CHUA vs.

CFI of NEGROS

without any issue. After his death, his

mother

FACTS:

Consolacion

de

la

Torre

succeeded to his pro-indivisio share of Lot

No. 399.

st

1 marriage:

nd

2 marriage:

Consolacion de la Torre executed a

declaration of heirship adjudicating in her

Wife: Patricia Militar

Wife: Consolacion de

favor the pro-indiviso share of her son

la Torre

Juanito.

Children:

Child:

Consolacion de la Torre died intestate

leaving no direct heir either in the

Ignacio

descending or ascending line except her

Lorenzo

Juanito Frias Chua

Manuel (+)

brother and sisters.

The petitioners herein, Ignacio Frias

Chua, of the first marriage and dominador

and

In the first marriage of Jose Frias Chua

with Patricia S. Militar alias Sy Quio he

Chua.

death,

but

which

passed

to

be

declaredas

reservable

property for the reason that the lot in

Manuel Frias Chua died without leaving

question

any issue.

was

subject

to reserval

troncal pursuant to Article 981 of the New

Jose Frias Chua died intestate leaving his

Civil Code.

It appears that the property in

marriage and sons Ignacio Frias Chua

question was not acquired by

and Lorenzo Frias Chua of his first

Consolacion de la Torre and

marriage.
The one-half (1/2,) portion of Lot No. 399

Juanito Frias Chua gratuitously but

and the sum of P8,000.00 in favor of Jose

for a consideration, namely, that

Frias Chua's widow, Consolacion de la

the legatees were to pay the

Torre, the other half of Lot No. 399 in favor

of Juanito Frias Chua, his son in the

interest and cost and other fees

second marriage; P3,000.00 in favor of

resulting from Civil Case No. 5300

Lorenze Frias chua; and P1,550.00 in

of this Court. As such it is

favor of Ignacio Frias, Chua, his sons of

the first marriage.

Frias

Consolacion de la Torre upon the latter's

a child by the name of Juanita Frias Chua.

supposed
deceased

Praying that the one-half (1/2) portion of

Juanito

Consolacion de la Torre with whom he had

son Juanito Frias Chua of the second

the
the

Lot No. 399 which formerly belonged to

When Patricia S. Militar died, Jose Frias

widow Consolacion de la Torre and his

of

marriage filed the complaint.

Chua contracted a second marriage with

Chua,

children

Lorenzo Frias Chua, also of the first

sired three children, namely: Ignacio,

Lorenzo and Manuel, all surnamed Frias

Remedios

legitimate

Juanito Frias Chua died intestate and

undeniable that the lot in question

is

not

subject

tot

a reserva

Standard Oil Co. of New York the

troncal, under Art. 891 of the New

amount of P3,971.20 is imposed upon

Civil Code, and as such the

Consolacion de la Torre and Juanito

plaintiff's complaint must fail.

Frias Chua not personally by the

deceased Jose Frias Chua in his last
will and testament but by an order of
the court in the Testate Proceeding
No.4816 dated January 15, 1931.

ISSUE:

As long as the transmission of the

Whether the property in question was acquired by

property to the heirs is free from any

Juanito Frias Chua from his father,Jose Frias Chua,

condition imposed by the deceased

gratuitously or not, in relation to first requisite of

himself and the property is given out of

reserva troncal.

pure generosity, it is gratuitous.

HELD:

It does not matter if later the court orders

Yes. Acquired gratuitously

The transmission is gratuitous or by

one of the heirs, in this case Juanito Frias

gratuitous title when the recipient does not

Chua, to pay the Standare oil co. of New

give anything in return."

York the amount of P3,971.20. This does

It matters not whether the property

not change the gratuitous nature of the

transmitted be or be not subject to any

transmission of the property to him. This

prior charges; what is essential is that

being the case the lot in question is

the transmission be made gratuitously,

subject to reserva troncal under Art, 891

or by an act of mere liberality of the

of the New Civil Code.

person making it, without imposing any

obligation on the part of the recipient;
and that the person receiving the
property gives or does nothing in
return; or, as ably put by an eminent
Filipino

commentator, "the

essential

thing is that the person who transmits

it does so gratuitously, from pure
generosity, without requiring from the
transferee any prestation."

It is evident from the record that the

transmission of the property in question to
Juanito

Frias

Chua

of

the

second

marriage upon the death of his father Jose

Frias Chua was by means of a hereditary
succession and therefore gratuitous.

But

the

obligation

of

paying

the

(1)

that

the

property

was

acquired

by

descendant from an asscendant or from a brother

or sister by gratuitous title;
(2) that said descendant died without an issue;
(3) that the property is inherited by another
ascendant by operation of law; and
(4) that there are relatives within the third degree
belonging to the line from which said property
came.

