SUCCESSION  When the heirship is undisputed, the purchaser of

hereditary property is not deemed to have acquired

CHAPTER 1 directly from the decedent, because a dead man cannot
General Provisions convey title, or from the administrator who owns no part
of the estate. He can only derive his title from the heirs,
Art. 774. represented by the administrator, as their trustee or legal
representative.
Distinction Between Inheritance and Succession
Observations on Butte
Inheritance Succession  Art. 1623: right of legal redemption should be exercised
Decedent’s properties, rights Mode of acquisition “within 30 days from the notice in writing by the
and obligations not prospective vendor”
extinguished by death  Counting of the 30-day redemption period should have
been counted from when Angela Butte actually received
The object of the succession the written notice of Marie Garnier on 19 December 1958
 Angela Butte exercised the right of redemption on 15
Elements of Succession January 1959. Clearly the redemption period had not yet
expired
1. Mode of Acquisition
b. Transmission of Rights
Art. 721 – 6 Modes of Acquisition: OLDTIPS
1) Occupation  Rights are either personal (intransmissible) or
2) Law transmissible.
3) Donation  Ex. of personal right: right to hold public office
4) Tradition  Ex. of transmissible right: contractual rights, upon
5) Intellectual creation death of a buyer of a parcel of land on installment
6) Prescription basis, his rights and interests over the property are
7) Succession transferred to his heirs.

