Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Extraterritoriality
- Exceptions:
When our law provides respect to other countries with respect to its citizens and nationals
- Extraterritorial application of a foreign law allowed when the country gives consent (implied or
expressed).
Exception: When the foreign law is against public policy and order.
Foreign Elements
a. nationality or citizenship
b. personal status
c. property
a. place of contracting
c. place of performance
f. If the place of negotiating the contract and the place of performance are in the same state, the
local law of this state shall apply.
Renvoi
- the court in resorting foreign law adopts rules of foreign country as to conflict of law which rule
may refer back to the law of the forum. (Aznar vs Garcia, 7 SCRA 95)
Borrowing Doctrine
- Philippines may adopt foreign procedural law under the Borrowing Statute such as Sec. 48 of the
Civil Procedure Rule stating if by the laws of the State or country where the cause of action arose the
action is barred, it is also barred in the Philippines. (CADALIN vs POEA ADMINISTRATOR, 238 SCRA 721)
- foreign law must be properly pleaded and proved as a fact. If not pleaded, the court will
presume that the foreign law is the same as our local or domestic or internal law. (BANK OF AMERICA vs
AMERICAN REALTY CO., 321 SCRA 659)
- In a conflict between a Philippine law and a foreign law, Philippine law prevails
- General Rule: foreign documents, before they can be admitted as evidence in Philippine courts,
must be duly authenticated.
- Written laws may be evidenced by an official publication or a copy attested by an officer with the
legal custody of the record or his deputy. (Secretary of an embassy, consul general, consul, vice consul,
consular agent or officer of a foreign service of the Philippines stationed in a foreign country in which
the record is kept and authenticated by the seal of his office). As provided for by Sections 24 & 25 of
Rule 132 of the Rules of Court.
- Exception to the Rule: a foreign law may be proved in open court by the testimony of an active law
practitioner familiar with the foreign law and quoting the specific foreign law involved. (Manufacturers
Hanover Trust Co. vs Guerrero).
Law of Significant Relationship aka Center of Gravity Doctrine aka Grouping of Contacts
- choice of law problems in conflicts of law are resolved by application of law of the jurisdiction
which has the most significant relationship or contact with the events and parties to the litigation and
issues.
Kilberg Doctrine
- When the rule involves PROCEDURAL, the law of the forum is not bound by the country where the
place of injury or wrongful act arose.
- If the action is filed in Philippine court, the court will adopt its own Rules on Procedure.
- Analysis of the factual situation, event or operative fact to determine the POINT OF CONTACT or
CONNECTING FACTOR (such as situs of the res, place of celebration, place of performance, and place
of delict or wrong doing.
Domiciliary Rule
Nationality Rule
the law of the nationality and citizenship of the person determines his personal law.
Enforcement of rights that accrued in a foreign country, completely or partly, in the form of actions filed
in the Philippines by the aggrieved party;
Recognition and enforcement of a foreign judgment in the form of petition or complaint to enforce such
foreign judgment in the Phil. courts.
1. Primary Sources
- Constitution
- Statutes
- Judicial ruling by the Supreme Court
- Treatises
When case involves no foreign element but involves local laws with conflicting applicability, court will
resolve by:
If cannot be reconciled, consider the most recent statute to have repealed the older one.
Except one law from the operation of the other and from the basis thereof decide the case.
* When interpreting the application of law in such case, there is always the presumption that the laws
are enacted to bring justice and equity therefore the court must decide to this effect.
Court may deny due to the following grounds: lack of jurisdiction or invoke FORUM NON CONVENIENCE
(it is more convenient to try a case in a different forum).
Hear the case and apply the local law. (exercise of states sovereign prerogatives)
Hear the case and apply special rules to promote international system to do justice to the parties. (hear
the case and apply foreign law).
REAL PROPERTY
- real property and personal property is subject to the law of the country it is situated.
CONTRACTS
- the law of the place of execution of contract, wills and other public documents that governs its
forms and solemnities is applied.
CORPORATIONS
- governs by the law of the country where the corporation is created or incorporated.
- Rationale: parties cannot stipulate the jurisdiction of the court over the subject matter because it
is fixed by law or the Constitution.
Applicable foreign law to resolve conflicts of laws in the absence of a local law directing the court to
apply a foreign law or in the absence of a valid agreement between parties on what rule to govern in
case of dispute:
- General rule: All procedural rules shall follow the law of the forum where the case is filed.
Substantive laws shall be governed by the law of the country where the cause of action arose.
- Grouping of Contacts Principles (for torts and contracts) as applied in Saudi Arabian Airlines
(SAUDIA) v CA 297 SCRA 469.
3. Renvoi
- the court in resorting foreign law adopts rules of foreign country as to conflict of law which rule
may refer back to the law of the forum. (Aznar vs Garcia, 7 SCRA 95)
4. Lex Fori
- Lex loci law of jurisdiction in which relief is sought to control to all matters that are remedial or
procedural.
- German Rule of elective occurrence the place of tort is whenever an essential part of the tort
has been committed and the injured person may choose to sue in either of the places which to him is
the most advantageous to his claim.
- Cavers Principle court applies general principles to arrive at a just solution by accommodating
conflicting policies and affording fair treatment of the parties caught in the conflict between state
policies.
Court faced with conflicts of laws has to decide the same by applying:
5. Grouping of Contacts
PERSONAL LAW
Article 15. Law relating to family rights and duties, status, condition and legal capacity of persons are
binding upon citizens of the Philippines.
Article 16. Intestate and testamentary succession with respect to successional rights and order of
succession and intrinsic validity of testamentary provision shall be regarded by the national law of the
person whose succession is under consideration.