LEGITIME

Who are entitled

Art 887. The following are compulsory heirs:
(1) Legitimate children and descendants, with respect to their legitimate parents and
ascendants;
(2) In default of the foregoing, legitimate parents and ascendants, with respect to their
legitimate children and descendants;
(3) The widow or widower;
(4) Acknowledged natural children, and natural children by legal fiction;
(5) Other illegitimate children referred to in article 287.
Compulsory heirs mentioned in Nos. 3, 4, and 5 are not excluded by those in Nos. 1 and 2;
neither do they exclude one another.
In all cases of illegitimate children, their filiation must be duly proved.
The father or mother of illegitimate children of the three classes mentioned, shall inherit from
them in the manner and to the extent established by this Code.
Art 287. Illegitimate children
other than natural in accordance with article 269 1
and other than natural children by legal fiction
are entitled to support and such successional rights as are granted in this Code.
Art 189. FC. Adoption shall have the following effects:
(1) For civil purposes, the adopted shall be deemed to be a legitimate child of the adopters
and both shall acquire the reciprocal rights and obligations arising from the relationship of
parent and child, including the right of the adopted to use the surname of the adopters;
(2) The parental authority of the parents by nature over the adopted shall terminate and be
vested in the adopters, except that if the adopter is the spouse of the parent by nature of the
adopted, parental authority over the adopted shall be exercised jointly by both spouses; and
(3) The adopted shall remain an intestate heir of his parents and other blood relatives.
Sec 15. RA 8552. All hearings in adoption cases shall be confidential and shall not be open to
the public. All records, books, and papers relating to the adoption cases in the files of the
court, the Department, or any other agency or institution participating in the adoption
proceedings shall be kept strictly confidential.
If the court finds that the disclosure of the information to a third person is necessary for
purposes connected with or arising out of the adoption and will be for the best interest of the
adoptee, the court may merit the necessary information to be released, restricting the
purposes for which it may be used.
Sec 16. Parental Authority. Except in cases where the biological parent is the spouse of the
adopter, all legal ties between the biological parent(s) and the adoptee shall be severed and
the same shall then be vested on the adopter(s)
1 Children born outside wedlock of parents who, at the time of the conception of the former,
were not disqualified by any impediment to marry each other, are natural

Sec 17. Legitimacy. The adoptee shall be considered the legitimate son/daughter of the
adopter(s) for all intents and purposes and as such is entitled to all the rights and obligations
provided by law to legitimate sons/daughters born to them without discrimination of any kind.
To this end, the adoptee is entitled to love, guidance, and support in keeping with the means
of the family
Sec 18. Succession. In legal and intestate succession, the adopter(s) and the adoptee shall
have reciprocal rights of succession without distinction from legitimate filiation. However, if
the adoptee and his/her biological parent(s) had left a will, the law on testamentary
succession shall govern.
Art 902. The rights of illegitimate children set forth in the preceding articles are transmitted
upon their death to their descendants, whether legitimate or illegitimate.
Jose Baritua, Edgar Bitancor v CA, Nicolas Nacario, Victoria Nacario (1990, Sarmiento)
-