Types: National Housing Authority v. Almeida

1) Original – no previous owner (occupation +
intellectual creation)
2) Derivative – has a previous owner who transmits title
to a transferee (law, donation, succession, tradition,
prescription)
2. Transmission of an Inheritance
a. Transmission of Property – death
extinguishes juridical capacity, hence
dominion over his property ends
i. Inheritance = assets and liabilities of a person at
the time of his death
ii. Without succession, assets would be res nullius
hence the necessity of transmitting inheritance to
heirs
Butte v. Manuel Uy & Sons Inc
 The rights to the succession of a deceased person are
transmitted to his heirs from the moment of his death, and
the right of succession includes all property rights and
obligations that survive the decedent.
 A co-owner of an undivided share is necessarily a co-
owner of the whole. Therefore, any one of the heirs of an
undivided estate, as such co-owner, becomes entitled to
exercise the right of legal redemption as soon as another
co-owner has sold his undivided share to a stranger. This
right of redemption vests exclusively in consideration of
the redemptioner's quality of co-owner, independently of
the size of the redemptioner's share which the law
nowhere takes into account.
The initial applicant’s death would transfer all her property,
rights and obligations to the estate including whatever interest
she has or may have had over the disputed properties over
which she had been granted the right to buy—to the extent of
the interest that the original owner had over the property, the
same should go to her estate.
Verdad v. CA
 Private respondent, even if a mere relative by affinity, has
a right to the property in her capacity as a legal heir of her
husband, part of whose estate is a share in his mother’s
inheritance.
 David Rosales, became a co-owner of his mother’s estate
upon the death of the latter, who later upon his death,
passed on to his widow, private respondent, his own estate
including his undivided interest over the estate of his
mother.
 “ART. 995. In the absence of legitimate descendants and
ascendants, and illegitimate children and their
descendants, whether legitimate or illegitimate, the
surviving spouse shall inherit the entire estate, without
prejudice to the rights of brothers and sisters, nephews
and nieces, should there be any, under article 1001.
“Should brothers and sisters or their children survive with
the widow or widower, the latter shall be entitled to one-
half of the inheritance and the brothers and sisters or their
children to the other half.” Socorro and herein private
respondents, along with the co-heirs of David Rosales,
thereupon became co-owners of the property that
originally descended from Macaria.
 c. Transmission of Obligations
 GR: Death of the obligor does not extinguish his
contractual obligations (Art. 1311)
 Art. 774 – successions transfers not only rights but
also obligations however limits the liability of the
heirs for the debts of the decedent to the value of the
inheritance
 “obligation” includes contingent liabilities
Estate of Hemady v. Luzon Surety Co. Inc
 The most common example of the contingent claim is that
which arises when a person is bound as surety or
guarantor for a principal who is insolvent or dead
 The binding effect of contracts upon the heirs of the
deceased party is not altered by the provision in the Rules
of Court that money debts of a deceased must be
liquidated and paid from his estate before the residue is
distributed among said heirs (Rule 89). The reason is that
whatever payment is thus made from the estate is
ultimately a payment by the heirs and distributees, since
the amount of the paid claim in fact diminishes or reduces
the shares that the heirs would have been entitled to
receive. The general rule, therefore, is that a party’s
contractual rights and obligations are transmissible to the
successors.
 A solidary guarantor’s liability is not extinguished by his
death, and that in such event Luzon Surety has the right to
file against the estate a contingent claim for
reimbursement
d. Transmission to the Heirs of the Estate
 Before inheritance can be distributed to the heirs,
procedures must be completed:
o Payment of outstanding debts
o Estate tax
o Collation
o Final determination of ownership of
contested property
 According to NHA: the estate of a decedent is a
juridical person
Limjoco v Intestate Estate of Fragante
Within the philosophy of the present legal system and within
the framework of the constitution, the estate of P. O. F. should
be considered an artificial or juridical person for the purposes
of the settlement and distribution of his estate which, of
course, include the exercise during the judicial administration
thereof of those rights and the fulfillment of those obligations
of his which survived after his death. One of those rights was
the one involved in his pending application before the Public
Service Commission in the instant case, consisting in the
prosecution of said application to its final conclusion. An
injustice would ensue from the opposite course.
If by legal fiction the personality of P. O. F. is considered
extended so that any debts or obligations left by, and
surviving, him may be paid, and any surviving rights may be
exercised for the benefit of his creditors and heirs,
respectively, there is no sound and cogent reason for denying
the application of the same fiction to his citizenship, and for
not considering it as likewise extended for the purposes of the
aforesaid unfinished proceeding before the Public Service
Commission.
The Limjoco, Billings and NHA Rules
discussed
1) 2 types of persons:
a. natural
b. Artificial
i. Collection or succession of natural persons
forming a corporation
ii. Collection of property to which the law attributes
the capacity of having rights and duties
2) In Billings, Estate of Morgan must be considered a
juridical entity since no one could be prosecuted for
forgery
3) Billings: estate of deceased person is a juridical entity for
limited purposes (justice for forger)
4) Billings used in Limjoco – estate of a deceased person is
considered a person to avoid injustice or prejudice
resulting from the impossibility of exercising such legal
rights and fulfilling such legal obligations
5) Neither did Billings nor Limjoco establish a general rule:
they created an exception. NHA “to the extent of the
interest that the original owner had over the property, the
same should go to the estate
3. The Object of Succession is the Inheritance
a. Future Property vs. Future Inheritance
Future Property Future Inheritance
Anything which a person Contingent universality or
does not own at present but complex of rights and
which the person may obligations that are passed
acquire or proposes to to the heirs upon death of
acquire in the future the grantor
Can be the object of a Cannot be the object of a
contract contract
b. Contracts Involving Future Inheritance
Blas v. Santos
When agreement to transmit one-half of conjugal share is a
contract as to future inheritance.—-A document signed by the
testator's wife, promising that she would respect and obey all
the dispositions in the latter's will, and that she would hold
one-half of her share in the conjugal assets in trust for the heirs
and legatees of her husband in his will, with the obligation of
conveying the same to such of his heirs or legatees as she
might choose in her last will and testament, is a compromise
and at the same time a contract with sufficient cause or
consideration.
Future inheritance is any property or right, not .in existence or
capable of determination at the time of the contract, that a
person may in the future acquire by succession.
De Belen vda. De Cabalu v. Tabu
Under Article 1347 of the Civil Code, “No contract may be
entered into upon future inheritance except in cases expressly
authorized by law.” Paragraph 2 of Article 1347, characterizes
a contract entered into upon future inheritance as void. The
law applies when the following requisites concur: (1) the a. Succession Inter Vivos
succession has not yet been opened; (2) the object of the  Succession triggered by the annulment or declaration of
