Legal Insights
Plain-language guides and case briefs on Philippine law — researched from the firm's law library of 184,000+ statutes, Supreme Court decisions, and agency issuances, and written so non-lawyers can understand and act on them.
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Mining Rights and State Control: The Limits of Exploration Permits in the Philippines
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on exploration permits, vested rights, and state control over mineral reservations under the Mining Act.
Ancestral Domain vs Public Land: Resolving Indigenous Land Claims in Forest Reservations
Supreme Court clarifies NCIP jurisdiction over ancestral land claims but upholds protection of forest reservations from private claims.
Supervisory Employees and Overtime Pay: The Limits of Benefit Preservation in Philippine Labor Law
The Supreme Court clarifies when overtime pay is a preserved benefit for supervisory employees under Article 100 of the Labor Code.
Public Land vs Private Claim: Military Reservations and the Limits of Land Acquisition in the Philippines
The Supreme Court voids a title over land inside Fort Bonifacio, ruling military reservations are inalienable public land.
Presidential Proclamations and Land Ownership: Military Reservations in the Philippines
Can a presidential proclamation override private land claims? The Supreme Court clarifies how military reservations affect ownership rights.
Judicial Misconduct AND Evidence Preservation Judges Suspension FOR Negligence AND Ignorance OF LAW
Land Registration Rights vs Government Reservation: Balancing Private Claims and Public Welfare
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on res judicata in land disputes involving government reconveyance, private contracts, and public interest.
Reservation Requirements in Philippine Civil Actions: Hambon v. Carantes Explained
Learn how the Supreme Court applied Rule 111 reservation rules in Hambon v. Carantes, affecting civil damages claims tied to criminal cases.
Implied Reservation in Criminal Cases: Protecting Your Right to a Separate Civil Action
When a criminal case is filed, civil liability is impliedly included. But an implied reservation may allow a separate civil suit. Learn the rule.
Regalian Doctrine and Watershed Reservations: Collado v. Court of Appeals
Explaining why land inside a watershed reservation cannot be registered, even with long possession, under the Regalian Doctrine.
Protecting the Vulnerable: Statutory Rape and the Preservation of Child Welfare in Philippine Law
The Supreme Court affirms six counts of statutory rape, underscoring that a child's consent is immaterial and that young victims' testimony deserves full credence.
When a Civil Case Can Proceed Independently of a Criminal Case
Philippine Supreme Court explains when an independent civil action for fraud may proceed without reservation, even without a non-forum shopping certificate.
Independent Civil Actions Under the Civil Code: No Reservation Needed, Even With a Pending Criminal Case
The Supreme Court clarifies that civil claims based on the Civil Code may proceed independently of criminal cases, with no prior reservation required.
Reservation of Rights in Quasi-Delict Cases: Protecting Your Civil Claim in the Philippines
Learn when you must reserve your right to file an independent civil action for quasi-delict under Article 2176 of the Civil Code.
Land Ownership Disputes: How Government Reservations Affect Property Rights in the Philippines
Learn how government reservations like national parks affect land ownership rights in the Philippines, based on a landmark Supreme Court ruling.