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.
Intestate Succession and Legitime in the Philippines: Who Inherits
Understand intestate succession in the Philippines, how legitime protects compulsory heirs, and who inherits when there is no will.
Estate Tax in the Philippines: A Practical Guide for Heirs and Beneficiaries
Learn the Philippine estate tax rules: the 6% rate, deductions, filing deadlines, exemptions, and penalties under the TRAIN Law.
Preterition in Philippine Wills: When Omitting a Compulsory Heir Invalidates Inheritance
Learn how preterition—omitting a compulsory heir—can annul a will's heir institution under Philippine law, with insights from Trinidad v. Trinidad.
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.
Notarial Responsibilities and Lawyer Ethics: Lessons from Rivera v. Dalangin
A lawyer's duty to refuse notarizing unlawful documents and uphold honesty, explained through a recent Supreme Court ruling.
Hereditary Succession in Agrarian Reform: Supreme Court Ruling on Tenant Beneficiary Rights
The Supreme Court clarifies how farmholdings under PD 27 pass to heirs, emphasizing DAR's authority over succession and owner-cultivator selection.
Suicide and Seafarers' Death Benefits: Proving Intentional Self-Harm in Maritime Claims
When can a shipping company deny death benefits by proving a seafarer committed suicide? The Supreme Court explains the evidentiary standard.
Annulment of Sheriff's Sale Based on Alleged Loan Payment: Key Lessons from Domingo v. Molina
The Supreme Court clarifies when a sale of conjugal property by a surviving spouse is valid, and the proper remedy for co-owners.
Forcible Entry, Heir Substitution, and Judgment Immutability in Property Disputes
When can heirs substitute a deceased party in a forcible entry case? The Supreme Court explains the limits of judgment immutability.
Tenancy vs Ownership: Who Hears Agrarian Disputes?
The Supreme Court clarifies when a case is an agrarian dispute for DARAB and when it belongs in regular courts, using a Bulacan land case.
When Teaching Doesn't Cover All: Narrowing the Scope of Occupational Disease Compensation
A Supreme Court ruling clarifies that being listed as an occupational disease does not automatically make an illness compensable under Philippine law.
SSS Death Benefits: Does Legal Separation Bar a Spouse’s Claim?
Legal marriage alone does not guarantee SSS death benefits—surviving spouses must prove actual dependency, especially after separation.
Irrevocable Donations: When a “Donation Mortis Causa” Is Really Inter Vivos
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies when an irrevocable donation labeled "mortis causa" is actually a donation inter vivos, with practical legal implications.
Moral Damages in Maritime Disasters: Who Can Claim After a Breach of Contract
Supreme Court rules only spouse, descendants, ascendants, and illegitimate children may claim moral damages for a passenger's death in a maritime disaster.
Affinity Survives Death But Not Falsification: Estafa and Article 332
The Supreme Court rules on whether a son-in-law can invoke the Article 332 exemption from criminal liability for estafa after his wife's death.
Probate Jurisdiction and Due Process in Will Allowance: Nittscher v. Nogales
The Supreme Court clarifies probate jurisdiction, forum-shopping rules, and due process in allowing holographic wills and issuing letters testamentary.
Writ of Possession Protecting Heirs' Rights in Undivided Estates
Learn how the Supreme Court protects compulsory heirs when a foreclosed property is subject to a writ of possession in an undivided estate.
Estate Settlement Venue and Remarriage After Foreign Divorce: Key Philippine Rules
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies estate settlement venue means actual residence, and a Filipino divorced by a foreign spouse may remarry.
Suspended Sentences for Juvenile Offenders: Limits and Implications in the Philippines
The Supreme Court clarifies when a juvenile offender cannot get a suspended sentence, even under RA 9344.
Proving Causation in Delayed Illness Claims: Philippine Employee Compensation Law
Learn how Philippine courts decide employee compensation claims when illness or death occurs years after employment ends, and what proof is required.
Second Marriages and SSS Death Benefits: Why Court Decisions Matter
The Supreme Court rules on whether the SSS can disregard a court declaration of presumptive death when awarding death benefits.
SSS Death Benefits: Proving Spousal and Child Dependency in the Philippines
Learn how the Supreme Court ruled on SSS death benefit claims, focusing on proving dependency for spouses and legitimacy for children.
SSS Death Benefits for Legal Spouses: Separation Agreements and Beneficiary Rights
A look at how Philippine law treats legal spouses as SSS primary beneficiaries despite separation agreements, and the procedural lessons from a 2006 Supreme Court ruling.
When Can a Co-Owner File an Ejectment Suit in the Philippines? The Adlawan Rule
Philippine law lets a co-owner file ejectment, but only for the benefit of all co-owners—not for sole personal gain. Here's what Adlawan v. Adlawan teaches.