Michelle May D.

Rama LLB1
Legal Writing

Law Offices of Alice Black

2100 Main Street
Friendly, New Washington 00065
(200) 267-7000  FAX 267-7001  www.ablacklaw.com

Miss Beru
5501 Glenview Ave.
Friendly, NW 00065
Re: Beru v. Owen  Bigamy Case; Defenses in Bigamy

Dear Miss Beru:

You have recently engaged the services of our law firm to represent you in the
criminal case of Bigamy filed by Mr. Owen. You asked us to determine the chances
of being convicted or acquitted in the said case. This opinion is provided for your
use and solely for your benefit. It applies only to the facts presented in the facts
section of this letter and the law as of the date of the letter. Please contact me if any
of the facts are misstated or if you have additional information.

FACTS
In 2010, you signed a simulated marriage contract, together with your first
boyfriend, Mr. Lando. The purpose of which was only to discourage Corde from
pursuing Mr. Lando. You said that no marriage ceremony took place and you did
not live together as husband and wife after signing the simulated marriage contract.
In 2012, you married Mr. Owen. After 6 years, Mr. Owen filed a complaint for
Bigamy against you, claiming that you were already married when you contracted a
subsequent marriage with Mr. Owen. It was only after the Bigamy complaint that
you discovered that Mr. Lando registered the simulated marriage contract.

ANSWER
Based upon the above facts, there is probability that you can be exonerated from the
crime of Bigamy or the act of contracting a subsequent marriage during a subsisting
marriage. The marriage between you and Lando was invalid because it lacks the
requirements of a valid marriage. this results to the absence of one of the elements
of the crime of Bigamy which states that you must be legally married in your first
marriage. Since you were not really married with Mr. Lando, there was no prior
marriage and your marriage with Mr. Owen was done pursuant to the applicable
laws. Thus, you can be free from the charge of Bigamy.

EXPLANATION
You are charged with the crime of Bigamy. This is punished under Article 349 of
the Revised Penal Code. The law punishes any person who shall contract a second
or subsequent marriage before the former marriage has been legally dissolved
through the death of the spouse, Court decision which annuls or renders your
marriage invalid from the very beginning; before the absent spouse has been
declared by the court presumptively dead.

The Court held in the case of Vitangcol vs. People of the Philippines, that a person
is liable for Bigamy when the following elements are proven: (1) that the offender
has been legally married; (2) that the first marriage has not been legally dissolved
or, in case his or her spouse is absent, the absent spouse could not yet be presumed
dead according to the Civil Code; (3) that he contracts a second or subsequent
marriage; and (4) that the second or subsequent marriage has all the essential
requisites for validity.

To simply put, the crime of Bigamy is the act of conducting a subsequent marriage
while a previous marriage is still existing. Hence, to prove that Bigamy existed, it
must be proven that you were legally married to Mr. Lando, which is not case here
because of the lack of essential and formal requisites of a valid marriage.

To enlighten you, the Family Code which is the law that governs marriages states
that:

“No marriage shall be valid, unless these essential requisites are present:
(1) Legal capacity of the contracting parties who must be a male and a female;
and
(2) Consent freely given in the presence of the solemnizing officer.
The formal requisites of marriage are:
(1) Authority of the solemnizing officer;
(2) A valid marriage license except in the cases provided for in Chapter 2 of
this Title; and
(3) A marriage ceremony which takes place with the appearance of the
contracting parties before the solemnizing officer and their personal
declaration that they take each other as husband and wife in the presence
of not less than two witnesses of legal age.”

Pursuant to the above-cited laws, your marriage with Mr. Lando was invalid. The
marriage contract you and Mr. Lando executed was not part of the requisites needed
for a valid marriage. Furthermore, it has been held by the Court in Cariño v. Cariño
that the marriage was invalid for the failure to secure a marriage license despite the
presence of a marriage contract. It was also decided by the Supreme Court in Go-
Bangayan vs. Bangayan, Jr. that a simulated marriage contract is considered to be
void or inexistent. in applying these cases in your situation, this would mean that
your marriage with Mr. Lando did not exist or was invalid from the beginning.

Thus, the invalidity of your first marriage would exonerate you from the criminal
charged of Bigamy.
However, the other party might raise the argument that you should have filed a
judicial declaration of nullity of your previous marriage before remarrying Mr.
Owen. This court action is required in Article 40 of the Family Code which states
that:
“The absolute nullity of a previous marriage may be invoked for purposes of
remarriage on the basis solely of a final judgment declaring such previous marriage
void.”

The opposing side may also argue that your inaction in complying with this
requirement will not excuse you from the crime of Bigamy because the crime has
already been done the moment you contracted a subsequent marriage during a
subsisting marriage. It is mandatorily required that you have to file an action to
nullify your first marriage before remarrying.

However, we assure you that the court will uphold our cause and exonerate you from
the charge of Bigamy. In Morigo y Cacho vs. People of the Philippines, an identical
case decided by the Supreme Court, it was held that the mere private act of signing
a marriage contract does not consist a valid marriage. Thus, no judicial declaration
of nullity is needed. It was also clearly established that you did not intend to commit
the crime and the signing of the simulated marriage contract was done in good faith.
It is the opinion of the firm that this good faith will be appreciated by the court and
might led to your exoneration. Penal laws are liberally construed in favor of the
accused.

I hope this information answers your question. We will work with and for you in
creating a strong case in your favor. Please do not hesitate to call me with any
questions you may have. Also, if there are any misstatements of fact in this letter, it
is important that you contact me when possible. Thank you for your correspondence.

Sincerely,

_________________

Michelle Rama

Attorney at Law

ALB/wkk