contract forms part of the inheritance; and (3) the promissor nullity of marriage
has, with respect to the object, an expectancy of a right which  Art. 50. Final judgment shall provide for. . .delivery of
is purely hereditary in nature. their presumptive legitimes (to common children)
 Art. 51. Presumptive legitimes are computed as of the
Observations on vda de Cabalu date of final judgment of the trial court
1) The succession has not yet been opened  Art. 52. Record of judgment of nullity/annulment and
 Succession of Faustina’s estate was opened at death, delivery of legitimes in the civil registry/ registries of
probate had nothing to do with the opening of propertiesotherwise it shall not affect third persons
succession  Art. 50 of the family code implicitly amends Art. 774
 Probate – judicial proceeding that the law prescribes such that succession may now occur during the lifetime of
solely for the purpose of determining: a person
i. Testamentary capacity of the testator
ii. Compliance with formalities prescribed by law b. Contractual Succession
iii. Identification of the purported will as that of the  Gratuitous disposition of future property mortis causa
testator made by one future spouse to the other (or bilaterally) in
iv. That the testator freely and voluntarily executed the ante-nuptial contract
the will  Art. 130 (CC). future spouses may give each other as
2) The object of the contract forms part of the inheritance much as one-fifth of their present property, and with
 9, 000 m2 property formed part of Faustina’s estate respect to their future property, only in the event of death
however, upon her demise the property became part  Art. 84 amended Art.130. future spouses are expressly
of Faustina’s actual inheritance permitted to give donations of present property to each
3) The promissor has, with respect to the object, an other however, donations of future property has two
expectancy of a right which is purely hereditary in nature requisites:
 Benjamin inherited property from Faustina in 1941 o Donation mortis causa shall be governed by law on
 Domingo and his mother inherited from Benjamin in testamentary succession
1960 o The donor must comply with the formalities of a will
 Domingo sold the property in 1975 – his right was
 Donations mortis causa between future spouses now
not a mere expectancy but had inherited at least part
require the execution of wills
of it from his father
5. Succession is Governed by the Will or by Law
4. Death Triggers Succession
Succession may be governed by:
Death may be:
1) The rules of testamentary succession, if there is a will
a) Actual
2) The rules of intestate succession, if decedent died without
b) Presumed
a will, a void will or with a will that has subsequently lost
i. Ordinary
its validiy
ii. Extraordinary
3) Combination of the rules of testate and intestate
succession if the decedent executed a valid will which did
Circumstance Length of time Date of Death
not completely dispose of the inheritance
(390 and 391) disappeared
absentee 10 years Occurred at the Succession may be classified as:
end of the 10
As to effectivity Either inter vivos or mortis causa
years from the
As to the Testamentary, intestate or mixed
disappearance
existence of the
If 75 years old at 5 years Occurred at the
will
the time of end of the 5 years
As to the Compulsory = succession of
disappearance from the
transferees compulsory heirs to the legitime
disappearance
Voluntary = succession of voluntary
Person on board a 4 years Occurred on the
heirs, legatees and devisees to the
missing vessel, date of the
disposable free portion
airplane disappearance of
As to the extent Universal = entire estate
disappeared the absentee,
Particular = specific property or portion
Person in armed although
forces taken part presumption only
Art. 775
in war arises at the end
Art. 782
Person in danger of the 4-yr period
of death under
Definitions of Heir, Legatee and Devisee
other
1. Heir – person called to the succession in the
circumstances
testator’s will, who pursuant to the terms will either
 receive the entirety or a fractional part of the BENEFIT OF RELATIVES WITHIN THIRD DEGREE
inheritance and WHO BELONG TO THE LINE FROM WHICH
2. Legatee – person called to the succession in the THE PROPERTY CAME
testator’s will, who will receive MOVABLE property
specifically identified by the testator 3. MATTER OF VLID ALEATORY CONTRACTS
3. Devisee - person called to the succession in the  Contracts where by two or more persons pool their
testator’s will, who will receive IMMOVABLE resources in a joint investment and stipulate that the
property specifically identified by the testator survivor among them shall take absolute title over the
entirety of the investment upon the death of one of them
Importance of the Distinction
Macam v. Gatmaitan and Gatmaitan
HEIRS LEGATEE/DEVISEE  Exhibit C is an aleatory contract whereby, according to article
Preterition (not mentioning Preterition does not annul 1790 of the Civil Code, one of the parties or both reciprocally
the name of the heir in a the legacy or devise (must bind themselves to give or do something as an equivalent for
will) annuls the institution not be inofficious) that which the other party is to give or do in case of the
Annulment of institution is Will still get gifts of occurrence of an event which is uncertain or will happen at an
TOTAL leaving nothing movable or immovable indeterminate time.
under the will property as long as these do
not impair the legitime Leonarda and Juana reciprocally assigned their respective
Art. 918. Invalid Invalid disinheritance does property to one another conditioned upon who might die first,
disinheritance annuls the not annul the devises or the time of death determining the event upon which the
institution of heirs insofar as legacies and they shall be acquisition of such right by the one or the other depended.
it prejudices the invalidly valid to the extent they d not
disinherited heir impair the legitime, Rivera v Peoples’ Bank and Trust Company
although gifts of movable or Is the survivorship agreement valid? Prima facie, we think it is
immovable property may be valid. It is an aleatory contract supported by law a lawful
reduced or abated if total consideration — the mutual agreement of the joint depositors
annulment is insufficient to permitting either of them to withdraw the whole deposit
make whole the legitime of during their lifetime, and transferring the balance to the
a compulsory heir survivor upon the death of one of them. 
Are not given specific Given specific movable or
property by the testator but immovable properties But although the survivorship agreement is per se not contrary
only fractional parts to law, its operation or effect may be violative of the law. For
instance, if it be shown in a given case that such agreement is
a mere cloak to hide an inofficious donation, to transfer
Art. 776 property in fraud of creditors, or to defeat the legitime of a
Art. 781 forced heir, it may be assailed and annulled upon such
grounds. No such vice has been imputed and established
The Inheritance against the agreement involved in the case.
 Art. 781 – accruals to the hereditary estate are liable for
the payment of the outstanding obligations of the Vitug vs. CA
decedent  In this case, the monies subject of savings account No.
 The inheritance of a person includes properties, rights and 35342-038 were in the nature of conjugal funds. There is
obligations which are not extinguished by his death, no showing that the funds exclusively belonged to one
however, accruals thereto, while not forming part of the party, and hence it must be presumed to be conjugal,
hereditary estate, are liable for the payment of the claims having been acquired during the existence of the marita.
of the creditors of the decedent relations. 
 Neither is the survivorship agreement a donation inter
Exclusion to Inheritance vivos, for obvious reasons, because it was to take effect
1. FIDEICOMMISSARY SUBSTITUTIONS after the death of one party. Secondly, it is not a donation
 Art 863. Testator simultaneously institute two heirs to one between the spouses because it involved no conveyance
