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.
Co-Owner Redemption: When Written Notice Can Be Dispensed With
The Supreme Court clarifies when a co-owner's right of legal redemption is barred despite absence of written notice under Article 1623.
Usufruct vs. Co-Ownership: When a Usufructuary Can Eject a Co-Owner
The Supreme Court clarifies that a usufructuary can eject a co-owner during the usufruct period, protecting family property arrangements.
Extrajudicial Settlement in the Philippines: Why Excluding Heirs Can Void the Deal
Learn how the Supreme Court protects excluded heirs in extrajudicial settlements, and what co-owners can still do with their shares.
Co-Owner’s Lease Without Consent: Rights of Heirs and Lessees Explained
Can one co-owner lease shared property without the others’ consent? The Supreme Court explains the limits, the lessee’s rights, and the remedies for non-consenting heirs.
Good Faith Buyers and Title Defects: Lessons from Billote v. Badar
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on good faith buyers, Section 4 Rule 74 annotations, and co-owner sales of undivided shares.
Unmarried Cohabitation Establishing Property Rights In Long Term Illicit Relationships
The Supreme Court ruled that long-term illicit cohabitation can establish co-ownership rights under Article 148 of the Family Code.
Co-Ownership Rights and Provisional Ownership in Property Disputes
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies that co-owners cannot eject each other from inherited property before partition, even with a Torrens title.
Co-Ownership and Ejectment: When a Co-Owner Can Be Evicted for Forcible Entry
A co-owner who forcibly takes exclusive possession of common property can be ejected. Learn the rules on co-ownership and forcible entry from a 2022 Supreme Court ruling.
Co-Ownership vs. Partition: Clarifying Property Rights in the Philippines
A co-owner may sell only his undivided share; buyers become co-owners, and the proper remedy is partition, not annulment.
Written Notice Is Mandatory in Legal Redemption: Rama v. Spouses Nogra
Supreme Court affirms that co-owners must receive written notice of a sale before the 30-day redemption period can begin to run.
Estoppel in Mortgage Foreclosures: Protecting Borrowers From Unfair Actions
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on co-owner rights in recovery of possession, clarifying when partition is not required before filing ejectment actions.
Understanding Unlawful Detainer When Tolerance Turns Into Legal Disputes Over Property
The Supreme Court clarifies when tolerated possession in unlawful detainer cases must begin and how co-ownership affects ejectment suits.
Co-Ownership and Property Rights in the Philippines: The Racho Case on Consent
The Supreme Court clarifies when co-owners may sell inherited property and why consent of all heirs is required before partition.
Property Rights in Cohabitation: Actual Contributions Under Philippine Law
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies that in adulterous cohabitation, only actual joint contributions create co-ownership of property.
Indispensable Parties in Annulment of Judgment for Failure to Implead Co-Owners
A petition to correct citizenship entries in a birth certificate must implead all interested parties, or the judgment may be annulled.
Co-Ownership Disputes: How Inheritance and Sales Affect Land Rights in the Philippines
A Supreme Court ruling clarifies when administrative orders on land disputes become final and how co-ownership, inheritance, and sales affect property rights.
When a Deed Speaks Louder Than a Title: Resolving Land Ownership Disputes in the Philippines
The Supreme Court clarifies how co-ownership, oral partition, and redemption affect land ownership disputes in the Philippines.
Tenancy Rights vs. Co-Ownership: Proving Agricultural Tenancy in Land Disputes
The Supreme Court clarifies that tenancy is a legal relationship that must be proven by substantial evidence, not presumed from mere occupation.
Conjugal Property Rights: When a Forged Donation and Sale Divide Ownership
A forged donation of conjugal property leads to co-ownership between the buyer and the innocent spouse, each holding an undivided half.
Forged Signatures and Imprescriptibility in Co-Ownership Property Disputes
Forged deed transfers property by fraud; co-owner in possession can file imprescriptible quieting of title action.
Surrender of Owner's Duplicate Title: Buyers Cannot Withhold It Indefinitely
Buyers who hold an owner's duplicate title after a partial sale must register promptly; co-owners can compel surrender if registration is unreasonably delayed.
Co-Ownership and Land Registration: Who Keeps the Owner’s Duplicate Title?
A Supreme Court ruling clarifies when a buyer of an undivided co-owned land must surrender the owner’s duplicate certificate of title to the co-owners.
Co-Ownership and Lease Agreements: Property Rights After a Spouse's Death
Learn how the Supreme Court resolved lease, co-ownership, and property rights disputes after a spouse's death in Uy v. Estate of Vipa Fernandez.
Implied Trusts Protecting Shared Property Interests Despite Title Registration
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on how implied trusts can protect co-ownership rights even when property titles name only one person.