Deceased: Bienvenido Nacario, tricycle driver

o Figured in accident with JB Bus 80, 1979 Nov 7
Owned, operated by Jose Baritua
o No criminal case
Extrajudicial settlement
o Widow Alicia received 18,500
o Alicia executed release of claim in favor of Baritua and Bitancor and Ph First
Insurance
Parents of Bienvenido: Nicolas and Victoria
RTC/CFI: parents filed complaint for damages (25 for death, 25 for for com, exem; 10 for
tri; 5 fees, moral)
o Parents: were promised indemnification for death of son and futures expenses by
reason thereof, damages for tricycle. But Baritua reneged on promise and
instead negotiated with estranged wife and late son
o Dismissed. Baritua paid preferred heirs and successors-in-interest of Bienvenido
To the exclusion of parents
CA: reversed and set aside
o Discharge did not discharge parents
o Parents suing in own capacity and not as heirs, etc of Alicia
o No valid waiver by Alicia who did not suffer damages arising from death of son
o No rebuttal that parents bough tricycle and expenses shouldered by parents
SC:
o Baritua and Bitancor no longer liable
|| Art 1231: Obligations extinguished by payment or performance
Alicia entitled to payment of obligation by Baritua and Bitancor
Parents of deceased succeed only when the latter dies without
legitimate descendant
Surviving spouse concurs with all classes of heirs; mere
estrangement not a legal ground for disqualification of surviving
spouse as heir of deceased
o || Art 1240, CC: payment shall be made to the person in
whose favor the obligation has been constituted, or his
successor in interest, or any person authorized to receive it
o || Art 887, CC: f are compulsory heirs: legit children, desc; in
default of foregoing, legit parents and ascendants
o || Art 985: in default of legitimate children and desc of
deceased, parents and asc shall inherit from him, to the
exlusion of his collateral relatives
Purchase price of tricycle not a liability of Baritua and Bitancor

Instead, estate answers for them

+ released from damages by widow
GRANTED. CA REVERSED, set aside. RTC REINSTATED. Costs against Nacarios

Sharing among compulsory heirs

Art 888. The legitime of legitimate children and descendants consists of
one-half of the hereditary estate of the father and of the mother.
The latter may freely dispose of the remaining half,
subject to the rights of illegitimate children and of the surviving spouse
as hereinafter provided. (808a)
Article 889. The legitime of legitimate parents or ascendants consists of
one-half of the hereditary estates of their children and descendants.
The children or descendants may freely dispose of the other half, s
ubject to the rights of illegitimate children and of the surviving spouse as hereinafter
provided. (809a)
Article 890. The legitime reserved for the legitimate parents shall be divided between them
equally; if one of the parents should have died, the whole shall pass to the survivor.
If the testator leaves neither father nor mother, but is survived by ascendants of equal degree
of the paternal and maternal lines, the legitime shall be divided equally between both lines. If
the ascendants should be of different degrees, it shall pertain entirely to the ones nearest in
degree of either line. (810)
Article 891. The ascendant who inherits from his descendant any property which the latter
may have acquired by gratuitous title from another ascendant, or a brother or sister, is
obliged to reserve such property as he may have acquired by operation of law for the benefit
of relatives who are within the third degree and who belong to the line from which said
property came. (871)
Article 892. If only one legitimate child or descendant of the deceased survives, the widow or
widower shall be entitled to one-fourth of the hereditary estate. In case of a legal separation,
the surviving spouse may inherit if it was the deceased who had given cause for the same.
If there are two or more legitimate children or descendants, the surviving spouse shall be
entitled to a portion equal to the legitime of each of the legitimate children or descendants.
In both cases, the legitime of the surviving spouse shall be taken from the portion that can be
freely disposed of by the testator. (834a)
Article 893. If the testator leaves no legitimate descendants, but leaves legitimate
ascendants, the surviving spouse shall have a right to one-fourth of the hereditary estate.
This fourth shall be taken from the free portion of the estate. (836a)
Article 894. If the testator leaves illegitimate children, the surviving spouse shall be entitled to
one-third of the hereditary estate of the deceased and the illegitimate children to another
third. The remaining third shall be at the free disposal of the testator. (n)
Article 895. The legitime of each of the acknowledged natural children and each of the natural
children by legal fiction shall consist of one-half of the legitime of each of the legitimate
children or descendants.

The legitime of an illegitimate child who is neither an acknowledged natural, nor a natural
child by legal fiction, shall be equal in every case to four-fifths of the legitime of an
acknowledged natural child.
The legitime of the illegitimate children shall be taken from the portion of the estate at the
free disposal of the testator, provided that in no case shall the total legitime of such
illegitimate children exceed that free portion, and that the legitime of the surviving spouse
must first be fully satisfied. (840a)
Article 896. Illegitimate children who may survive with legitimate parents or ascendants of the
deceased shall be entitled to one-fourth of the hereditary estate to be taken from the portion
at the free disposal of the testator. (841a)
Article 897. When the widow or widower survives with legitimate children or descendants, and
acknowledged natural children, or natural children by legal fiction, such surviving spouse shall
be entitled to a portion equal to the legitime of each of the legitimate children which must be
taken from that part of the estate which the testator can freely dispose of. (n)
Article 898. If the widow or widower survives with legitimate children or descendants, and
with illegitimate children other than acknowledged natural, or natural children by legal fiction,
the share of the surviving spouse shall be the same as that provided in the preceding article.
(n)
Article 899. When the widow or widower survives with legitimate parents or ascendants and
with illegitimate children, such surviving spouse shall be entitled to one-eighth of the
hereditary estate of the deceased which must be taken from the free portion, and the
illegitimate children shall be entitled to one-fourth of the estate which shall be taken also from
the disposable portion. The testator may freely dispose of the remaining one-eighth of the
estate. (n)
Article 900. If the only survivor is the widow or widower, she or he shall be entitled to one-half
of the hereditary estate of the deceased spouse, and the testator may freely dispose of the
other half. (837a)
If the marriage between the surviving spouse and the testator was solemnized in articulo
mortis, and the testator died within three months from the time of the marriage, the legitime
of the surviving spouse as the sole heir shall be one-third of the hereditary estate, except
when they have been living as husband and wife for more than five years. In the latter case,
the legitime of the surviving spouse shall be that specified in the preceding paragraph. (n)
Article 901. When the testator dies leaving illegitimate children and no other compulsory
heirs, such illegitimate children shall have a right to one-half of the hereditary estate of the
deceased.
The other half shall be at the free disposal of the testator. (842a)
Article 902. The rights of illegitimate children set forth in the preceding articles are
transmitted upon their death to their descendants, whether legitimate or illegitimate. (843a)
Article 903. The legitime of the parents who have an illegitimate child, when such child leaves
neither legitimate descendants, nor a surviving spouse, nor illegitimate children, is one-half of
the hereditary estate of such illegitimate child. If only legitimate or illegitimate children are
left, the parents are not entitled to any legitime whatsoever. If only the widow or widower
survives with parents of the illegitimate child, the legitime of the parents is one-fourth of the
hereditary estate of the child, and that of the surviving spouse also one-fourth of the estate.
(n)

Art 176. FC. Illegitimate children shall use the surname and shall be under the parental
authority of their mother, and shall be entitled to support in conformity with this Code. The
legitime of each illegitimate child shall consist of one-half of the legitime of a legitimate child.
Except for this modification, all other provisions in the Civil Code governing successional
rights shall remain in force
Renunciation of future legitime
Art 905. Every renunciation or compromise as regards a future legitime between the person
owing it and his compulsory heirs is void, and the latter may claim the same upon the death
of the former; but they must bring to collation whatever they may have received by virtue of
the renunciation or compromise. (
Right of completion
Art 906. Any compulsory heir to whom the testator has left by any title less than the legitime
belonging to him may demand that the same be fully satisfied.
Art 907. Testamentary dispositions that impair or diminish the legitime of the compulsory
heirs shall be reduced on petition of the same, insofar as they may be inofficious or excessive
Art 855. The share of a child or descendant omitted in a will must first be taken from the part
of the estate not disposed of by the will, if any; if that is not sufficient, so much as may be
necessary must be taken proportionally from the shares of the other compulsory heirs.

RESERVA TRONCAL
Art 891.
Purpose
Requisites
Chua v CFIi
Gonzales v CFI
Nature
Edroso v Sablan
Sienes v Esparcia
Persons involved
Solivio v CA
Mendoza v Delos Santos
Preference among resevatarios
Padura v Baldovino
Florention v Florentino
De Papa v Camacho
Gonzales v CFI (supra)
Registration
Sumaya v IAC
Extinguishment
Reserva maxima v reserve minim