and the same inheritance of a spouse's own properties to the other.
 First heir receives inheritance at death of the testator,  The validity of the contract seems debatable by reason of
however, must preserve and transmit to second heir its "survivor-take-all" feature, but in reality, that contract
 Property does not form part of inheritance of the first heir imposed a mere obligation with a term, the term being
death. Such agreements are permitted by the Civil Code.
2. RESERVA TRONCAL  The fulfillment of an aleatory contract depends on either
 Art. 891. Ascendant who inherits from his descendant any the happening of an event which is (1) "uncertain," (2)
property which the latter may have acquired gratuitous "which is to occur at an indeterminate time."
title from another ascendant, or a brother or sister IS
OBLIGED TO RESERVE SUCH PROPERTY for the
 Survivorship agreements are valid and binding, not
only between the parties but also their respective
successors provided that the operation of such agreements
do not violate the law such as:
(1) When used to conceal and inofficious donation
(2) When used to transfer property in fraud of creditors
(3) When used to defeat the legitime of compulsory heirs
Art. 777
Time and Death of the Decedent
 Ownership of inheritance passes to heirs at the time
of death of the decedent
 Physical delivery, however, may be delayed by legal
formalities such as:
o CPA statement on itemized assets and
deduction from estate
o Estate tax returns,
o Execution of deed of partition
o Publication requirements
 Time of death of decedent determines:
i) Law applicable to the substantive validity of his
will
ii) Composition of the decedent’s assets and their
valuation
iii) Compulsory heirs who are to succeed the
decedent and their testamentary capacity to
succeed
iv) Determination of issues relating to preterition
v) Testamentary capacity of the testator
vi) Timeliness of acceptance or repudiation of the
inheritance and the effects thereof
Consequences of Art. 777
1. Death, the Defining Moment
Bonilla vs. Barcena
The moment of death is the determining factor when the heirs
acquire a definite right to the inheritance whether such right to
be pure or contingent. The right of the heirs to the property of
the deceased vests in them even before juridical declaration of
their being heirs.
2. Distribution Subject to the Existence of a Residual
Estate
Salvador v Sta. Maria
The right of the heirs to specific distributive shares of the
inheritance does not become finally determinable until all the
debts of the estate are paid.
Final distributive shares are inchoate until death of decedent
and cannot be enforced. Residual estate after payment of
decedent’s death determines distribution.
3. Automatic Transmission of the Hereditary Estate
Ramirez v Baltazar
The rights to succession are automatically transmitted to the
heirs from the moment of death of the decedent. While, as a
rule, the formal declaration or recognition to such successional
rights need judicial confirmation, the court has protected these
rights from encroachment made or attempted before the
judicial declaration.
4. Recognition of Ownership by Reason of Succession
GR: rights to succession are transmitted from the moment of
decedent’s death. However, recognition of the ownership of
the inheritance by reason of succession is not self-executory in
the case of the transfer of ownership of shares of stock of a
corporation. Heirs do not automatically become stockholders
of a corporation. Art. 63 of the Corp. Code – no transfer of
shares shall be valid until transfer is recorded in the books of
the corporation.
Puno v Puno Enterprises, Inc.
Upon the death of a shareholder, the heirs do not automatically
become stockholders of the corporation and acquire the rights
and privileges of the deceased as shareholder of the
corporation—the stocks must be distributed first to the heirs in
estate proceedings, and the transfer of the stocks must be
recorded in the books of the corporation; During such interim
period, the heirs stand as the equitable owners of the stocks,
the executor or administrator duly appointed by the court
being vested with the legal title to the stock.
Reyes v. Regional Trial Court of Makati
The status of heirs as co-owners of shares of stocks prior to
the partition of the decedent’s estate does not immediately and
necessarily make them stockholders of the corporation—
unless and until there is compliance with Section 63 of the
Corporation Code on the manner of transferring shares, the
heirs do not become registered stockholders of the corporation
Comments on Reyes
No law requires succession to be declared. The right of an heir
to inherit arises from the moment of death of the decedent,
although his right to specific distributive is inchoate. The
process of liquidating the estate does not reduce the
successional rights of the heir to a mere expectancy. The
“right to inherit” is not synonymous to “the right to specific
distributive share”.
5. Disposal of Hereditary Share of Inheritance
There is no legal bar to a successor to dispose of the hereditary
share immediately after such death, even if the actual extent of
such share is not determined until the subsequent liquidation
of the estate. Effect of such alienation is deemed limited to
what is ultimately adjudicated to the vendor heir.
De Borja v. Vda. De Borja
As owner of an undivided hereditary share, an heir can dispose
of it in favor of anyone. Such alienation is recognized by Art.
1088 of the Civil Code, “Should any of the heirs sell his
hereditary rights to a stranger before the partition, any or all of
the co-heirs may be subrogated to the rights of the purchaser
by reimbursing him for the price of the sale. . . “
6. Sale of an Undivided Share of the Inheritance
An heir may only sell his ideal or undivided share in the
estate, not any specific property therein. An heir can only
alienate such portion of the estate that may ultimately be
allotted to him in the division of the estate by the probate or
intestate court after final adjudication, after all debts have been
paid or the devisees or legatees shall have been given their
shares.
Lee v. RTC of Quezon City (GR 146006)
Where the appropriation of estate properties is invalid, the
subsequent sale thereof to a third party without court approval
is likewise invalid. The sale of the property of the estate by an
administrator without the order of the probate court is void and
passes no title to the purchaser, and any unauthorized
disposition of estate property can be annulled by the probate
court, there being no need for a separate action to annul the
unauthorized disposition.
7. Court Approval for Disposition of the Hereditary
Estate
A stipulation requiring court approval of any disposition does
not affect the validity and the effectivity of the sale as regards
the selling heirs.
Heirs of Sps. Sandejas v. Lina (141634)
Court approval is required in any disposition of the decedent’s
estate, but reference to judicial approval, cannot adversely
affect the substantive rights of heirs to dispose of their own
pro indiviso shares in the co-heirship or co-ownership. Where
other heirs did not consent to the sale of their ideal shares in
the inherited property, the sale will only be limited to the pro
indiviso share of the selling heir.
8. Co-ownership during the Period of Indivision
Co-owner has no right to sell or alienate a specific or
determinate part of the thing owned in common. The sale is
not void but is valid on with respect to the aliquot share of the
selling co-owner. It is subject to the results of the partition.
Santos v. Lumbao (169129)
Even while an estate remains undivided, co-owners have each
full ownership of their respective aliquots or undivided shares
and may therefore alienate, assign or mortgage them, and, in
any case, the mere fact that the deed purports to transfer a
concrete portion does not per se render the sale void.
Heirs are bound by contracts entered into by their
predecessors-in-interest—whatever rights and obligations of
the decedent have over a property are transmitted to the heirs
