Daisy Yahon and Sgt. Charles Yahon are married.

A Temporary Protection Order (TPO) has been issued

against Sgt. Yahon to protect the respondent from further abuses. In the TPO, Sgt. Yahon was ordered to
provide reasonable financial spousal support to the respondent. In his failure to appear before the court
and answer the charges against him, the trial court has granted Permanent Protections Order (PPO) for
the respondent against Sgt. Yahon. The Armed Forces of the Philippines

Cesar Syquia and Antonia Loanco de Jesus gotten child and a baby boy was born. In the early months of
Antonia’s pregnancy, Syquia wrote a letter to a rev. father confirming that the child is his and he wanted
his name to be given to the child on its christening. After giving birth, Syquia brought Antonia and his
child at a house where they lived together for about a year. When Antonia showed signs of second
pregnancy, Syquia suddenly departed and married another woman. During the christening of their child,
Syquia caused the name Ismael Loanco to be given instead of Cesar Syquia Jr. that was first planned.
Antonia prayed to compel Syquia to recognize Ismael as his natural child.

Issue

Whether the note to the Reverend Father in connection with the letters written by Syquia to Antonia
during pregnancy proves an acknowledgment of paternity.

Ruling

Yes. The Supreme Court held that the acknowledgment of Syquia’s paternity is satisfied by his
admission of paternity on the letter he sent to Rev. Father and several letters to Antonia showing a
paternal interest while he was abroad. It is a universal rule of jurisprudence that a child, upon being
conceived, becomes a bearer of legal rights and capable of being dealt with as a living person. The fact
that the child is yet unborn is no impediment to the acquisition of rights.

Article 40 of the New Civil Code as superseded by Art. 5 of P.D. 603 (The Child and Youth
Welfare Code) provides that civil personality of the child shall commence from the time of his
conception, for all purposes favorable to him, subject to the requirements of Art. 41 of the New Civil
Code. Article 41 provides that the child’s personality is essentially limited because it is only for purposes
favorable to the child and its personality is provisional because it depends upon the child being born
alive later under the conditions as the child must be alive for at least 24 hours from complete delivery, if
it had an intra-uterine life of less than seven months or the child must be alive even only for a few hours
from complete delivery, if it had an intra-uterine life of at least seven months.

In this case, Article 40 applies as the child satisfied the provisional personality as required in
Article 41. The admission of Syquia as the child’s father gives the child rights as a consequence of
provisional personality such as to be a donee of simple donations, to receive support and may not be
ignored by Syquia in his testament if there will be.
Cesar Syquia and Antonia Loanco de Jesus gotten child and a baby boy was born. In the early months of
Antonia’s pregnancy, Syquia wrote a letter to a rev. father confirming that the child is his and he wanted
his name to be given to the child on its christening. After giving birth, Syquia brought Antonia and his
child at a house where they lived together for about a year. When Antonia showed signs of second
pregnancy, Syquia suddenly departed and married another woman. During the christening of their child,
Syquia caused the name Ismael Loanco to be given instead of Cesar Syquia Jr. that was first planned.
Antonia prayed to compel Syquia to recognize Ismael as his natural child.

Issue

Whether the note to the Reverend Father in connection with the letters written by Syquia to Antonia
during pregnancy proves an acknowledgment of paternity.

Ruling

Yes. The Supreme Court held that the acknowledgment of Syquia’s paternity is satisfied by his
admission of paternity on the letter he sent to Rev. Father and several letters to Antonia showing a
paternal interest while he was abroad. It is a universal rule of jurisprudence that a child, upon being
conceived, becomes a bearer of legal rights and capable of being dealt with as a living person. The fact
that the child is yet unborn is no impediment to the acquisition of rights.

Article 40 of the New Civil Code as superseded by Art. 5 of P.D. 603 (The Child and Youth
Welfare Code) provides that civil personality of the child shall commence from the time of his
conception, for all purposes favorable to him, subject to the requirements of Art. 41 of the New Civil
Code. Article 41 provides that the child’s personality is essentially limited because it is only for purposes
favorable to the child and its personality is provisional because it depends upon the child being born
alive later under the conditions as the child must be alive for at least 24 hours from complete delivery, if
it had an intra-uterine life of less than seven months or the child must be alive even only for a few hours
from complete delivery, if it had an intra-uterine life of at least seven months.

In this case, Article 40 applies as the child satisfied the provisional personality as required in
Article 41. The admission of Syquia as the child’s father gives the child rights as a consequence of
provisional personality such as to be a donee of simple donations, to receive support and may not be
ignored by Syquia in his testament if there will be.

Gutierrez, Merlyn U.

Joaquin vs. Navarro

93 Phil 257
Facts
During the battle of liberation of Manila in 1945, Joaquin Navarro Sr., age 70,
wife Angela Navarro, 67, daughters Pilar, 32, Concepcion 23 and Natividad 25, son
Joaquin Navarro Jr., 30 and his wife Adela Conde sought refuge on the ground floor of
German Club Building. Building was set on fire and Japanese started shooting, hitting
the three daughters who died instantly. Joaquin Sr. decided to leave the building but his
wife refused to join, so he left with his son, his son’s wife and neighbor Francisco Lopez.
As they came out, Joaquin Jr. was hit and fell on the ground. Afterwards, German club
collapsed, trapping many people and presumably including Angela Joaquin. Joaquin Sr,
Adela Conde and Francisco Lopez hide for three days but on their way to St. Theresa
Academy, they met Japanese patrols where Joaquin Sr. and Adela Conde were hit and
killed. The Trial Court ruled that Angela Joaquin outlived her son while the Court of
Appeals ruled that son outlived his mother.

Issue
Whether Angela Navarro died before Joaquin Navarro, Jr. or vice versa.

Ruling

The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the Court of Appeals and held that
the distribution of the decedents’ estates should be made in accordance with the
decision of the trial court. First condition in article 43 of the civil code provides that if
there is a doubt, as between two or more persons who are called to succeed each
other,  whoever alleges the death of one prior to the other, shall prove the same. The
trial court’s theory that the mother outlived her son is deduced from established facts
which, weighed by common experience, engender the inference as a very strong
probability while the Court of Appeals mentioned several causes, besides the collapse
of the building, by which Angela Joaquin has been killed are all speculative.

Doctrine/Concept

Article 43 of the New Civil Code speaks about resolving questions of survivorship
which involves persons who are called upon to succeed each other and when there is a
question of succession. It provides two rules if there is a doubt as between two or more
persons who are called to succeed each other and  as to which of them died first: First,
whoever alleges the death of one prior to the other, shall prove the same; second, in the
absence of proof, they shall be presumed to have died at the same time and there is no
transmission of rights from one to the other. 
In this case, the first rule applied when both the petitioner and respondent argued
on who died first between Angela Navarro and Joaquin Navarro Jr. to identify who
called  upon to succeed each other to satisfy the distribution of the decedent’s estate.
On trial, it has drawn a logical conclusion that based on the facts established, Angela
Navarro outlived Joaquin Navarro Jr. while on appeal the son outlived his mother based
only on speculative facts which came from the testimony of Francisco Lopez. 

Section 3 of R.A. No. 9262 defines ''[v]iolence against women and their children'' as "any act or a series of
acts committed by any person against a woman who is his wife, former wife, or against a woman with
whom the person has or had a sexual or dating relationship, or with whom he has a common child, or
against her child whether legitimate or illegitimate, within or without the family abode, which result in or is
likely to result in physical, sexual, psychological harm or suffering, or economic abuse including threats of
such acts, battery, assault, coercion, harassment or arbitrary deprivation of liberty."