Van Dorn vs. Romillo GR No.

68470, 8 October 1985, 135 SCRA 140

FACTS:

Alice Reyes, the petitioner is a citizen of the Philippines while private respondent Richard Upton is a
citizen of the United States. They were married in Hong Kong in 1972 and they established residence in
the Philippines. They had two children and they were divorced in Nevada, USA in 1982. The petitioner
remarried in Nevada to Theodore Van Dorn. The private responded filed against petitioner stating that the
petitioner’s business is a conjugal property of the parties and that respondent is declared with right to
manage the conjugal property. Petitioner moved to dismiss the case on the ground that the cause of
action is barred by previous judgment in the divorce proceedings before the Nevada Court, where
respondent acknowledged that they had no community property as of June 11, 1982.

ISSUE:

Whether or not the foreign divorce between the petitioner and private respondent in Nevada is binding in
the Philippines and that Richard Upton is now prohibited to exercise control over conjugal assets?

RULING:

The petition is granted. Complaint is dismissed.

The policy against absolute divorce cover only Philippine nationals. However, aliens may obtain divorce
abroad, which may be recognized in the Philippines provided they are valid according to their national
law.

From the standards of American law, under which divorce dissolves marriage, the divorce in Nevada
released private respondent from the marriage between them with the petitioner. Thus, pursuant to his
national law, private respondent is no longer the husband of petitioner. He would have no standing to sue
in the case as petitioner’s husband entitled to exercise control over conjugal assets. He is estopped by his
own representation before said court from asserting his right over the alleged conjugal property.