by way of succession, a mode of acquiring the property, rights
and obligations of the decedent to the extent of the value of the
inheritance of the heirs
Summary of Jurisprudence on Art. 777
(1) Hereditary estate passes in ownership to the heirs from the
moment of decedent’s death. Heirs become co-owners
(2) Right of heirs to specific distributive shares of the
inheritance does not become final until all debts of the
estate are paid
(3) Pending partition, each co-heir may convey the whole or a
portion of his undivided interest in the inheritance. If co-
heir sells his share, other co-heirs are entitled to exercise
the right of redemption under Art. 1088.
(4) Pending partition, co-heirs may enter into a compromise
agreement even if such compromise alters the distribution
of the estate as prescribed by the will of the testator
(5) Court approval is required in any disposition of specific
property forming part of the decedent’s estate. Heirs can
sell their rights, interest or participation in the estate under
administration
(6) Upon death of shareholder, heirs do not automatically
become stockholders of the corporation but is merely an
equitable owner of the stocks, pending the distribution
and registration of the transfer of shares.
Art. 778
Art. 779.
Art. 780.
Types of Succession
1. TESTAMENTARY – testator dies with a valid and
operative will which must be valid in two ways:
a. Extrinsic – compliance with the formal
requirements of a will
b. Intrinsic – substantive validity of testator’s
dispositions contained therein
2. LEGAL OR INTESTATE – without valid and
operative will, distribution of estate is controlled by
law
3. MIXED:
a. Will does not distribute the entire estate or there
is no provision as to how the residual property is
to be disposed
b. Provisions are not considered
testamentary/property dispositions
i. Ex. provision of the will relates to the
appointment of an administrator, payment of
debts or acknowledgment of an illegitimate
child
c. Beneficiaries are incapable to accept or enter into
inheritance and there being no substitution,
representation or accretion
Rodriguez, et al. v Borja, et al. (L-21993)
Intestacy is subsidiary to testacy.—Intestate succession is only
subsidiary or subordinate to the testate, since intestacy takes
place only in the absence of a valid operative will. Only after a
final decision as to the nullity of testate succession could an
intestate succession be instituted. The institution of intestacy
proceedings in one court may not thus proceed while the
probate of the purported will of the deceased is pending in
another court.
CHAPTER 2
TESTAMENTARY SUCCESSION
Section 1 – Wills
Subsection 1 – Wills in General
Art. 783.
Characteristics of a Will
1. Statutory Right – conferred solely by law, not a natural
right
2. Unilateral Act – unlike contracts, consent of the
beneficiaries to the execution of the will is unnecessary;
beneficiaries merely accept of repudiate
3. Formal Act – failure to comply with statutory
requirements results in nullity of the will. Form is either:
a. Notarial Will (Art. 804-806)
 b. Holographic Will (Art. 810)
4. Personal Act – exercise of testator’s judgment or
discretion in determining the testamentary dispositions is
NON-DELEGABLE; mechanical act of drafting and
finalizing will may be delegated to third party, agent or
attorney
5. Effective Mortis Causa – will becomes effective after
testator’s death; exception: payment of presumptive
legitime in FC Art. 50
6. Essentially Ambulatory – testator may revoke his will at
any time before death, any waiver or restriction of this
right is void; testator must have testamentary capacity at
the time of revocation (ex. cannot be insane)
7. Free Act – Notarial will: notary public knowledges that
will is free and voluntary; Holographic will: no need for
notary public however, Art. 839 denies probate if:
a. procured by undue pressure by beneficiary or
other
b. signature of testator was procured by fraud
c. testator acted by mistake in signing the will
Limitations on the Power to Control
Limitations of testator in executing a will are:
1. Legitime – part of testator’s property which he cannot
dispose of because the law has reserved it for certain heirs
who are called compulsory heirs; may be deprived
through disinheritance
2. Reservable Property – Art. 891. Ascendant who inherits
from hid descendant any property which the latter
obtained by gratuitous title from another ascendant,
brother or sister must reserve such for the benefit of
relatives within the third degree and who belong to the
line from which said property came
3. Mistress – forbidden by public policy
4. Fideicommissary Substitution – 2 heirs, related to each
other within the first degree of consanguinity
5. Condition Not to Marry – absolute condition not to
contract a first marriage is void and deemed not written;
subsequent marriage valid only if imposed on widow or
widower by deceased spouse or ascendants/descendants
6. Dispocicion Captatoria – condition that heir shall make
some provision in his will in favor of the testator or any
other person is void
7. Dispositions in Favor of Incapacitated Persons – Art.
1027 (priest, relative of such priest, guardian, attesting
witness, physician, others not permitted by law to inherit)
and 1028 (guilty of adultery/concubinage, guilty of the
same criminal offense, public officer to wife, Des/Asc)
Necessity of Conveyance of Property
A will must convey property over which testator has some
degree of control, otherwise the document is not a will. A
document is not a will if its only disposition is recognition of
an illegitimate child. However, it is a will if it relates to the
disinheritance of a compulsory heir.
Seangio v. Reyes (140372-72)
For disinheritance to be valid, Article 916 of the Civil Code
requires that the same must be effected through a will wherein
the legal cause therefor shall be specified; Maltreatment of a
parent by a child presents a sufficient cause for the
disinheritance of the latter.
A holographic will must be entirely written, dated, and signed
by the hand of the testator himself—it is subject to no other
form, and may be made in or out of the Philippines, and need
not be witnessed.
Observations on Seangio
If SC already ruled on the extrinsic validity of the will, why
did it remand the case to the probate court? The only thing left
to do is to liquidate the estate and distribute the proceeds.
Art. 784.
Non-Delegability of Testamentary Discretion.
 Testamentary dispositions  discretion of testator
 Mechanical act of preparing notarial will  attorney
TEST OF DETERMINING TESTEMTARY CHARACTER
OF A DISPOSITION:
Does it answer the question:
(1) Who will inherit? (i.e. Nothing for Alfredo)
(2) What or how much will be inherited? (distribute by
intestacy)
Art. 785
Art. 786.
Strictly a Personal Act
If heirs, legatees or devisees are identified in the will by name,
testator may not delegate to third person:
(1) Duration of designation of heirs, legatees or devisees
(2) Efficacy of their designation
(3) Portions or property to be given to such heirs,
legatees or devisees
Implementation of testamentary disposition is DELEGABLE.
Class Institution
Testator may entrust to a third person the distribution of the
property that he left by will to such class or cause:
Art. 1030. Testamentary provisions in favor of the poor in
general . . . shall be limited to the poor living in the domicile
of the testator at the time of his death, unless intention was
otherwise.
Designation of the persons who are to be considered as poor
and the distribution of the property shall be made by the
person appointed by the testator for that purpose (in lieu,
executor, justice of the peace, mayor, municipal treasurer)
Art. 787.
Prohibited Delegation – discretion to determine whether or
not a testamentary disposition would be operative; gives
person the power to countermand his testamentary directive
Art. 789.
Defective Testamentary Dispositions
(1) Imperfect description of a property to be given to a
particular recipient
(2) Imperfect description of a person who is to receive
the property
(3) Uncertainty as the face of the will on the application
of any of its provisions

