Professional Documents
Culture Documents
0, 2016]
(This work is based on Atty. Gerard Chans syllabus for the Special Proceedings subject
as taught in FEU-IL. Notes in red are opinions of the review lecturer,1 of authors2 on the
subject, or of the reviewee. Cited provisions are from the Rules of Court unless
otherwise provided.)
SPECIAL PROCEEDINGS
R72 (subject matter & applicability of general rules)
Meaning & scope of special proceedings
1. Special proceeding, defined (R1, S3[c]): remedy by w/c a party seeks to establish
(a) Status
(b) Right
(c) Particular fact
2. Scope (S1[a]-[n]): [CATCH-AGED-SHARC]
- Change of name
- Absence & death; declaration of
- Trustees
- Constitution of family home
- Hospitalization of insane persons
- [Judicial] approval of voluntary recognition of minor natural children
- Guardianship & custody of children
- Escheat
- [Voluntary] dissolution of corporations
- Settlement of estate of deceased persons
- Habeas corpus
- Adoption
- Rescission & revocation of adoption
- Cancellation of correction of entries in the civil registry
J. Herrera adds: liquidation, corporate recovery, & arbitration
Cases: (a) Vda. de Manalo vs. CA Art. 222, CC (i.e. the earnest efforts rule) applies only
to ordinary civil actions & not to special proceedings
(b) Natcher vs. CA usually, in special proceedings, no formal pleadings are required
(XPN: where the statute expressly provides otherwise); also, the remedy is granted
generally upon an application or motion
Nature of special proceedings
Case: Tabuada v. Ruiz special proceedings are NON-CONTENTIOUS in nature (i.e. do not
depend on the will of an actor, but on a state/condition of things/persons not entirely w/in the
control of the parties interested)
Implication: failure to consummate a compromise agreement/amicable settlement does
not justify dismissal (w/c is to be ordered "only in the extreme case where the
termination of the proceeding is the sole remedy consistent w/ equity & justice")
Applicability of rules on civil actions (S2) absent special provisions + as far as practicable
IMPORTANT TERMS
Civil register: various registry books + related certificates & documents kept in the
archives of the Local Civil Registry Offices, Philippine consulates, & of the Office of the
Civil Registrar General
City/Municipal civil registrar (C/MCR): head of the Local Civil Registry Office of the
city/municipality appointed by the mayor in accordance w/ law
Record-keeping civil registrar (RKCR): C/MCR in whose archive is kept the record,
which contains the error to be corrected or the first name to be changed; term used only
in cases involving migrant petitioners
Petition-receiving civil registrar (PRCR): C/MCR of the city or municipality where the
petitioner resides or is domiciled and who receives the petition on behalf of the RKCR in
the case of a migrant petitioners
Civil Registrar General: administrator of the NSO, the agency mandated to carry out
and administer laws on civil registration
Clerical/Typographical error: mistake committed in the performance of clerical work in
writing/copying/transcribing/typing an entry in the civil register that is:
a. Harmless & innocuous (e.g. misspelled name, place of birth, mistake in the
entry of day & month in the DOB, or mistake in the sex of the person, etc.);
b. Visible to the eyes or obvious to the misunderstanding; &
c. Can be corrected/changed only by reference to other existing record(s)
DOB
error/mistake in the entry
4. Change of sex of a person
which can be corrected/changed by the concerned city/municipal civil registrar or
consul general in accordance w/ the provisions of RA 9048 as amended by RA
10172 & the IRR (Sec. 1, as amended)
If petition is for
name/nickname
change
of
+
above
requirements
+
clearance/certification that the owner of the
document
has
no
pending
administrative/civil/criminal case, or no
criminal record, w/c shall be obtained from
the: (a) employer, if employed; (b) NBI; (c)
PNP + affidavit of publication from the
publisher and a copy of the newspaper
clipping (2001 IRR, Rule 8)
above requirements + earliest school
record/documents,
medical
records,
baptismal certificate and other documents
issued by religious authorities + affidavit of
publication from the publisher and a copy of
the newspaper clipping (IRR, Rule 6)
above requirements + earliest school
record/documents, etc. + a certification
issued by an accredited government
physician attesting to the fact that the
petitioner has not undergone a sex
change/transplant procedure (Sec. 5, as
amended) + affidavit of publication from the
publisher and a copy of the newspaper
clipping (IRR, Rule 6)
first
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For petitions
General
filed
with
the
Consul
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UNFAVORABLE DECISION
In case the petition is denied by the
city/municipal civil registrar or the consul
general, petitioner may:
1. Appeal same to Civil Registrar General
within ten (10) working days after the
receipt of the city/municipal civil
registrars decision; or
2. File the appropriate petition w/ the
proper court. (Sec. 7)
Grounds of appeal:
1. New evidence is discovered that may
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