Case Digest (G.R. No. L-35778)
Facts:
Republic of the Philippines, and the Director of Lands v. Hon. Abraham P. Vera, Judge, CFI, Bataan, Branch I, and Luisito Martinez; G.R. No. L-35778; Republic of the Philippines, and the Director of Lands v. Hon. Abraham P. Vera, Judge, CFI, Bataan, Branch I, and Thelma Tanalega; G.R. No. L-35779, January 27, 1983, Supreme Court Second Division, De Castro, J., writing for the Court.In G.R. No. L-35778, on May 4, 1972 Luisito Martinez filed an application in the Court of First Instance (CFI) of Bataan under Act No. 496 to register title to a parcel in Mariveles, Bataan (about 323,093 sq. m.). The CFI issued an order of general default on July 7, 1972 except as to the Republic and the Province of Bataan; the Republic filed an opposition on July 24, 1972 asserting the land was public domain. The CFI reopened the case and directed the Land Registration Commissioner to report; the Commissioner replied on October 5, 1972 that the parcel lies entirely within Lot No. 626 of the Mariveles cadastral survey (Cad. Case No. 19, LRC Cad. Rec. No. 1097). At trial Martinez and several witnesses testified to possession (dating to 1938 or earlier) and cultivation of portions of the land. By decision dated October 9, 1972 the CFI confirmed and adjudicated title in favor of Martinez.
In G.R. No. L-35779, on March 21, 1972 Thelma Tanalega filed an Act No. 496 application in the same CFI to register two parcels in barrio Camaya, Mariveles (about 443,297 sq. m. and 378,506 sq. m.), identified as portions of Lot 626. The Land Registration Commission (LRC) and the court exchanged reports: the Chief Surveyor first stated the plans had not been passed upon by the Director of Lands (citing Section 1858, Revised Administrative Code) and later noted the plans did not appear to overlap with previously titled property but would be further examined. The CFI issued a general default against all but the Directors of Lands and Forestry and an oppositor; the provincial fiscal filed an opposition asserting the parcels are public domain. At trial Tanalega testified she acquired possession by purchase in 1970 from a predecessor purportedly in possession since 1935; the government produced a July 3, 1972 district forester certification that the tract was within an Alienable and Disposable Block Project certified by the Director of Forestry on February 16, 1972. Tanalega failed to produce her alleged predecessor or tenants as witnesses. By decision dated October 16, 1972 the CFI confirmed and adjudicated title in favor of Tanalega.
The Republic, through the Solicitor General, sought review in the Supreme Court by petitions for review on certiorari contesting the CFI decisions. The government argued Lo...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Does a voluntary registration proceeding under Act No. 496 lie over lands already the subject of a prior cadastral decree declaring them public land, or does the prior cadastral judgment bar such proceedings (jurisdiction/res judicata)?
- Did the applicants prove the requisite exclusive, notorious possession in the concept of owner to establish title against the State by prescription or judicial confirmation?
- Were the survey plans and descriptions submitted to the Land Registration Commission sufficient without approval by the Director of Lands to support registration ...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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