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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Land Registration and Laches: Strict Proof Required in Vega-Era Property Disputes
A Supreme Court ruling shows that registered landowners who sleep on their rights for decades can lose their claim through laches and extinctive prescription.
Trademark Registration: Similarity and Consumer Confusion in Electronic Goods
A Supreme Court ruling clarifies when identical trademarks can coexist on different electronic goods under Philippine IP law.
Proving Alienable and Disposable Status in Land Registration: Republic v. Lualhati
The Supreme Court clarifies what evidence proves land is alienable and disposable for original registration under the Property Registration Decree.
Upholding Ministerial Duty Dismissal OF Disbarment Complaint FOR Good Faith Registration Actions
Supreme Court dismisses disbarment complaints against lawyers and registrars over good faith registration actions, clarifying ministerial duties.
Land Registration Requires Impeccable Proof of Alienability
The Supreme Court nullified a land registration judgment where applicants failed to present documentary proof that the property was alienable and disposable public land.
Adverse Possession and Land Registration: Clarifying Requirements for Imperfect Titles
Supreme Court clarifies that possession before a land's classification as alienable and disposable counts toward confirming imperfect title under Section 14(1).
Land Title Registration: Possession Before Land Classification Counts
Supreme Court clarifies that possession before a land's classification as alienable and disposable can count toward original registration.
Proving Forgery in Land Registration: Burden Falls on the Party Alleging It
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on who bears the burden of proving forgery in land registration cases and why expert testimony alone is not conclusive.
Title Registration as Proof of Prior Possession in Forcible Entry Cases
The Supreme Court clarifies when a Torrens title can prove prior physical possession in forcible entry cases, protecting landowners from intruders.
State Sovereignty in Land Registration: Proving Alienability and Disposability
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies that land registration requires proof of alienability and disposability, not just possession.
Foreclosure Sales: The Impact of Non-Registration on Property Rights in the Philippines
Learn how the Supreme Court ruled that non-registration of a judicial foreclosure sale does not defeat the purchaser's rights.
Deceptive Imitation: Unfair Competition Claims Without Trademark Registration
Learn how the Supreme Court upheld an unfair competition claim against sellers of counterfeit medicated oil, even without trademark registration.
Land Registration: Possession Before Alienability Declaration Counts
Supreme Court clarifies that possession before a land's alienability declaration counts for registration, if declared alienable at application time.
Proving Land Is Alienable and Disposable for Registration in the Philippines
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies the two documents required to prove land is alienable and disposable for original registration.
Proof Required Land Title Registration AND THE Burden OF Proving Alienability
Upholding Union Registration: No Fraud Without Vitiated Consent
Supreme Court clarifies that minor errors in union registration do not justify cancellation absent fraud vitiating member consent.
Double Sale Doctrine: Prior Registration Determines Land Ownership
When two buyers claim the same land from different sellers, prior registration of title prevails. Learn from a 2014 Supreme Court ruling.
When a Later Title Loses: Prior Registration and Good Faith in Philippine Land Disputes
The Supreme Court clarifies that earlier certificates of title prevail over later ones, and buyers cannot claim good faith when the title itself bears notice of a prior sale.
Due Process Prevails When Land Registration Cases Cannot Disguise Revocation of Donation Claims
The Supreme Court nullified a land registration case that was actually a disguised claim for revocation of donation, upholding due process.
Land Registration by Acquisitive Prescription: The Need for Patrimonial Property Status
Learn why land registration under Section 14(2) of PD 1529 requires proof that the land was patrimonial property at the start of possession.
Land Registration Under Section 14(2): The Patrimonial Property Requirement
The Supreme Court clarifies when alienable public land becomes private property subject to acquisition by prescription under PD 1529.
Proving Alienable and Disposable Land Status for Title Registration
Land registration requires proof the property is alienable and disposable public land—possession alone is not enough.
FDA Authority Upheld: Validity of Bioavailability Testing Circulars for Drug Registration
Supreme Court affirms FDA's power to issue BA/BE testing circulars for drug registration, clarifying administrative rule-making authority.
Perfecting Land Titles: The Imperative of Proving Possession Since June 12, 1945
Learn the strict requirements for land registration in the Philippines, including proving possession since June 12, 1945, based on a recent Supreme Court ruling.