A.
Classification of Property
a. PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS
i. Concept of Property
PROPERTY All things which are, or may be the
object of appropriation
Characteristics of Property
(a) utility for the satisfaction of moral or
economic wants
(b) susceptibility of appropriation
(c) individuality or substantivity (i.e., it can exist
by itself, and not merely as a part of a whole).
(Hence, the human hair becomes property only
when it is detached from the owner.)
Definition of ‘Property’ in the Civil Code
property, considered as an object, is that which
is, or may be, appropriated. (See Art. 414).
Definition of ‘Property’ as a Subject in a Law
Course. Considered as a subject or course in
law, property is that branch of civil law which
classifies and defines the different kinds of
appropriable objects, provides for their
acquisition and loss, and in general, treats of the
nature and consequences of real rights. [NOTE:
Every right (derecho) has two elements — subjects (persons)
and objects (properties). Since Book I of the Civil Code deals
with Persons, it is logical that Property should be the subject
matter of Book II.].
ii. Thing vs. Property
As used in the Civil Code, the word “thing” is
apparently SYNONYMOUS with the word
“property.’’ However, technically, “thing” is
broader in scope for it includes both
appropriable and non-appropriable objects. The
planets, the stars, the sun for example, are
“things’’ (cosas), but since we cannot
appropriate them, they are not technically
“property” (bienes). Air, in general, is merely a
“thing,” but under certain condi tions, as when a
portion of it is placed in a container, it may be
considered as property.
[NOTE: Property involves not only material objects but also
intangible things, like rights or credits.] .
iii. Kinds of Property
There are three kinds of things, depending on the
nature of their ownership:
(a) res nullius (belonging to no one)
(b) res communes (belonging to everyone)
(c) res alicujus (belonging to someone)
Res Nullius These things belong to no one, and the
reason is that they have not yet been appropriated, like fi sh
still swimming in the ocean, or because they have been
abandoned (res derelictae) by the owner with the intention of
no longer owning them. Other examples include wild animals
(ferae naturae), wild birds, and pebbles lying on the
seashore.
Res Communes While in particular no one owns
common property, still in another sense, res communes are
really owned by everybody in that their use and enjoyment
are given to all of mankind. Examples would be the air we
breathe, the wind, sunlight, and starlight.
Res Alicujus These are objects, tangible or
intangible, which are owned privately, either in a collective or
individual capacity. And precisely because they can be
owned, they really should be considered “property.”
Examples: your book, your shares of stock, your parcel of
land.
CLASSIFICATION OF PROPERTY
Properties may be classified from different
viewpoints. Among the most important bases are the
following:
(a) Mobility and non-mobility
1) movable or personal property (like a car)
2) immovable or real property (like land)
(b) Ownership
1) public dominion or ownership (like rivers)
2) private dominion or ownership (like a
fountain pen)
(c) Alienability
1) within the commerce of man (or which
may be the objects of contracts or judicial
transactions)
2) outside the commerce of man (like
prohibited drugs)
(d) Existence
1) present property (res existentes)
2) future property (res futurae)
[NOTE: Both present and future
property, like a harvest, may be the subject
of sale but generally not the subject of a
donation.].
(e) Materiality or Immateriality
1) tangible or corporeal (objects which can
be seen or touched, like the paper on which is
printed a P1,000 Bangko Sentral Note)
2) intangible or incorporeal (rights or credits,
like the credit represented by a P1,000 Bangko
Sentral Note)
(f) Dependence or Importance
1) Principal
2) Accessory
(g) Capability of Substitution
1) fungible (capable of substitution by other
things of the same quantity and quality)
2) non-fungible (incapable of such
substitution, hence, the identical thing must
be given or returned)
(h) Nature or Definiteness
1) generic (one referring to a group or class)
2) specifi c (one referring to a single, unique
object)
(i) Whether in the Custody of the Court or Free
1) in custodia legis (in the custody of the
court) — when it has been seized by an offi
cer under a writ of attachment or under a writ
of execution.
