Case Summary (G.R. No. 161037)
Factual Background
Benito J. Lopez was the registered owner of the property covered by TCT No. S-61176, which he sold to Antonio V. Martel, Jr. for P75,000,000. Martel subsequently subdivided the land into five lots. In 1995, Martel discovered that an earlier court decision had granted a group of individuals, the Factors, a claim to the property based on possession since time immemorial. As a result, Lopez and Martel sought to overturn this decision. The case saw multiple rulings, with the Pasig RTC eventually reversing its earlier decision, leading Martel to file an ex parte petition for a writ of possession for the lots in Las Piñas.
Procedural History
The Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Las Piñas denied Martel's initial petition for the writ of possession, but after a motion for reconsideration, the court reversed its earlier ruling, issuing the writ in favor of Martel. The Factors then elevated the case to the Court of Appeals, which affirmed the RTC's decision. The appellate court's decisions on October 16, 2003, and December 9, 2003, denying the petitioners' appeals, became the subject of scrutiny in this case.
Legal Issues Raised
The principal legal issues presented in the petition revolve around:
- Whether the Court of Appeals erred in issuing a writ of possession in LRC Case No. 02-0030.
- Whether a petition for a writ of possession is a proper remedy for recovering possession of the properties at issue.
Arguments from the Petitioners
The petitioners contended that a writ of possession should only be issued pursuant to a decree of registration in an original land registration case. They argued that Martel's petition for the writ was improperly filed outside the original land registration proceedings, which they claimed had concluded in 1905. They maintained that since the Factors’ registration case was still on appeal, no execution could occur, and instead, an action for ejectment should have been pursued.
Respondent's Counterarguments
Martel's position was that the right to a writ of possession does not prescribe, arguing that the writ could be issued against anyone adversely occupying the land involved in the registration proceedings until a final decree was issued. He cited the continuous possession by the Factors and their claim to ownership based on ancestral possession, asserting that they and their predecessors were part of the group against whom the writ could issue.
Court's Findings
The Court determined that a writ of possession is a legal tool used to enforce judgments in land disputes, enabling the sheriff to restore possession to an entitled party. However, it clarified that such a writ can only be issued in conjunction with a decree of registration in the original land registration proceedings. Since the petitioners were not parties in the 1905 original decree and their registration claim was filed much later, they co
...continue readingCase Syllabus (G.R. No. 161037)
Case Background
- The case arises from a petition for review on certiorari challenging the Decision dated October 16, 2003, and the Resolution dated December 9, 2003, of the Court of Appeals (CA-G.R. SP No. 73906).
- The Court of Appeals affirmed the Resolution dated September 27, 2002, of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Las Piñas City, Branch 202, in Land Registration Case (LRC) Case No. 02-0030, and denied petitioners' motion for reconsideration.
Factual Antecedents
- Benito J. Lopez was the registered owner of a parcel of land covered by Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) No. S-61176 located in Barrio Almanza, Las Piñas City.
- On December 29, 1993, Lopez sold the land to Antonio V. Martel, Jr. for ₱75,000,000.
- Martel, Jr. subdivided the land into five lots, resulting in the issuance of individual titles, including TCT Nos. T-69568 and T-69572, which are central to this dispute.
- On May 25, 1995, Martel, Jr. discovered a Decision dated December 8, 1994, from the Pasig RTC, which granted title to parcels of land in LRC Case No. N-9049, filed by the Factor family based on their claim of possession since time immemorial.
Judicial Proceedings
- Aggrieved by the Pasig RTC's ruling, Lopez and Pepito L. Ng filed a motion on May 30, 1995, seeking to reopen and review the decree of registration.
- On January 27, 1997, the Pasig RTC reversed its earlier order and dismissed the registration case in favor of the Factors.
- Following this ruling, Martel, Jr. filed an ex