New Civil Code

Art. 1-18
Art. 37-47

EFFECT AND APPLICATION OF LAWS

Art 1. This Act shall be known as the Civil Code of the Philippines.

Art 2. Laws shall take effect after fifteen days following the completion of their
publication either in the Official Gazette, or in a newspaper of general
circulation in the Philippines, unless it is otherwise provided. (As amended by
E.O. 200)
Revised Administrative Code Sec. 18-24
Executive Order 200 Sec. 2 (1987)
Tanada v. Tuvera 136 SCRA 27
o All statutes, including those of local application and private laws, shall
be published as condition for their effectivity.
o The clause unless otherwise provided refers to the date of effectivity
and not the requirement of publication itself (which cannot IN ANY
EVENT be omitted.)
o Need not be published:
Interpretative regulations
Those merely internal in nature, regulating only the personnel of
the administrative agency and not the public
Letters of instructions issued by administrative superiors
concerning rules or guidelines to be followed by their
subordinates in the performance of their duties

Garcillano v. House of Representatives GR No. 170338

o Every senate is distinct from the one before it or after it. Publication in
the Official Gazette of its rules is a requirement.
o Publication in the internet is not a valid means of publication (must be
done in the Official Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation in the
Philippines.)

Art 3. Ignorance of the law excuses no one from compliance therewith.

Kasilag v. Rodriguez 69 Phil 217
o Kasilag is not a lawyer and not conversant with the law. He proceeded
on the well-grounded belief that he was not violating a prohibition. His
ignorance was excusable and can be the basis of good faith. (Mistake
due to technical legal terms)

Art 4. Laws shall have no retroactive effect, unless the contrary is provided.
Revised Penal Code Art. 22
Family Code Art. 256
New Civil Code 2252-2269 (transitory provisions)
Tolentino: Statutes can be given retroactive effect in the following cases:
o When the law itself so expressly provides
 o In case of remedial statutes
o In case of curative statutes
o In case of laws interpreting others
o In case of laws creating new rights
Francisco v. CA GR No. 102330
o The Family Code, which repealed conflicting New Civil Code articles,
can be retroactively applied as long as no vested rights are impaired.
The case in question happened before the Family Code took effect.
Pesca v. Pesca GR No. 136921
o Judicial decisions which interpreted and construed a law would
constitute a part of that law as of the date the statute is enacted.
o Example: A judicial decision rendered in 2000 applying a law which
took effect in 1987 may retroactively apply to a pending case which
was filed in 1998.

Art 5. Acts executed against the provisions of mandatory or prohibitory laws shall
be void, except when the law itself authorizes their validity

Art 6. Rights may be waived unless the waiver is contrary to law, public order,
public policy, morals, or good customs or prejudicial to a third person with a
right recognized by law.

Art 7. Laws are repealed only by subsequent ones, and their violation or non-
observance shall not be excused by disuse, or custom or practice to the
contrary.

When the courts declare a law to be inconsistent with the Constitution, the
former shall be void and the latter shall govern.

Administrative or executive acts, orders and regulations shall be valid only

when they are not contrary to the laws or the Constitution.

1987 Constitution Art. XVIII Sec. 3 (Repealing clause)

Family Code Art. 254 (repealing clause) and Art. 255

Art 8. Judicial decisions applying or interpreting the laws or the Constitution shall
form a part of the legal system of the Philippines.
The doctrine of stare decisis is based on the principle that once a question of
law has been examined and decided, it should be deemed settled and closed
to further argument.
Pesca v. Pesca GR No. 136921 (supra)

Art 9. No judge or court shall decline to render judgment by reason of the silence,
obscurity or insufficiency of the laws.

Art 10. In case of doubt in the interpretation or application of laws, it is

presumed that the lawmaking body intended right and justice to prevail.
Art 11. Customs which are contrary to law, public order, or public policy shall
not be countenanced.

Art 12. A custom must be proved as a fact, according to the rules of evidence.
1987 Constitution Art. XII Sec. 5
Rules of Court Rule 129 (2) and (3)

Art 13. When the laws speak of years, months, days or nights, it shall be
understood that years of three hundred sixty-five days each; months, of thirty
days; days of twenty-four hours; and nights, from sunset to sunrise.

If months are designated by their name, they shall be computed by the

number of days which they respectively have.

In computing a period, the first day shall be excluded, and the last day
included.
Rules of Court Rule 22
Revised Administrative Code of 1987 Sec. 31
o Sec. 31. Legal Periods. Year shall be understood to be twelve calendar
months; month of thirty days, unless it refers to a specific calendar
month in which case it shall be computed according to the number of
days the specific month contains; day, to a day of twenty-four hours
and; night from sunrise to sunet.
Internal Revenue v. Primetown GR 162155
o Held that Sec. 31 of the Revised Administrative Code of 1987 governs
computation of legal periods.
o Two-year prescriptive period consisted of 24 months, thus when it
commenced on April 15, 1998, the prescriptive period was until (and
including) April 14, 2000.