2) “free’’ property (not in “custodia legis’’).
b. IMMOVABLE PROPERTY
i. DEFINITION
IMMOVABLE PROPERTY IS DEFINED UNDER
ARTICLE 415 of the NCC. Article 415 provides a list of
specific items that are considered immovable property. The
list includes various types of objects and assets that are
permanently attached to the land or are inherently
immovable in nature.
Article 415 of the Civil Code of the Philippines:
"The following are immovable property:
(1) Land, buildings, roads, and constructions of all kinds
adhered to the soil;
(2) Trees, plants, and growing fruits, while they are attached
to the land or form an integral part of an immovable;
(3) Everything attached to an immovable in a fixed manner,
in such a way that it cannot be separated therefrom without
breaking the material or deterioration of the object;
(4) Statues, reliefs, paintings, or other objects for use or
ornamentation, placed in buildings or on lands by the owner
of the immovable in such a manner that it reveals the
intention to attach them permanently to the tenements;
(5) Machinery, receptacles, instruments or implements
intended by the owner of the tenement for an industry or
works which may be carried on in a building or on a piece of
land, and which tend directly to meet the needs of the said
industry or works;
(6) Animal houses, pigeon-houses, beehives, fish ponds or
breeding places of similar nature, in case their owner has
placed them or preserves them with the intention to have
them permanently attached to the land, and forming a
permanent part of it; the animals in these places are
included;
(7) Fertilizer actually used on a piece of land;
(8) Mines, quarries, and slag dumps, while the matter thereof
forms part of the bed, and waters either running or stagnant;
(9) Docks and structures which, though floating, are intended
by their nature and object to remain at a fixed place on a
river, lake, or coast;
(10) Contracts for public works, and servitudes and other real
rights over immovable property."
ii. KINDS
Academic Classification of Real Properties
(a) Real property by nature (like trees and plants)
(b) Real property by incorporation (like a building)
(c) Real property by destination or purpose (like machinery
placed by the owner of a tenement on it for direct use in an
industry to be carried on therein)
(d) Real property by analogy (like the right of usufruct, or a
contract for public works, or easements and servitudes, or
“sugar quotas” under Republic Act 1825 and Executive Order
873.
c. MOVABLE PROPERTY
i. Definition
Art. 416. The following things are deemed to be personal
property:
(1) Those movables susceptible of appropriation which are
not included in the preceding article;
(2) Real property which by any special provision of law is
considered as personalty;
(3) Forces of nature which are brought under control by
science; and
(4) In general, all things which can be transported from place
to place without impairment of the real property to which they
are fixed.
ii. Kinds
Three Tests to Determine whether Property Is Movable
or Immovable
Manresa mentions three tests:
(a) If the property is capable of being carried from place to
place (test by description);
(b) If such change in location can be made without injuring
the real property to which it may in the meantime be attached
(test by description); and
(c) If finally, the object is not one of those enumerated or
included in Art. 415 (test by exclusion).
Then the inevitable conclusion is that the property is personal
property. (3 Manresa 46-47). [NOTE: Test by exclusion is superior to
the test by description.].
OTHER INCORPOREAL MOVABLES
A patent, a copyright, the right to an invention —
these are intellectual properties which should be
considered as personal property.
PERSONAL EFFECTS
“Personal effects’’ are personal property, but not all
personal property are “personal effects.’’ “Personal
effects’’ include
d. PROPERTY IN RELATION TO THE
PERSON TO WHOM IT BELONGS
PROPERTY OF PUBLIC DOMINION
(ART 420)
It is not owned by the state but pertains to the
state, which, as territorial sovereign exercises
certain juridical prerogatives over such property.
The ownership of such properties is in the social
group, whether national, provincial or municipal.
Purpose: To serve the citizens and not the
state as a juridical person.
