Republic of the Philippines

NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION

REGIONAL TRIAL COURT
BRANCH 77
Quezon City

PAPA M. PO,
Plaintiff,
Civil Case No. R-ZN-2648586
- versus - For: Judicial Declaration of
Nullity of Marriage

MAMA M. MO,
Defendant.
x ---------------------------------------- x

PRE-TRIAL BRIEF

PLAINTIFF, through the undersigned counsel and unto

this Honorable Court, most respectfully submits her Pre-trial
Brief, as follows:

CONCISE STATEMENT OF THE CASE AND THE RELIEFS

PRAYED FOR

Plaintiff brought this action for DECLARATION OF

NULLITY OF MARRIAGE against the above named defendant
on the following grounds:
(1) LACK OF MARRIAGE LICENSE under Article 3 (2) in
relation to Article 4 of the Family Code; and
(2) LACK OF MARRIAGE CEREMONY under Article 3 (3) in
relation to Article 4 of the Family Code; and
(3) PSYCHOLOGICAL INCAPACITY under Article 36 of the
same Code.
Plaintiff prays that her marriage with the defendant be
declared NULL AND VOID based on the grounds stated above.

SUMMARY OF ADMITTED FACTS AND PROPOSED

STIPULATION OF FACTS

The plaintiff and the defendant, both Filipino Citizens

and of legal age, met in Saudi Arabia and lived there as
husband and wife without the benefit of a marriage. After 2
years of residing abroad, they came back to the Philippines
and resided in Payatas, Quezon City to get married and to
settle for good. However, instead of securing a marriage
license and having a marriage ceremony, the mother of the
defendant who was working at the City Hall of Quezon City at
that time, brought them a ready-made Marriage Certificate
bearing their names where both parties just agreed to sign and
register the same. After a year, the relationship of the parties
turned sour when the defendant started to expose his true
colors. He goes home at dawn and is drunk at all times. In
addition, there are even instances when the plaintiff caught
the defendant having sex with different women inside their
bedroom whenever he thought that she would not go home.
Whenever being confronted about it, the defendant physically
abuses the plaintiff by boxing her until she passes out. Having
enough of his husband’s painful deeds, plaintiff decided to live
their dwelling and transferred to their ancestral house in
Banawe, Quezon City on April 19, 2020.
 On November 20, 2020, the defendant underwent
Psychological exams where he was diagnosed with Narcissistic
Personality Disorder.

ISSUES

1. Whether or not the union between plaintiff and defendant is

void ab initio on the ground of lack of marriage license.
2. Whether or not the union between plaintiff and defendant is
void ab initio on the ground of lack of marriage ceremony.
3. Whether or not respondent is psychologically incapacitated
to comply with the essential requisites of marriage.

PROPRIETY OF REFERRAL OF FACTUAL ISSUES TO

COMISSIONERS

Plaintiff is willing to avail of the discovery procedures and

referral to commissioners as long as circumstances dictate its
necessity in order to immediately resolve the issues in this
case.

LIST OF DOCUMENTARY AND OBJECT EVIDENCE AND

THE PURPOSE OF EACH

1. Marriage Certificate filled-up by plaintiff and defendant

The said Marriage Certificate is the same that was
secured by the mother of the defendant where both
parties were just made to sign without having to perform
a marriage ceremony before an authorized solemnizing
officer.
2. Result of defendant’s Psychological Examination
 The result of defendant’s psychological examination
which shows that the defendant is i suffering from
Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Hence, he is
psychologically incapacitated to comply with his marital
obligations.

WITNESSES

1. PAPA M will testify as to matters relating to: (a) the lack

of marriage ceremony between her and the defendant; and (b)
the fact of the defendant being drunkard, womanizer and
abuser.
2. Dr. Miracle Gonzaga will testify as to: (a) the truthfulness
of the result of the defendant’s psychological examination; and
(b) the subsistence of the defendant’s Narcissistic Personality
Disorder even prior to celebration of his marriage with the
plaintiff.

POINTS OF LAW

Article 3 (2) and (3) of the Family Code states that two of
the formal requisites of marriage is a marriage license and a
marriage ceremony. In the case of Diaz-Salgado vs. Anson G.R.
No 2044949 July 27 2016, the Supreme Court ruled that a
valid marriage license is a requisite of marriage under Article
53 of the Family Code, and the absence thereof, save for
marriages of exceptional character,70 renders the marriage
void ab initio pursuant to Article 80(3) of the same law.
Marriages of exceptional character are those: (1) marriages in
articulo mortis or at the point of death during peace or war, (2)
marriages in remote places, (3) consular marriages, (4)
ratification of marital cohabitation, (5) religious ratification of
a civil marriage, (6) Mohammedan or pagan marriages, and (7)
mixed marriages. Here, none of the exceptions to the
requirement of valid license was present. The law also requires
the appearance of both of the contracting parties before a
solemnizing officer and their personal declaration that they
take each other as husband and wife in the presence of not
less than two witnesses of legal age. Article 4 further provides
that absence of any of the essential or formal requisites of
marriage shall render the same void ab initio.
Article 36 of the Family Code opines that a marriage
contracted by any party who, at the time of the celebration,
was psychologically incapacitated to comply with the essential
marital obligations of marriage, shall likewise be void even if
such incapacity becomes manifest only after its solemnization.
In the case of Tan-Andal v. Andal, G.R. No. 196359, the court
ruled that Psychological Incapacity need not be a mental or
personality disorder. It need not be a permanent and incurable
condition. Therefore, the testimony of psychologist or
psychiatrist is not mandatory in all cases. The totality of the
evidence must show clear and convincing evidence to cause
the declaration of nullity of marriage. It is a personal condition
that prevents a spouse to comply with fundamental marital
obligations only in relation to a specific partner that may exist
at the time of the marriage but may have revealed through
behavior subsequent to the ceremonies. Here, based on the
foregoing facts of the case, such as the fact that the defendant
is a drunkard and a womanizer, and the totality of the
evidence that shall be presented, the court shall declare the
marriage between the plaintiff and the defendant void ab
initio.

RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED.

Quezon City, 19 June 2021.

Counsel for the Plaintiff

Unit 9,
By: