Persons and Family Relations
Colegio dela Purisima Concepcion
School of Law, Juris Doctor I
Atty. Jomar Alyzar A. Betita
Family Code continuation on Void and Voidable Marriages
Art. 37.
Void for Being Incestuous
1. Between ascendants and descendants of any degree
2. Between brothers and sisters, whether full or half blood
How to determine “degree of relationship”?
Sibling = 2 degrees of consanguinity
Consanguinity v. Affinity
First cousins = 4 degrees
What if Maria has a child?
Art. 38
Void for Reason of Public Policy:
1. Between collateral blood relatives up to the 4th civil degree
-up to 1st cousins
2. Between step-parents and step-children
- What about step siblings?
3. Between parents-in law and children-in law
-- concept of “issue”.
4. Between adopting parent and adoptive child
5. Between surviving spouse of the adopter and the adopted
6. Between surviving spouse of the adopted and the adopter
7. Between adopted and legitimate child of adopter
- What about illegitimate child?
8. Between adopted children of same adopter
9. Between parties where one with the intention to marry the other, killed the
other person’s spouse or his/her own spouse
Art. 39. Action or defense for declaration of nullity of marriage shall not prescribe.
Who shall file an action? Example.
There is NO DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE since they are not husband and
wife from the beginning.
Case of “Bigamy”. Spouse of previous subsisting marriage.
Art. 40. Judicial Declaration of Nullity of Marriage for purposes of remarriage.
What is the consequence of the remarriage? Subsequent marriage is void.
Art. 41 Rules on Bigamous Marriage
General Rule: Marriage contracted by any person during the subsistence of a
previous marriage is VOID
Exception: If before the celebration of the subsequent marriage, the prior
spouse had been absent for 4 consecutive years (ordinary absence) or 2 years
(extraordinary absence) and the spouse has a well-founded belief that the
absent spouse was already dead. In this case, the subsequent marriage is
valid but it shall be automatically terminated by the recording of the affidavit
of reappearance of the absent spouse.
Exception to Exception: If both spouses of the subsequent marriage acted in bad
faith, such marriage is void ab initio.
Need for a Judicial Declaration of Presumptive Death to remarry.
Case of Republic v. Catubag. GR No. 210580, April 18, 2018. (Midterms)
Art. 391. All of which requires 4 years.
1.Vessel lost or airplane missing; 2. Armed forces taken part in war; and 3.
Danger of death and no existence for four years.
Art. 42. Effect of reappearance of “absent” spouse.
Automatic termination of marriage under Art. 41.
Cite actual example.
Art. 43 and 44. Consequence of reappearance.
Refer to chart.
Art. 45. Grounds for Annulment of Marriage (PUFFIS)
1. Lack of parental consent
2. Unsound mind of one of the parties
3. Fraud
Circumstances constituting fraud: (Art. 46)
• Non-disclosure of conviction by final judgment of crime involving
moral turpitude
What is “moral turpitude?”
b. Concealment of pregnancy by another man
c. Concealment of sexually transmissible disease, regardless of nature,
existing at the time of marriage
d. Concealment of drug addiction, habitual alcoholism, homosexuality and
lesbianism
4. Force, intimidation or undue influence
Example of bar candidate.
5. Impotency
Doctrine of Triennial Cohabitation.
6. Affliction of Sexually transmissible disease found to be serious and which
appears incurable
What if STD is obtained AFTER marriage? No longer applicable.
ARTICLE 45 ARTICLE 46
The STD is a ground for annulment
The STD is a type of fraud which in turn
is a ground for annulment
The STD does not have to be The STD must be concealed
concealed
The STD must be serious and The STD does not have to be serious and
incurable incurable
Art. 47. Persons who may sue.
GROUNDS FOR WHO CAN FILE PRESCRIPTIVE RATIFICATION
ANNULMENT PERIOD
Lack of parental a. Party under a. Within 5 years Free
consent age after attaining 21 cohabitation
b. Parent or b. Before child after reaching
guardian reaches 21 21
Insanity of one Sane spouse Free
party Before death of cohabitation
other party after insane
regains sanity
Guardian of Anytime before the
insane spouse death of either party
Insane spouse During the lucid
interval or after
regaining sanity
also before death of
other party
Fraud Injured party Within 5 years from Free
discovery of fraud cohabitation
after
knowledge of
fraud
Force, Injured party Within 5 years from Free
intimidation or the cessation of cohabitation
undue influence cause after cause has
disappeared
Impotence of Potent party Within 5 years after Cannot be
one party marriage ratified but
action
prescribes
Serious STD Healthy party Within 5 years after Cannot be
marriage ratified but
action
prescribes
Art. 48. Prevention of collusion.
Meaning of “collusion”
Prevent fabrication and suppression of evidence.
Art. 49. Support pendente lite of the parties and custody of children.
Art. 50. Effect of declaration of void ab initio on marriages.
Liquidate, partition, distribute properties
Custody and support of children
Delivery of presumptive legitimes
Art. 51. Delivery of presumptive legitimes
Effects of Termination of Marriage
VOIDABLE BIGAMOUS DECLARATION ANNULMENT
MARRIAGE (ART 41) OF NULLITY
Status of Children of subsequent marriage Illegitimate Children
children conceived before its termination except Art 36 conceived or
– legitimate and Art 53 born before
annulment
decree –
legitimate
Property ACP/CPG shall be liquidated. Same Same
Relations Spouse who contracted the
marriage in bad faith, his/her
share in the net profits of
community property shall be
forfeited in favor of common
children or if there are none,
children of the guilty spouse by
previous marriage or in default,
the innocent spouse
Donations Shall remain VALID except Same Same
Propter
If donee contracted the marriage
Nuptias
in bad faith, donations propter
nuptias made to the donee are
revoked by operation of law.
If both spouses acted in bad
faith, donations propter nuptias
made by one in favor of the other
are revoked by operation of law.
Insurance If one spouse acted in bad faith, Same Same
innocent spouse may revoke his
designation as beneficiary in the
insurance policy even if such
designation be stipulated
irrevocable
Succession If one spouse contracted the Same Same
marriage in bad faith, he shall be
disqualified to inherit from the
innocent spouse both testate and
intestate
Art. 52. Register the judgment of annulment or of absolute nullity with civil and
property registries. Otherwise 3rd persons are not affected.
Art. 53. Register first before remarry, otherwise new marriage is void.
Art. 54. Children conceived or born before judgment in Art. 36 and 53 are
legitimate.
Distinction between Void and Voidable Marriage
VOID VOIDABLE
As to nature Valid until annulled
Inexistent from the time of
performance
As to Can be ratified either by
Cannot be ratified
susceptibility to free cohabitation or
ratification prescription
As to effect on Absolute community exists
No community property, only
property unless another system is
co-ownership (Art 147)
agreed upon in marriage
settlement
As to effect on Children are legitimate if
Children are illegitimate
children conceived before decree of
Exceptions:
annulment
a. In case of psycho incapacity
(Art 36)
b. Children born of subsequent
marriage (Art 53)
As to how a. May be attacked directly or a. Cannot be attacked
marriage may collaterally but for purpose of collaterally, only
be impugned remarriage, there must be directly, i.e. there must
judicial declaration of nullity. be a decree of annulment
b. Can still be impugned even b. Can no longer be
after death of parties impugned after death of
one of the parties
