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.
Conjugal Property Presumptions: Protecting Separate Assets from a Spouse's Debts
Learn how the Supreme Court protects separate property from a spouse's debts and what evidence overcomes the conjugal presumption.
Conjugal Property Transfers After the Family Code: When a Spouse's Consent Is Required
The Supreme Court clarifies when a spouse's sale of conjugal property without consent is void or voidable, and the prescriptive period for challenging it.
Forum Shopping in Nullity Cases: One Action for Property Settlement
Filing a separate property case while a nullity case is pending constitutes forum shopping. The Supreme Court explains why.
Spousal Consent and Conjugal Property: When a Sale Without Permission Is Void
Learn when a spouse can sell conjugal property without consent in the Philippines, and why such sales are void under the Family Code.
Spousal Liability for Debts in the Philippines: The Zapanta Case Explained
When can one spouse be held liable for the other's debts? The Supreme Court's ruling in Zapanta v. Rustan clarifies the rules on family property liability.
When Property Division Follows a Void Marriage: Philippine Supreme Court Guidance
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies property division rules after void marriages, protecting parties' rights and ensuring equitable outcomes.
Protecting Conjugal Property from a Spouse’s Personal Debts: Cordova v. Ty Explained
Can creditors seize conjugal property for one spouse’s personal debt? The Supreme Court’s ruling in Cordova v. Ty explains the limits.
Marriage Nullity and Estate Settlement: Jurisdiction and Standing Under Philippine Law
Learn how Philippine courts handle marriage nullity and estate settlement, including who has legal standing to challenge a marriage's validity.
Proving Foreign Law in Philippine Courts: Divorce, Property Rights, and the Keppel Case
Philippine courts don't take judicial notice of foreign laws. Learn the proof requirements from the Supreme Court's Keppel ruling on divorce and property.
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.
Forfeiture of Net Profits in Legal Separation: Protecting Children's Rights
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies forfeiture of guilty spouse's net profits in legal separation, protecting children's inheritance rights.
Unmarried Couples and Property Rights in the Philippines: Proving Co-Ownership
Unmarried couples in the Philippines must prove actual joint contribution to co-own property. Learn the rules from Lacbayan v. Samoy.
Judicial Admissions in Philippine Courts: How Your Statements Can Decide Your Case
Learn how judicial admissions work in Philippine courts and why your statements in pleadings can bind you and decide your case.
Void Marriages and Inheritance Rights: Determining Legal Heirs in the Philippines
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on void marriages, death benefits, and who qualifies as legal heirs under the Family Code.
Muslim Marriages Before the Muslim Code: Property Regime and Estate Settlement
Supreme Court clarifies which law governs property relations in Muslim marriages contracted before the Muslim Code, remanding estate case for further proceedings.
Torrens Title vs. Fraud: Protecting Land Ownership in the Philippines
Learn how the Torrens system protects land ownership in the Philippines and why proving fraud requires clear and convincing evidence, based on a landmark Supreme Court case.
Property Rights in Cohabitation: Ownership Rules for Unmarried Couples in the Philippines
Learn how Philippine law divides property for unmarried couples, the limits on donations, and key lessons from the Agapay case.