An Analysis on Marriage and its Dissolution in the context of Philippine Law

Bigcas, R.J.

Condag, A.M.

Matchite, G.

Naluis, H.C.

Pa-oyon, E.D.

Sarsona, C.E.

Researchers

Humanities and Social Sciences Strand

Senior High School Department

University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos

Bacolod City
 Chapter I

Introduction

A. Background of the study

Marriage is a special contract of permanent union between a man and a women entered

into in accordance with law for the establishment of conjugal and family life (Article 1, Family

Code of the Philippines). According to Dr. Lawrence Wilson the family is a unit principally a

man and a woman living together in harmony and peace, Family is always the basic social

organization of unit of any society. Some relationship last and for some the value and the

importance of their relationship is becoming little due to irreconcilable differences and severe

chronic unhappiness. House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez formally filed his bill seeking to

legalize the dissolution of marriages. The bill cites the expensive annulment process which it

also described as adversarial, and which it hopes to remedy to allow a peaceful co-existence

after the marriage (Cruz, R.).

B. Statement of the Problem

There has been a dramatic decrease in the number of successful marriages around the

world. . With the separation of the family, many major problems arise. This further leads to

stressful conditions for the husband and wife, and results into circumstances that have

traumatic effects on the child as well. And there will be a lot of broken families in our society

and it will have a negative impact because family is the basic unit of any society.
C. Review of Related Literature

Marriage is a special contract of permanent union between a man and a women entered

into in accordance with law for the establishment of conjugal and family life (Article 1, Family

Code of the Philippines). According to Dr. Lawrence Wilson the family is a unit principally a

man and a woman living together in harmony and peace, Family is always the basic social

organization of unit of any society. A family is a unit of two dedicated to healing, even if they

do not enunciate it or even understands it fully. It means two who are happy to be together,

who want to be together, and who deeply love one another, even though it can just be friends,

for example, or a parent and a child. But there are situation that exists when either or both

spouses no longer are able or willing to live with each other, thereby destroying their Husband

and Wife relationship with no hope of resumption of spousal duties this is called the

irretrievable breakdown of a marriage. It provides the ground for a no-fault divorce in many

jurisdictions.

According to the Law Dictionary the term dissolution of marriage refers to the ending of a

marriage through legal proceedings, the same as divorce. In many jurisdictions, a couple may

file a petition for the court to terminate their marriage pursuant to a written agreement between

the parties. Such an agreement must cover all issues pertaining to the dissolution, allowing the

matter to be concluded without a hearing or trial. In most jurisdictions, divorce and dissolution

of marriage are the same thing, each requiring the same legal proceedings to finalize. The

proceedings may be adversarial, or the parties may work together to come to an agreement

regarding all issues of distribution of marital assets, and payment of spousal support, as well

as child custody and child support, if applicable. If an agreement is reached, it is documented

in a Marital Settlement Agreement, and presented to the court for approval and a final divorce
order or decree. Any issues not settled between the parties may continue to trial, during which

both parties will present argument, testimony, and other evidence to make their case. Leaving

these things for the court to decide is a more expensive avenue for most litigants.

Each state has specific requirements that must be met before filing for dissolution of

marriage or divorce. These include residency requirements that the couple has resided in the

state for a specified minimum period of time. The time varies by jurisdiction, often between 6

months and 1 year. Some states require the couple be officially separated for a minimum period

of time before filing, yet others allow filing, but require a minimum separation time before the

final divorce decree may be issued. A petition for dissolution of marriage or divorce must be

filed with the family court in the county where the couple has established residency, then

served on the opposing party in person. This may be done by process server, sheriff, constable,

or any adult person who is not a party to the divorce. These documents, as well as other

documents needed in a dissolution proceeding, such as child custody documents, are available

at the court clerk’s office for individuals filing for dissolution of marriage without the

assistance of an attorney. Once the petition for dissolution of marriage has been served, the

other party, the “respondent,” must file an answer with the court. Following this, the parties

may submit a Marital Settlement Agreement with the court. If these documents satisfy the

judge as to the equitable distribution of marital assets, and that the best interests of the children

are being met, the agreement will become the order of the court, and the marriage will be

terminated on a specified date. If the parties are unable to agree, the matter will proceed to trial

(LegalDictionary.net).
 Some relationship last and for some the value and the importance of their relationship is

becoming little due to irreconcilable differences and severe chronic unhappiness. House

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez formally filed his bill seeking to legalize the dissolution of

marriages. The bill cites the expensive annulment process which it also described as

adversarial, and which it hopes to remedy to allow a peaceful co-existence after the marriage

(Cruz, R.). This study aims to analyze the content, structure, and language used in writing the

proposed bill entitled House Bill No. 6027, The Dissolution of Marriage.

D. Theoretical Framework
E. Scope of the Study

The study tackles about dissolution of marriage in the context of Philippine Law.

