Case Digest (G.R. No. 172196)
Facts:
Adelaida Meneses (Deceased), Substituted by Her Heir Marilyn M. Carbonel-Garcia, petitioner, vs. Rosario G. Venturozo, respondent, G.R. No. 172196, October 19, 2011, Supreme Court Third Division, Peralta, J., writing for the Court.On June 8, 1988, Rosario G. Venturozo filed a complaint for ownership, possession and damages in the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Dagupan City (Civil Case No. D-9040) alleging she had purchased an untitled 2,109 sq. m. coconut land in Mangaldan, Pangasinan by a Deed of Absolute Sale dated January 31, 1973 from Basilio de Guzman, and that Basilio had earlier purchased the same property from Adelaida Meneses by a Deed of Absolute Sale dated June 20, 1966. Venturozo alleged she was dispossessed by Meneses in May 1983 and sought reconveyance, damages and costs.
Meneses answered, denied executing the June 20, 1966 deed, and alleged that the instrument was a forgery; she claimed ownership by inheritance and long possession and counterclaimed for reconveyance. The RTC, after trial, found the June 20, 1966 deed forged, declared both the 1966 and 1973 deeds null and void ab initio, adjudged Meneses the owner, and ordered Venturozo to execute a deed of reconveyance and to pay damages and costs (Decision dated July 18, 1991).
Venturozo appealed to the Court of Appeals (CA). On October 27, 2005 the CA reversed and set aside the RTC decision, declared Venturozo owner, and ordered Meneses to vacate and surrender possession; the CA held Meneses failed to prove by clear and convincing evidence that her signature on the 1966 deed was forged and relied on the presumption of regularity attaching to notarized documents and the testimony of the notary public. Meneses' motion for reconsideration before the CA was denied in a Resolution dated April 5, 2006.
Meneses (substituted by her heir) filed a petition fo...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Under Rule 45, may the Supreme Court re-examine and depart from the Court of Appeals' factual findings that conflict with the trial court's findings?
- Was the Deed of Absolute Sale dated June 20, 1966 a valid public document and was Meneses' signature thereon genuine, such that Venturozo acquired title by subsequent conveyance?
- Did Meneses' in-court statement "This is my signature" operate as a binding judicial admission...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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