Classification of Defects
1. Patent Defects – apparent merely by reading it
“To some of my brothers I bequeath one-half of my
estate”
2. Latent Defects – ambiguity appears when disposition
is examined in light of extrinsic facts
“To my friend Joe” however testator has two friends
named Joe
Remedial Measures – determine the true intention of the
testator by
1. Examine the will in its entirety
2. Use extrinsic evidence (except oral declaration of the
testator) either testimonial or domentary
Art. 788
Rationale – rules of interpretation must be used to ensure that
the testamentary directive is given effect; exercise of control
should be respected
Art. 790. Ordinary and Technical Sense
De Roma v. CA (L-46903)
Fact that a donation is irrevocable does not necessarily exempt
the donated properties from collation as required under Art.
1061, Civil Code; Given the precise language of the deed of
donation the decedent-donor would have included an express
prohibition to collate if that had been the donor's intention.
Intention to exempt donated properties from collation should
be expressed plainly and unequivocally as an exception to the
general rule in Art. 1062, Civil Code; Absent such a clear
indication of that intention, the rule not the exception should
be applied.
Art. 791
Dizon-Rivera v. Dizon (L-24561)
The testator's wishes and intention constitute the first and
principal law in the matter of testaments, and to paraphrase an
early decision of the Supreme Court of Spain, when expressed
clearly and precisely in his last will amount to the only law
whose mandate must imperatively be faithfully obeyed and
complied with by his executors, heirs and devisees and
legatees, and neither these interested parties nor the courts
may substitute their own criterion for the testator's wiIl.
The repeated use of the words "I bequeath" in the testamentary
dispositions acquire no legal significance, such as to convert
the same into devises to be taken solely from the free one-half
disposable portion of the estate where the testator's intent that
his testamentary dispositions were by way of adjudications to
the beneficiaries as heirs and not as mere devisees, is clear and
that said dispositions were borne out by the use of phrase "my
heirs in this testament" referring to the "devisees."
Vda de. Villafolor v. Juico (L-15737)
The intention and wishes of the testator, when clearly
expressed in his will, constitute the fixed law of interpretation,
and all questions raised at the trial, relative to its execution and
fulfillment, must be settled in accordance therewith, following
the plain and literal meaning of the testator's words, unless it
clearly appears that his intention was otherwise.
Observations on vda. De Villaflor
Villaflor was a “reversionary legatee” such that legacy did not
give her ownership over properties but merely a lifetime
usufruct. Upon death of decedent, usufruct was extinguished.
Art. 792.
Separability Clause – nullity of one of the testamentary
dispositions does not invalidate the others, unless the valid
dispositions depend upon the void disposition.
Balanay, Jr. v. Martinez (L-39247)
The rule is that “the invalidity of one of several dispositions
contained in a will does not result in the invalidity of the other
dispositions, unless it is to be presumed that the testator would
not have made such other dispositions if the first invalid
disposition had not been made”
Art. 793
Purpose of the Law – permits a testator to dispose of property
acquired after the making of a will without having to execute a
new will; minimizes partial intestacy; testator simply indicates
an intention to dispose all properties acquired after the making
of the will and how
Distinguished from the “Future Property” in Art. 781
781 793
Accruals to the inheritance Property acquired by
after the death of the testator after execution of
testators the will
Belong to the heirs by right
of accession
To pay for the testator’s
debts
General Rule and Exceptions
GR: a will can only distribute properties owned by testator at
the time of the execution of the will
Exc: 793: testator may dispose future property if he indicates
so (“I hereby bequeath all other property which I have not
otherwise disposed in this will, as well as all property which I
may in the future acquire by any title, to X and Y in equal
shares.”)
Art. 794.
General Rule – every legacy or devise is presumed to convey
to the beneficiary the entirety of the testator’s interest in the
specific property subject matter thereof (if entire, then entire,
if aliquot , then aliquot only); no one can give what he does
not have
Grant of Less then Full Interest – testator may grant to one a
naked title and to another usufruct; may grant one-half pro
indiviso interest or bequeath a car to two persons jointly
Grant of Greater Interest – testator may convey interest in
property that exceeds his rights thereto; may be that 3rd party
interest be acquired so as to give the thing in its entirety to the
beneficiary
Art. 795. Formal Validity of a Will
Two kinds of validity of a will: formal and substantive
Rules as to Formal Requirements
1. As to Time – formal validity of a will is governed by
the law in effect at the time of its execution; even if
the formal requirements are amended subsequent to
its execution (for substantive – law at the time of
death of testator)
2. As to Place – testator may choose the law that will
govern the formal validity of his will; Filipino
testator abroad may use foreign law or Philippine
law; likewise with foreign national in the Philippines
Conflict Rules as to Formal Requirements
Choice of Law as to Place of Execution
Filipino Testator a) Philippine law
b) Law of country where will is
executed
c) Any form established by the law of
the country in which he is; may be
probated in the Phil
Resident and a) Law of country where will is
Non-Resident executed
Alien Testator b) Will of an alien executed abroad is
effective in the Phil if made with
formalities prescribed by the law of
the place where he resides,
observed in his country, or in
conformity with Phil law
Conflict Rules as to Substantive Requirements
Choice of Law as to Substantive Validity
As to Time Law in force at time of death of the
testator
As to Place Art. 16 – national law of the person
whose succession is under
consideration, whatever the nature of
the property, regardless of the country
where property is found
Bellis v. Bellis (L-23678)
The doctrine of renvoi is usually pertinent where the decedent
is a national of one country and is domiciled in another. It
does not apply to a case where the decedent was a citizen of
Texas and was domiciled therein at the time of his death. So
that, even assuming that Texas has a conflicts rule providing
that the domiciliary law should govern successional rights, the
same would not result in a reference back (renvoi) to
Philippine law, but it would still refer to Texas law.
Nonetheless, if Texas has a conflicts rule, adopting the rule
of lex rei sitae, which calls for the application of the law of the
place where the properties are situated, renvoi would arise,
where the properties involved are found in the Philippines.
Subsection 2 – Testamentary Capacity and Intent
Art. 796.
Art. 797.
Art. 798.
Elements of Testamentary Capacity
Testator:
(1) Is a natural person
(2) Is at least 18 yrs of age at the time of the execution of
the will
(3) Must be of sound mind at the time of the execution of
the will
(4) Is not expressly prohibited by law from making a will
Age Requirement – to ensure that the testator possesses
sufficient discretion, emotional and intellectual maturity
Capacity to Act – power of a person to perform an act with
legal effect; not an element of testamentary capacity; minority
insanity and imbecility disqualify a person from executing a
will
Art. 799.
Soundness of Mind
GUIDELINES TO DETERMINE WHETHER TESTATOR IS
OF SOUND MIND:
(1) Should know the nature of the estate to be disposed
(2) Should know the proper objects of his bounty
(3) Conscious of the nature of the testamentary act
De Guzman v. Intestate Estate of Francisco Benitez
(61167-68)
Benitez was confined in the National mental Hospital for
varying periods of time before executing his will. Trial court
ruled that he was not of sound mind at the time he executed
his will.
Baltazar v. Laxa (174489)
Art. 800
Presumption of Sanity – may be controverted by competent
evidence; burden of proof with person opposing probate
Exceptions to the Presumption of Sanity
(1) One month or less, before the execution of the will,
testator was publicly known to be insane
(2) Prior judicial declaration of testator’s insanity, unless
such declaration has been set aside prior to execution of
the will
(3) Prior judicial appointment of a guardian over the
person/property of a person by reason of having been
found to be insane
To maintain validity of the will in these circumstance, one
must prove that testator was
i. In a lucid interval
ii. Regained his sanity
Art. 801
Determination of Testamentary Capacity – at the time of
the execution of the will
Art. 802. Married woman without consent of husband
Art. 803. Married woman – sep. property and conj
property
Subsection 3 – Forms of Wills
Art. 804
Art. 805
Art. 806
Forms of Wills
1. Notarial (attested)
2. Holographic (handwritten
no other form is recognized
The Purpose of the Formalities
“to close the door on bad faith and fraud, to avoid substitution
of wills and testaments, and to guarantee their truth and
authenticity.”
 A testator can no longer confirm or explain his
testamentary dispositions, hence strict conformity is
required for distribution of the estate to be executed
according to his intent
Formal Requisites of a Notarial Will
1. A will must be in writing
 To evidence compliance with the formalities
prescribed by law
 To serve as exclusive proof of its contents, avoiding
reliance on the memory of man
Must likewise be presented to the court during probate so that:
 A visual inspection to determine compliance with
formalities
 After verifying compliance, opportunity to examine
the testamentary dispositions
2. A will must be written in a language or dialect known to
the testator
 to ensure that testator understand contents of his will,
protection against fraud
a. Circumstances Indicating lack of knowledge of the
language
Suroza v. Honrado (AM 2026)
Testatrix did not know English, yet the will was written in
English and was affixed with her thumb mark. In the opening
paragraph of the will, it was stated that English was a language
“understood and known” to the testatrix. In its concluding
paragraph it stated that it was read to the textatrix “and
translated into Pilipino language”
b. Circumstances indicating knowledge of the language
Reyes v. Vda de Vidal (L-2867)
Deceased was a mestiza Española married to a Spaniard, made
several trips to Spain. Letters of deceased were written in
Spanish.
c. Presumption of knowledge of the language – where
it is proved that testator resides in a particular
locality, a presumption arises that he knows the
language or dialect spoken therein
3. The testator must sign at the end of the will
a. Purpose – indicate the logical end of the
testamentary dispositions
o additional disposition appearing after the signature
of the testator compromises the genuineness of the
will
b. Bottom signature does not apply to the witnesses –
they may sign at any other place to identify the
pages of the will and to prevent fraudulent
substitution
Taboada v. Rosal (L-36033)
The signatures of the instrumental witnesses on the left margin
of the first page of the will attested not only to the genuineness
of the signature of the testatrix but also the due execution of
the will as embodied in the attestation clause.
It must be noted that the law uses the terms attested
and subscribed. Attestation consists in witnessing the
testator’s execution of the will in order to see and take note
mentally that those things are done which the statute requires
for the execution of a will and that the signature of the testator
exists as a fact. On the other hand, subscription is the signing
of the witnesses’ names upon the same paper for the purpose
of identification of such paper as the will which was executed
by the testator.
c. Sufficiency of the customary signature of the testator
– may affix his initials if that is his customary
signature, may be thumb mark, if an X must be
proved that this is his usual signature
d. Facsimile signature is not acceptable – risk of
unauthorized stamping
e. Requisites for third person signing on behalf of the
testator
i. Testator makes an express directive to the third
person
ii. Third person should write the name of the testator
and not his own name
iii. Third person writes the testator’s name in the will
in the presence of the testator and of each of the
instrumental witnesses
(hence, an illiterate person, may execute a notarial
will)
Balonan v. Abellana, et al. (L-15153)
The name of testatrix Anacleta Abellana, does not appear
under the will by said Abellana or by Dr. Juan Abello, hence
failure to comply with requirement that testator must himself
sign the will or some other in his presence with her express
direction
4. A will must be attested and subscribed by three credible
witnesses
Functions of witnesses:
i. Attesting the due execution of the will
- Declare compliance with formalities which law
requires to be confirmed in the attestation clause
ii. Subscribing thereto
- Signing of witnesses’ names upon the same
paper for identification of such as the will
executed by the testator
b. Effect of a missing signature – witnesses should sign
the will ON THE LEFT MARGIN OF EVERY
PAGE except the last
- if one page was missed but the other pages
signed, the formal defect is cured and will be
admitted to probate