NOTE: They cannot be registered under the land registration
law and be the subject of a Torrens title. The character of
public property is not affected by possession or even a
Torrens Title in favor of private persons.
B. Three Kinds of Property of Public Dominion
1. Those intended for public use
2. Those which are not for public use but
intended for public service
3. Those intended for the development of the
national wealth
C. CHARACTERISTICS
1. Outside the commerce of man
2. Inalienable. But when no longer needed for
public use or service, may be declared
patrimonial property. In Laurel vs. Garcia, the
Supreme Court held that “whether or not the
Roppongi and related properties will eventually be
sold is a policy determination where both the
President and Congress must concur”.
3. Cannot be acquired by prescription
4. Not subject to attachment or execution
5. Cannot be burdened with easements
D. PUBLIC LANDS
–uniformly used to describe so much of the national
domain under the Legislative Power of the Congress as
has not been subjected to private right or devoted to
public use
i.e: mining land, forest land, agricultural land
ü Public forests are inalienable public lands.
Public Land Act ( ? ) wala xa gi indicate sa book aie
1. Applicant must prove that the land is alienable
public land act
2. That his open, continuous, exclusive and
notorious possession and occupation of the same
must be since time immemorial. OCEN
E. Ownership
a. Definition
b. Concept
c. Characteristics
d. Kinds of Ownership
e. Rights of an Owner
f. Principle/Doctrine of Self Help
g. Self Defense Under the Law
 h. Remedies to Recover Possession. d. Rights and Obligations of the Owners of
i. Surface Rights the Dominant and Servient Estate
j. Hidden Treasures e. Modes of Extinguishing Easements
F. Right of Accession
a. General Provisions
f. Legal Easements
i. On Immovables
i. Easements Relating to Waters
1. Accession Discreta
ii. Easements of Right of Way
2. Accession Continua
iii. Easement of Party Wall
a. Accession Industrial
iv. Easement of Light and View
b. Accession as applied by Analogy
v. Drainage of Buildings
c. Effect of Good Faith
vi. Intermediate Distances and Works
3. Accession Natural
for Certain Construction and
a. Alluvium or Alluvion
Plantings
b. Avulsion
vii. Easement Against Nuisance
c. Change of Course of Rivers
viii. Lateral and Subjacent Support
d. Formation of Islands
g. Voluntary Easements
ii. On Movables
1. Adjunction
2. Mixture L. Nuisance
3. Specification M. Registry of Property
a. Definition
iii. Quieting of Title b. Purpose
iv. Ruinous Buildings and Trees in c. Systems of Registration in the
Danger of Falling Philippines
G. Co-Ownership d. Third Persons
a. Concept e. Importance of Registration
i. Requisites
ii. Characteristics
b. Rights of Co-owner N. Different Modes of Acquiring Ownership
c. Obligations of Each Co-owner a. Preliminary Provisions
d. Extinguishment of Co-ownership
b. Occupation
H. Special Properties
a. Waters c. Intellectual Creation
i. Use of Public Waters
ii. Use of Waters of Private d. Donation
Ownership i. Nature of Donation
iii. Subterranean Water ii. Concept of Donation
b. Minerals iii. Classification of Donation
c. Trademarks and Trade names iv. Forms of Donation
I. Possession v. Persons who may give or receive
a. Concept donations
i. Requisites vi. Effects of Donation
ii. Classification vii. Revocation of Donation
iii. Possession in Bad Faith or Good
Faith
b. Acquisition of Possession
c. Effects of Possession
d. Loss of Possession
e. Theory of Irrevindicability

J. Usufruct
a. General Provisions
b. Concept
c. Kinds of Usufruct
d. Special Usufructs
e. Rights of the Usufructuary
f. Obligations of the Usufructuary
g. Rights of the owner
h. Obligations of the owner
i. Extinguishment of Usufruct

K. Easements or Servitudes
a. Easements in General
b. Different Kinds of Easements
c. Modes of Acquiring Easements