The research design used is document analysis which used in analyzing documents. The

researchers will focus on the document itself which will cover the structure, language and

content. The structure is the arrangement of words, phrase and clauses in a sentence. Parts

of structure are the syntax, the tone, the choice of words, the language and the punctuations

used in writing the document. Language the system of linguistic signs or symbols

considered in the abstract speech. The way of writing used by the author(s) to understand

language of the document are the format, the symbols, the spacing and organization of

words or lines. And content something that is to be expressed through some medium, as

speech or any various arts. The reason of the writer(s), the important points, the

circumstances about the writing, the special markings and the document interpretation of

the readers. These are the limitations of the study of dissolution of marriage. Looking

beyond the document; the reasons, explanations, advantages, disadvantages and so on

about the topic may contradict the research design used. However, it will help the

researchers to discover deeply about the subject. Limitations will allow the researchers to

identify the don'ts and do's and to limit the researchers on how to conduct the study.
F. Significance of the Study

The results of the study will be of great benefit to the following:

Broken Families. Who are seeking dissolution due to their irreconcilable differences or

severe chronic unhappiness which have caused irreparable breakdown of marriage.

Future Researchers. Since this study is a novelty it may provide new discoveries and

insight in the field of marriage and can be used as a reference for future studies. It will also

fill-in some knowledge gaps in which some studies failed to tackle.

G. Definition of Terms

Petitioner. Conceptually, a person who organizes or signs a petition. Operationally, the

individual who initiates legal proceedings by filing a petition, also referred to as “plaintiff”

in some cases.

Respondent. Conceptually, one who responds Operationally, he individual against whom

a petition is filed, also referred to as “defendant” in some cases.

Hearing. Conceptually, the process, function, or power of perceiving sound; specifically

: the special sense by which noises and tones are received as stimuli. Operationally, a

proceeding before the court at which an issue of fact or law is heard, evidence presented,

and a decision made.

Discovery. Conceptually, to make known or visible. Operationally, he pre-trial efforts of

each party to obtain information and evidence.

Marital Assets. Conceptually, marital,of or relating to marriage or the married state and

assets, the entire property of a person, association, corporation, or estate applicable or

subject to the payment of debts Operationally, all property, financial assets, and debt

acquired by the couple during the course of the marriage, regardless of who holds title to

it.

Jurisdiction. Conceptually, the right, power, or authority to administer justice by hearing

and determining controversies. Operationally, the legal authority to hear legal cases and

make judgments; the geographical region of authority to enforce justice.

Article. Conceptually, a written composition in prose, usually nonfiction, on a specific

topic, forming an independent part of a book or other publication, as a newspaper or

magazine. Operationally, a code used in constitution to have a systematic sequence in Law

or Bill.
 Chapter II

Methodologies

A. Research Design

Document analysis is a systematic procedure for reviewing or evaluating

documents both printed and electronic (computer-based and internet-transmitted) material.

Like other analytical methods in qualitative research, document analysis requires that data

be examined and interpreted in order to elicit meaning, gain understanding, and develop

empirical knowledge (Corbin & Strauss, 2008). Document analysis is often used in

combination with other qualitative research methods as a means of triangulation – ‘the

combination of methodologies in the study of the same phenomenon’ (Denzin, 1970). In

this study the design is document analysis to study the structure, and the methods is

Discourse Analysis to study and to analyze the language used in the document and also

Content Analysis to examine the content of the Bill. These design and its methods will be

used in order to give a deep understanding about the document. And also to give meaning

and to give voice to those who are the affected people of the proposed bill. But in this study

the researcher will focus and used the method Pure Discourse analysis.
B. Procedure

1) Establish the context- Write down the language of the source is written in, what country

and place it is from, who wrote it (and when), and who published it (and when). Find out

whether your sources are responses to any major event, whether they tie into broader

debates, and how they were received at the time of publication.

2) Explore the production process- Find additional information on the producer of the

source material, as well as their institutional and personal background. For example: Who

are the author and the editorial staff, what is the general political position of the paper, and

what is its affiliation with other organizations? Are any of the people who are involved in

the production process known for their journalistic style or their political views? Is there

any information on the production expenditures and general finances of the paper? Do you

know who the general target audience of the paper is?

3) Prepare your material for analysis- Prepare it in a way that will allow you to work

with the source, home in on specific details, and make precise references later.

4) Code your material- When you code data, it means that you are assigning attributes to

specific units of analysis, such as paragraphs, sentences, or individual words. Think of how

many of us tag online information like pictures, links, or articles. Coding is simply an

academic version of this tagging process.

5) Examine the structure of the text- Look at the structural features of the texts. Are there

sections that overwhelmingly deal with one discourse? Are there ways in which different

discourse strands overlap in the text? See if you can identify how the argument is

structured: does the text go through several issues one by one? Does it first make a counter-

factual case, only to then refute that case and make the main argument? You should at this

point also consider how the headers and other layout features guide the argument, and what

role the introduction and conclusion play in the overall scheme of things.

6) Collect and examine discursive statements- Once you have a good idea of the macro-

features of your text, you can zoom in on the individual statements, or discourse fragments.