DE PAPA vs.TONGKO CAMACHO

FACTS:
(NB: for better understanding see the diagram
attached)

Defendant: Dalisay Tongko-Camacho

Plaintiiffs: Francisca Tioco De Papa, Manuel

in the parcels of land abovementioned

Tioco De Papa and Nicolas Tioco De Papa.

were inherited by her only legitimate

Plaintiffs are defendants Great Aunt and

Uncles.

child, defendant Dalisay D. Tongko-

They have a common ancestor which is the

Camacho.

late Balbino Tioco, who had a sister Romana

Tioco.

Eustacio

Dizon

died

Balbino Tioco is the father of the plaintiffs and

intestate, survived his only legitimate

great grandfather of defendant.

descendant, defendant Dalisay D.

Romana Tioco during her lifetime gratuitously

Tongko-Camacho.

donated 4 parcels of land to her niece Toribia

Tioco (sister of plaintiffs).

Thereafter,

The parties agree that defendant

Toribia Tioco died intestate and survived by

Dalisay D. Tongko-Camacho now

her husband, Eustacio Dizon and their two

owns one-half (1/2) of all the seven

legitimate

children

Faustino

Dizon

and

(7) parcels of land abovementioned as

Trinidad Dizon.

Trinidad is the mother of the defendat Dalisay.

her inheritance from her mother,

In 1928, Balbino Tioco died, survived by his

Trinidad Dizon-Tongko.

wife and legitimate children and legitimate

granchildren Faustino and Trinidad.

D.

Tongko-

Camacho also claims, upon legal

parcels of land were adjudicated as the

advice, the other half of the said

inheritance of the late Toribia Tioco.

seven

But because Toribia predeceased her father,

(7)

parcels

of

land

abovementioned by virtue of the

upon her legitimate children Faustino and

reserva troncal imposed thereon

Trinidad, in equal pro-indiviso shares.

upon the death of Faustino Dizon

Faustino Dizon died intestate, single

and under the laws on intestate

and without issue, leaving his onehalf (1/2) pro-indiviso share in the
seven (7) parcels of land abovementioned to his father, Eustacio
Dizon, as his sole intestate heir, who
received the said property subject to a
reserva troncal.

Dalisay

In the partition of the estate of Balbino, 3

Balbino, the said 3 parcels of land devolved

Defendant

In 1939 Trinidad Dizon-Tongko died

intestate, and her rights and interests

succession.

But the plaintiffs, also upon legal

advice, oppose her said claim
because they claim three-fourths
(3/4) of the one-half pro-indiviso
interest in said parcel of land,
which interest was inherited by
Eustacio

Dizon

from

Faustino

Dizon, or three-eights (3/8) of the

said parcels of land, by virtue of

reservable property is not among

their

the relatives within the third degree

being

also

third

degree

relatives of Faustino Dizon.

belonging to the line from which

such property came.

ISSUE:

Therefore, relatives of the fourth

Whether or not uncles and aunts, together

and the succeeding degrees can

with niece who survived the reservista

never

would be considered reservatorios.

reservatarios, since the law does not

be

considered

as

recognize them as such.

RULING:

No.

The reserva troncal is a special rule

the

reservable

rules on intestate succession, the

plaintiffs-appellees must be held

designed primarily to assure the

without any right thereto because,

return of the reservable property to

as aunt and uncles, respectively, of

the third degree relatives belonging to

Faustino

the line from which the property

they

originally came, and avoid its being

niece,

the

We, therefore, hold, and so rule,

decedent's uncles and aunts may

nearest relative, called reservatarios

not succeed ab intestato so long as

over the property which the reservista

nephews and nieces of the decedent

to

survive

reservation) should return to him,

and

are

willing

and

qualified to succeed.

excludes that of the one more remote.

The right of representation cannot

his

the

that under our laws of succession, a

the third degree, the right of the

subject

by

from

degree as the latter.

in legitimate succession when there

it

excluded

are related to him within the same

Following the order prescribed by law

holding

are

(thepraepositus),

defendant-appellant, although they

the inheriting ascendant (reservista).

are relatives of the descendant within

Dizon

succession

dissipated into and by the relatives of

(person

of

property being governed by the

Reversion

Upon the stipulated facts, and by

be alleged when the one claiming

virtue of the rulings already cited,

same as a reservatario of the

the

defendant-appellant

Dalisay

Tongko-Camacho is entitled to the

entirety

of

the

reversionary

property to the exclusion of the

plaintiffs-appellees.