Title
Bayot vs. Court of Appeals
Case
G.R. No. 155635
Decision Date
Nov 7, 2008
A foreign divorce decree obtained by Rebecca, an American citizen, dissolved her marriage to Vicente, rendering her petition for nullity moot. The SC upheld the divorce's validity, dismissing her claims for support and nullity.

Case Summary (G.R. No. 155635)

Key Dates

April 20, 1979 – Marriage of Rebecca and Vicente.
February 22, 1996 – Dominican Republic grants decree of divorce.
December 14, 1996 – Property settlement agreement executed.
March 21, 2001 – Rebecca files petition for nullity of marriage and support in Muntinlupa RTC (Civil Case No. 01-094).
August 8, 2001 – RTC denies Vicente’s motion to dismiss; grants support pendente lite (Php 220,000/month).
January 9 & April 30, 2002 – CA issues TRO and grants preliminary injunction enjoining support order.
March 25, 2004 – CA dismisses nullity suit for lack of cause of action.
June 4, 2004 – CA denies motion for reconsideration.
November 7, 2008 – Supreme Court decision.

Applicable Law

1987 Philippine Constitution; Family Code (Executive Order 227); Rules of Court (Rule 65, Rule 45); principles on recognition of foreign divorces (Art. 26, Family Code); concept of cause of action; doctrine of estoppel; res judicata and foreign judgment recognition (Rule 39, Sec. 48, Rules of Court).

Procedural History of Two Petitions

  1. G.R. No. 155635 (Rule 65 certiorari): Challenges CA Resolutions of April 30 and September 2, 2002 enjoining implementation of RTC support pendente lite order.
  2. G.R. No. 163979 (Rule 45 review): Assails CA March 25, 2004 Decision dismissing Civil Case No. 01-094 (nullity of marriage with support) and setting aside RTC orders.

Factual Background

Rebecca, born in Guam (USA) to American parents, married Vicente in 1979. They had one child. Marital relations broke down, leading Rebecca to obtain a divorce in the Dominican Republic in February 1996. Property relations were settled by agreement in December 1996. Rebecca later filed, then withdrew, a nullity petition in Makati RTC in 1996. In March 2001, she filed a new petition in Muntinlupa RTC for declaration of absolute nullity of marriage on grounds of Vicente’s psychological incapacity, with an application for support pendente lite and permanent child support.

RTC Ruling on Motion to Dismiss and Support pendente lite

On August 8, 2001, the RTC:
– Denied Vicente’s motion to dismiss the nullity petition, ruling that the prior foreign divorce was a defense to be considered at trial.
– Granted Rebecca’s support pendente lite application, ordering Vicente to pay Php 220,000 monthly.
Vicente’s motion for reconsideration was denied on November 20, 2001. He then sought injunctive relief from the CA.

Court of Appeals’ Grant of Injunctive Relief

In CA-G.R. SP No. 68187, the CA issued a TRO on January 9, 2002, and on April 30, 2002 granted a writ of preliminary injunction enjoining the RTC from implementing its August 8 and November 20 orders, conditioned on posting a P250,000 bond. A September 2, 2002 Resolution denied Rebecca’s motion for reconsideration.

Court of Appeals’ Dismissal of Nullity Petition

Pending resolution of the certiorari petition, the CA on March 25, 2004 dismissed Civil Case No. 01-094 for failure to state a cause of action, holding that:

  1. Under the hypothetical-admission rule, the petition lacked essential elements of a nullity action.
  2. The Dominican divorce decree was valid and Rebecca, having been an American citizen when it was obtained, was barred from seeking nullity.
  3. Rebecca’s claim of Filipino citizenship at the time of divorce was unsubstantiated and contradicted by her consistent representations as an American.
  4. She was estopped from denying her American citizenship after professing it in multiple vital records.
    The CA further set aside the RTC’s incidental orders. Rebecca’s motion for reconsideration was denied on June 4, 2004.

Supreme Court’s Jurisdiction and Applicable Law

Decision issued in 2008, governed by the 1987 Constitution. The Court emphasized three principles on foreign divorce recognition:

  1. Valid foreign divorce obtained by an alien married to a Filipino may be recognized if valid under the alien’s national law.
  2. Citizenship for this purpose is determined at the time the foreign divorce is granted.
  3. Divorce between two Filipinos remains against public policy and is not recognized.

Citizenship at Time of Foreign Divorce

The Court found Rebecca to have been an American citizen when she secured her divorce in February 1996 because:
– Born in Guam, a U.S. territory applying jus soli.
– Held and used an American passport in 1995.
– Made repeated sworn declarations of U.S. nationality in vital documents and court proceedings.
The purported Philippine Identification Certificate (ID No. RC 9778) dated October 11, 1995 was deemed spurious, as it bore a confirmation date by the Secretary of Justice only on June 8, 2000, lacking compliance with Bureau Law Instruction RBR-99-002. Rebecca was not recognized as a Filipino citizen until June 2000, four years after her divorce.

Validity and Recognition of the Foreign Divorce

The Dominican Republic decrees (Civil Decrees Nos. 362/96 and 406/97) were valid:
– Rebecca personally appeared as an American national; Vicente was represented by counsel.
– U.S. law permits divorce; the decrees included joint custody and property settlement.
– No evidence of lack of jurisdiction, fraud, collu




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