A good way to do this is to collect all statements with a specific code, and to examine what

they have to say on the respective discourse strand. This collection of statements will allow

you to map out what “truths” the text establishes on each major topic.

7) Identify cultural references- You have already established what the context of your

source material is. Now think about how the context informs the argument. Does your

material contain references to other sources, or imply knowledge of another subject matter?

What meaning does the text attribute to such other sources? Exploring these questions will

help you figure out what function intertextuality serves in light of the overall argument.

8) Identify linguistic and rhetorical mechanisms- The next step in your analysis is likely

going to be the most laborious, but also the most enlightening when it comes to exploring
how a discourse works in detail. You will need to identify how the various statements

function at the level of language. In order to do this, you may have to use additional copies

of your text for each work-step, or you may need to create separate coding categories for

your digital files. Here are some of the things you should be on the lookout for:

Word groups: does the text deploy words that have a common contextual background? For

instance, the vocabulary may be drawn directly from military language, or business

language, or highly colloquial youth language. Take a closer look at nouns, verbs, and

adjectives in your text and see if you find any common features. Such regularities can shed

light on the sort of logic that the text implies. For example, talking about a natural disaster

in the language of war creates a very different reasoning than talking about the same event

in religious terms.

Grammar features: check who or what the subjects and objects in the various statements

are. Are there any regularities, for instance frequently used pronouns like “we” and “they”?

If so, can you identify who the protagonists and antagonists are? A look at adjectives and

adverbs might tell you more about judgements that the text passes on these groups. Also,

take a closer look at the main and auxiliary verbs that the text uses, and check what tense

they appear in. Particularly interesting are active versus passive phrases – does the text

delete actors from its arguments by using passive phrases? A statement like “we are under

economic pressure” is very different from “X puts us under economic pressure”…

particularly if “X” is self-inflicted. Passive phrases and impersonal chains of nouns are a

common way to obscure relationships behind the text and shirk responsibility. Make such

strategies visible through your analysis.

Rhetorical and literary figures: see if you can identify and mark any of the following five

elements in your text: allegories, metaphors, similes, idioms, and proverbs. Take a look at

how they are deployed in the service of the overall argument. Inviting the reader to entertain

certain associations, for instance in the form of an allegory, helps construct certain kinds

of categories and relations, which in turn shape the argument. For instance, if I use a simile

that equates the state with a parent, and the citizens with children, then I am not only

significantly simplifying what is actually a very complex relationship, I am also conjuring

up categories and relationships that legitimize certain kinds of politics, for instance strict

government intervention in the social sphere. Once you have checked for the five elements

listed above, follow up by examining additional rhetorical figures to see how these frame

the meaning of specific statements. Things to look for include parallelisms, hyperboles, tri-

colons, synecdoches, rhetorical questions, and anaphora, to name only the most common.

Direct and indirect speech: does the text include quotes? If so, are they paraphrased or are

they cited as direct speech? In either case, you should track down the original phrases to

see what their context was, and what function they now play in your source material.

Modalities: see if the text includes any statements on what “should” or “could” be. Such

phrases may create a sense of urgency, serve as a call to action, or imply hypothetical

scenarios.

Evidentialities: lastly, are there any phrases in the text that suggest factuality? Sample

phrases might include “of course”, “obviously”, or “as everyone knows”. A related

question then is what kinds of “facts” the text actually presents in support of its argument.

Does the text report factuality, actively demonstrate it, or merely suggested it as self-

evident? One of the strongest features of discourse is how it “naturalizes” certain

statements as “common sense” or “fact”, even if the statements are actually controversial

(and in discourse theory, all statements are controversial). Be on the look-out for such

discursive moves.

9) Interpret the data- You now have all the elements of your analysis together, but the

most important question still remains: what does it all mean? In your interpretation, you

need to tie all of your results together in order to explain that the discourse is about, and

how it works. This means combing your knowledge of structural features and individual

statements, and then placing those findings into the broader context that you established at

the beginning. Throughout this process, keep the following questions in mind: who created

the material you are analysing? What is their position on the topic you examined? How do

their arguments draw from and in turn contribute to commonly accepted knowledge of the

topic at the time and in the place that this argument was made? And maybe most

importantly: who might benefit from the discourse that your sources construct?

10) Present your finding- Once you have the answer to your original question, it is time

to get your results across to your target audience. If you have conducted a good analysis,

then you now have a huge amount of notes from which you can build your presentation,

paper, or thesis. Make sure to stress the relevance, and to move through your analysis based

on the issues that you want to present. Always ask yourself: what is interesting about my

findings, and why should anyone care? A talk or a paper that simply lists one discourse

feature after another is tedious to follow, so try to focus on making a compelling case. You

can then add evidence from your work as needed, for instance by adding original and
translated examples to illustrate your point. For some academic papers, particularly

graduation theses, you may want to compile the full account of your data analysis in an

appendix or some other separate file so that your assessors can check your work.