Art 14. Penal laws and those of public security and safety shall be obligatory
upon all who live or sojoun in Philippine territory, subject to the principles of
public international law and to treaty stipulations.
Revised Penal Code Art. 2

Art 15. Laws relating to family rights and duties, or to the status, condition and
legal capacity of persons are binding upon citizens of the Philippines, even
though living abroad.
Family Code Art. 26

Art 16. Real property as well as personal property is subject to the law of the
country where it is situated.

However, intestate and testamentary successions, both with respect to the

order of succession and to the amount of successional rights and to the
intrinsic validity of testamentary provisions, shall be regulated by the national
law of the person whose succession is under consideration, whatever may be
the nature of the property and regardless of the country wherein said
property may be found.
Art 17. The forms and solemnities of contracts, wills, and other public
instruments shall be governed by the laws of the country in which they are
executed.

When the acts referred to are executed before the diplomatic or consular
officials of the Republic of the Philippines in a foreign country, the solemnities
established by Philippine laws shall be observed in their execution

Prohibitive laws concerning persons, their acts or property, and those which
have for their object public order, public policy and good customs shall not be
rendered ineffective by laws or judgments promulgated, or by determinations
or conventions agreed upon in a foreign country.

Art 18. In matters which are governed by the Code of Commerce and special
laws, their deficiency shall be supplied by the provisions of this Code.
PERSONS AND PERSONALITY

Art 37. Juridical capacity, which is the fitness to be the subject of legal
relations, is inherent in every natural person and is lost only through death.
Capacity to act, which is the power to do acts with legal effect, is acquired
and may be lost.

Art 38. Minority, insanity or imbecility, the state of being a deaf-mute,

prodigality and civil interdiction are mere restrictions on capacity to act, and
do not exempt the incapacitated person from certain obligations, as when the
latter arise from his acts or from property relations, such as easements.
Republic Act No. 6809 Age of Majority 18 years old
A.M. No. 03-02-05-SC Rules on Guardianship
1987 Constitution Art. V Sec. 1 Suffrage
Family Code Art. 5, 45(1) Marriage

Mercado v. Espiritu 37 Phil 215 Held liable

o Deed of sale made by minors who pretend to be of legal age, when in
fact they are not, is valid. They will not be permitted to excuse
themselves from the fulfillment of the obligations contracted by them.
Bambalan v. Maramba 51 Phil 417 Not held liable
o Mercado v. Espiritu doctrine does not apply in cases where plaintiff,
who was intimidated into entering into the contract, did not pretend to
be of age. His minority was well known to the purchaser, who was the
one who obtained the plaintiffs first cedula used in the
acknowledgement of the document. Sale is invalid.
Suan and Chiao v. Alcantara 85 Phil 669 Held liable
o Misrepresentation of a minor estops him/her from disavowing a
contract.
o Belated information regarding his minority does not excuse him, as it
emphasizes the latters bad faith in making the misrepresentation
Braganza v. Villa-Abrille 105 Phil 456 Not held liable
o In order to hold a minor liable, the fraud must be actual and not
constructive. Mere silence of a minor (passive/constructive
misrepresentation) when making a contract as to his/her age does not
constitute a fraud which can be made the basis of an action of deceit.
o Minors were made to reimburse amount received by them, due to the
principle of unjust enrichment
Criminal Liability RPC 12 (2-3), 13 (2); PD 603 Sec. 189-204; 1997 Rules of
Civil Procedure Rule 3 Sec. 5; Juvenile Justice law Sec. 6-7

Art 39. The following circumstances, among others, modify or limit capacity to
act: age, insanity, imbecility, the state of being a deaf-mute, penalty,
prodigality, family relations, alienage, absence, insolvency and trusteeship.
The consequences of these circumstances are governed in this Code, other
codes, the Rules of Court, and in special laws. Capacity to act is not limited
on account of religious belief or political opinion.
 A married woman, twenty-one years of age or over, is qualified for all acts of
civil life, except in cases specified by law.
Prodigals (spendthrifts) it is the fact of guardianship which limits their
capacity to act. Unlike other circumstances, where there are specific
provisions of law restricting their capacity for certain acts.
Rules of Court Rule provide for the guardianship of incompetents (defined by
Rule 93, Sec. 2)
Deaf-Mutism New Civil Code 1327 (2), 807 and 820
Civil Interdiction Revised Penal Code 34, 41
Family Relations FC 150-151, FC 87, 37, 38; NCC 1490, 2035; NCC 963-967
Alienage 1987 Constitution Art XII Sec 11
Absence NCC 381-396; FC 41
Insolvency and Trusteeship NCC 1381, 1491, 2236, 2237
Gender 1987 Constitution Art. II Sec. 14; NCC 403; 1997 Rules of Civil
Procedure Rule 3 Sec. 4
Physical Incapacity/Disease FC 45 (5,6), 46; NCC 820

NATURAL PERSONS

Art 40. Birth determines personality; but the conceived child shall be considered
born for all purposes that are favorable to it, provided, it be born later with
the conditions specified in the following article.

