Case Digest (G.R. No. L-14429)
Facts:
Ramon Mercado, Basilia Mercado joined by her husband, Francisco Ronquillo, Plaintiffs and Appellants, v. Pio D. Liwanag, Defendant and Appellee, G.R. No. L-14429, June 30, 1962, the Supreme Court En Banc, Makalintal, J., writing for the Court.The parties submitted the case to the trial court on a stipulation of facts. On July 14, 1956, Ramon Mercado and Pio D. Liwanag executed a Deed of Sale covering "a divided half" described by metes and bounds, purportedly conveying 2,196 square meters (one-half of a 4,392 sq. m. parcel) of land in Kangkong, Quezon City (T.C.T. No. 20805) at P7.00 per square meter. The deed recited that the title had been split into two equal parts and that Mercado reserved the "absolute power to choose" his chosen portion.
The stipulation also recited that the T.C.T. No. 20805 was jointly in the names of Ramon and Basilia Mercado as co-owners pro-indiviso, and that the sale was made without the knowledge and consent of Basilia. It further stated that 391 square meters of the property had been expropriated by the National Power Corporation in December 1953 (Civil Case No. Q-829), a fact that only became known to Liwanag upon registration of the deed. Following the sale, Transfer Certificate of Title No. 32757 was issued in the names of Pio D. Liwanag and Basilia Mercado as co-owners pro-indiviso.
The stipulation included documentary exhibits: the Deed of Sale (Annex A), the new TCT (Annex B), a receipt signed by Ramon dated July 14, 1956 (Annex C), and a promissory note for P10,000 (Annex D); Ramon denied receipt/payment, asserting the check was uncashed and held by counsel. The parties limited the contested question to whether the Deed of Sale could be annulled under Article 493 of the Civil Code; other pleaded issues (including fraud) were set aside for resolution.
The Court of First Instance of Rizal (Quezon City) held that, under Article 493, the sale was v...(Pro-only)
Issues:
- Under Article 493 of the Civil Code, may a co-owner validly convey a divided, determinate half of a co-owned property by metes and bounds so as to permit annulment of the Deed of Sale?
- Did the trial court commit prejudicial error by referring to insufficiency of proof as to fraud despite the parties' stipulation eli...(Pro-only)
Ruling:
- (Pro-only)
Ratio:
- (Pro-only)
Doctrine:
- (Pro-only)