Icasiano v. Icasiano (L-18979)
Failure of witness to sign one page is cured by complete set of
signatures in the duplicate copy.
c. Credible witness – credible is “worthy of belief”;
cannot be legislated
d. Competent witness – Art. 820 enumerates
qualifications of a witness to a notarial will, 821
enumerates disqualifications
5. The testator and witnesses must sign in the presence of
one another
Nera v. Rimando (5971)
The position of testator and of the witnesses to a will, at the
moment of the subscription by each, must be such that they
may see each other sign if they choose to do so. The question
whether the testator and the subscribing witnesses to an
alleged will sign the instrument in the presence of each other
does not depend upon proof of the fact that their eyes were
actually cast upon the paper at the moment of its subscription
by each of them, but whether at that moment existing
conditions and the position of the parties, with relation to each
other, were such that by merely casting their eyes in the proper
direction they could have seen each other sign.
6. The testator and witnesses must sign on the left margin
of each page
 Fully met when instrumental witnesses signed at the left
margin of the sole page which contains all the
testamentary dispositions
to prevent substitution of pages
7. Each page of the will must be numbered correlatively
 Safeguards against possible insertion
 Location of the page number is not material for as long as
there is pagination
 Pagination need not be in letters and may be in Arabic
numerals
 If the first page is not numbered, omission does not
necessarily invalidate the will
Lopez v Liboro (L-1787)
The purpose of the law in prescribing the paging of wills is to
guard against fraud, and to afford means of preventing the
substitution or of detecting the loss of any of its pages. The
omission to put a page number on a sheet, if that be necessary,
may be supplied by other forms of identification more
trustworthy than the conventional numeral words or
characters.
8. The will must contain in an attestation clause
Attestation clause = part of a will where witnesses certify:
1) The number of pages used upon which the will was
written
2) That the testator signed the will or caused another to
write his name by his express direction and in his
presence and present of the witnesses
3) That the testator and the witness signed the will in the
presence of one another
a. Attestation clause fails to state the number of pages
– not necessarily a fatal defect if the number of
pages is readily discernible
Tabaoada v. Rosal (L-36033)
b. Error in indicating the actual number of pages – not
necessarily a fatal error
Samaniego-Celeda v. Abena (145545) - While it is
true that the attestation clause is not a part of the
will, the court, after examining the totality of the
will, is of the considered opinion that error in the
number of pages of the will as stated in the
attestation clause is not material to invalidate the
subject will.
 If notarial acknowledgment indicates pages different from
number of pages in actuality, Court disallowed probate
Lopez v. Lopez (189984) - The law is clear that the
attestation must state the number of pages used upon
which the will is written. The purpose of the law is
to safeguard against possible interpolation or
omission of one or some of its pages and prevent any
increase or decrease in the pages.
c. Attestation clause fails to state the number of
witnesses – not a fatal error
Testate Estate of the Late Alipio Abada v. Abaja
(147145)
d. Attestation clause fails to state that the testator’s
name was written by a third person – fatally
defective
Garcia v. Lacuesta (L-4067) – signature page says
that testator requested lawyer to write his name,
however, the attestation clause did not say so hence,
denial of probate
e. Attesting witnesses did not sign at the bottom of the
attestation clause
Cagro v Cagro (L-5826) - signature of the witnesses
do not appear at the bottom of the attestation clause
although were on the left hand margin  fatally
defective
f. Fatally defective attestation clause
Azuela v CA (122880) – attestation clause does not
contain number of pages, is not signed by the
instrumental witnesses, does not contain an
acknowledgment (only a jurat)
g. Conflicting testimonies of the witnesses
Vda. De Ramos v. CA (L-40804)
Observations on Vda. De Ramos v. CA
 Witness does not merely attest to the signatures of the
testatrix, but also to the proper execution of the will
 Witnesses testified against the validity of the will because
it was not signed by the testatrix before their presence
 If they indeed did not see the testatrix sign the will, they
committed perjury when they signed the attestation clause
 If the testatrix signed the will in their presence, they
committed perjury when they testified falsely on the
witness stand