Art 41. For civil purposes, the fetus is considered born if it is alive at the time it is
completely delivered from the mothers womb. However, if the fetus had an
intra-uterine life of less than seven months, it is not deemed born if it dies
within twenty-four hours after its complete delivery from the maternal womb.
1987 Constitution Art. II Sec. 12
Presidential Decree 603 (Child and Youth Welfare Code) Art. 5
o Art 5. Commencement of Civil Personality. The civil personality of the
child shall commence from the time of his conception, for all purposes
favorable to him, subject to the requirements of Article 41 of the Civil
Code.
Family Code Art. 164 Par. 2, Art. 180
Revised Penal Code Art. 256-259
Geluz v. CA 2 SCRA 801
o Abortive creature does not reach category of natural persons.
However, a fetus may have civil personality since there is the
expectancy of birth. However, that civil personality is extinguished if it
dies.
De Jesus v. Syquia 58 Phil 866
o Letters to a priest by the father constitutes recognition, even if the
child was not yet born, as such, the child is entitled to support from the
father.
Continental Steel v. Montano GR 182836
o Civil Code does not explicitly state that only those who have acquired
juridical personality could die. Life, which begins at conception, is not
 synonymous with civil personality. In this case, the death of an unborn
child is considered a death of a legitimate child.

Art 42. Civil Personality is extinguished by death.

The effect of death upon the rights and obligations of the deceased is
determined by law, by contract and by will.
Limjoco v. Intestate Estate of Pio Fragante 80 Phil 776
o Rights are not lost through death, they can be passed to an estate
Eugenio v. Velez 185 SCRA 425
o Writ of habeas corpus on a dead person. Awarded the rightful custody
of the dead body to the brothers and sisters, not to the common-law
husband.
Marcos v. Manglapus GR No. 88211
o The dissent mentions that dead people still have rights. For instance,
the RPC prohibits the commission of libel against a deceased
individual.

Art 43. If there is a doubt, as between two or more persons who are called to
succeed each other, as to which of them died first, whoever alleges the death of
one prior to the other, shall prove the same; in the absence of proof, it is presumed
that they died at the same time and there shall be no transmission of rights from
one to another.
Rules of Court Rule 123 Sec. 69 Par (ii) not repealed by the New Civil Code
(Tolentino)
Rules of Court Rule 131 Sec. 3 (jj) (kk) (1989 Rev. Rules on Evidence)
Joaquin v. Navarro 93 Phil 257 (the just like a movie case)
o In cases where a family dies at the same time, if there is no evidence
presented otherwise, it is presumed that all of them died at the same
time. In succession, this means that no transmission of rights from one
to the other shall take place. In this case, however, it was proven that
Joaquin Navarro, Jr. died before his mother.

JURIDICAL PERSONS

Art 44. The following are juridical persons:

1. The state and its political subdivisions;
2. Other corporations, institutions and entities for public interest or purpose,
created by law; their personality begins as soon as they have been
constituted according to law;
3. Corporations, partnerships and associations for private interest or purpose
to which the law grants a juridical personality, separate and distinct from
that of each shareholder, partner or member.

Art 45. Juridical persons mentioned in Nos. 1 and 2 of the preceding article are
governed by the laws creating or recognizing them.

Private corporations are regulated by laws of general application on the

subject.
 Partnerships and associations for private interest or purpose are governed by
the provisions of this Code concerning partnerships

Art 46. Juridical persons may acquire and possess property of all kinds, as well
as incur obligations and bring civil or criminal actions, in conformity with the
laws and regulations of their organization.

Art 47. Upon the dissolution of corporations, institutions and other entities for
public interest or purpose mentioned in No. 2 of Article 44, their property and
other assets shall be disposed of in pursuance of law or the charter creating
them. If nothing has been specified on this point, the property and other
assets shall be applied to similar purposes for the benefit of the region,
province, city, or municipality which during the existence of the institution
derived the principal benefits from the same.

Batas Pambansa Blg. 68 (Corporation Code) Sec. 2, 4, 17

New Civil Code Art. 1767-1768 (PARTNERSHIP)