed in the house of a mutual
friend in town
X, where they were able to obtain a marriage
license. On
August 30, 1988, their marriage was solemnized
by the town
mayor of X in his office. Thereafter, they
returned to Manila
and continued to live separately in their
respective boarding
houses, concealing from their parents, who were
living in
the province what they had done. In 1992, after
graduation from college, A and B decided to
break their relation and
parted ways. Both went home to their respective
towns to
live and work.
1) Was the marriage of A and B solemnized on
August 30,
1988 by the town mayor of X in his office a valid
marriage?
Explain your answer.
2) Can either or both of them contract marriage
with
another person without committing bigamy?
Explain your
answer.
28.
Marriage; Void Marriages (2004)
A. BONI and ANNE met while working overseas.
They
became sweethearts and got engaged to be
married on New
Years Eve aboard a cruise ship in the Caribbean.
They
took the proper license to marry in New York
City, where
there is a Filipino consulate. But as planned the
wedding
ceremony was officiated by the captain of the
Norwegianregistered
vessel in a private suite among selected friends.
Back in Manila, Anne discovered that Boni had
been
married in Bacolod City 5 years earlier but
divorced in Oslo
only last year. His first wife was also a Filipina
but now
based in Sweden. Boni himself is a resident of
Norway
where he and Anne plan to live permanently.

Anne retains your services to advise her on

whether her
marriage to Boni is valid under Philippine law? Is
there
anything else she should do under the
circumstances? (5%)
29.
Marriage; Void Marriages; Psychological Incapacity (2002)
A. Give a brief definition or explanation of the
term
psychological incapacity as a ground for the
declaration of

nullity of a marriage. (2%)

B. If existing at the inception of marriage, would
the
state of being of unsound mind or the
concealment of drug
addiction, habitual alcoholism, homosexuality or
lesbianism
be considered indicia of psychological
incapacity? Explain.
(2%).