9. The will must be acknowledged before a notary public

a. Definition of acknowledgment – act of one who has
executed a deed in going before some competent
officer and declaring it to be his act or deed
- Witness and testator need acknowledge the will
at the same time, however, must be before the
same notary public

b. Acknowledgment must be made by testator and

witnesses
3 Components of a notarial will:
1) Testamentary dispositions of the testator
2) Attestation of the witnesses:
a. Actual number of pages used upon which
the will was written
b. Testator signed the will on every page
thereof or caused some other to write his
name, under his express direction, in the
presence of instrumental witnesses
c. The instrumental witnesses witnessed and
signed the will and all the pages thereof in
the presence of the testator and of one
another
3) Notarial acknowledgment

Garcia v Gatchalian (L-20357) – document was

acknowledged before a notary public by the testator
but not by the instrumental witnesses hence cannot
be probated

c. Role of the Notary Public

- GR: not necessary to be present in the execution
of the will
- Ex: blind testator

d. Disqualifications of a Notary Public

iii. Notary public must be duly commissioned
- Outside of his territorial jurisdiction, a notary
public has no authority to perform the
notarial functions

Guerrero v. Bihis (174144) – Atty. Directo was

not a commissioned notary public for and in
Quezon City, hence, he lacked the authority to
take the acknowledgment of the testatrix and the
instrumental witnesses.

iv. Notary public must not be an instrumental

witness
Cruz v. Villasor (L-32213) – To allow the notary
public to act as a third witness, would have the
effect of only having two attesting witnesses in
contravention of Art. 805