Title
Republic vs. Verzosa
Case
G.R. No. 173525
Decision Date
Mar 28, 2008
Gertrudes Verzosa sought reconstitution of TCT No. 140606 after its loss; SC upheld CA's ruling, affirming sufficient evidence under R.A. No. 26.
reconstitution of title
burned title
photocopy of title

Case Summary (G.R. No. 173525)

Factual Background

Gertrudes B. Verzosa alleged that she and Edna Verzosa Garcia were the registered owners of the land covered by TCT No. 140606 and that she had been allotted Lot 7-B pursuant to a court order. She explained that the original copy of the title was burned on June 11, 1988 when the Quezon City Hall was gutted by fire. She further stated that the owner’s duplicate had been lost, as shown by an Affidavit of Loss executed by her co-owner, Edna Garcia. She also claimed that no deed or instrument affecting the property had been presented for registration at the time of the title’s destruction, and that the relevant real estate taxes were paid.

On January 3, 2001, Verzosa filed the petition for reconstitution before the RTC. The RTC found the petition sufficient in form and substance, set the hearing for May 18, 2001, and directed publication and posting as required. It also required service of the order on multiple governmental offices and persons, including the Register of Deeds of Quezon City, the Land Registration Authority, the Office of the Solicitor General, and adjoining owners, with instructions that they appear or intervene.

Trial Court Proceedings and Evidence Presented

On the scheduled hearing date, only a representative from the OSG appeared. Verzosa’s counsel presented and marked evidence to establish jurisdictional requirements, and the RTC later allowed further presentation before a Commissioner upon counsel’s motion. The RTC reset the hearing to allow amendment to implead Edna Garcia. Verzosa then sought leave to present evidence ex parte without impleading Edna Garcia, invoking irreconcilable differences, and the RTC granted the request in a resolution dated August 22, 2001.

Verzosa presented her evidence on September 13, 2001 and formally offered it thereafter. In the meantime, the Land Registration Authority (LRA) submitted a report dated October 30, 2001. The report showed that TCT No. 140606 covering Lot 7, Block 8 of the consolidation-subdivision plan (LRC) Pes-1011, registered in the names of Edna Verzosa Garcia and Gertrudes B. Verzosa, was also the subject of administrative reconstitution under Republic Act No. 6732, although no administrative order had yet been issued. The report further stated that the plan and technical description of the lot had been verified and approved under Section 12 of Republic Act No. 26, and that the approved plan and technical description could be used as bases for the inscription of the technical description on the reconstituted certificate.

On November 19, 2001, the RTC ordered the Register of Deeds of Quezon City to reconstitute TCT No. 140606.

Appellate Review and the Republic’s Grounds

The Republic, through the OSG, appealed to the Court of Appeals, assigning as errors that: first, the trial court supposedly erred in granting reconstitution despite failure to comply with the mandatory requirements under Sections 12 and 13 of Republic Act No. 26 in relation to Section 110 of P.D. No. 1529; and second, it erred in granting reconstitution notwithstanding Verzosa’s alleged failure to present clear and convincing evidence that she was the owner of the property.

The Court of Appeals rejected these assignments. It held that the petition was filed under Sec. 3(f) of Republic Act No. 26, which allows other documents the court finds sufficient and proper. It ruled that Verzosa’s documentary evidence, together with the LRA report confirming the previous existence of TCT No. 140606, provided sufficient basis to grant reconstitution. The Republic, however, argued to the contrary that the photocopy of TCT No. 140606 presented by Verzosa was not among the documents required under Republic Act No. 26 and could not be considered competent evidence, especially because Verzosa allegedly failed to prove that she had exerted honest efforts to secure the documents enumerated in the law and failed to find them.

Estoppel Argument Rejected

In response, Verzosa asserted that the Republic was estopped from assailing the sufficiency of evidence because it had not raised timely objection at the trial level. The OSG replied that estoppel does not operate against the government for the acts of its agents. The Supreme Court addressed the estoppel issue first and held that the state cannot be put in estoppel by mistakes or errors of its officials or agents, particularly in the absence of any showing that the government dealt capriciously or dishonorably with citizens. It therefore ruled that the OSG’s failure to raise an effective objection did not bar the Republic from assailing the propriety of the reconstitution.

Core Legal Issues on Reconstitution and Evidence

The Supreme Court then addressed the substantive dispute. It recognized that reconstitution of a lost or destroyed certificate of title may be done judicially under Republic Act No. 26 or administratively under Republic Act No. 6732. Here, the petition sought judicial reconstitution. Under Sec. 3 of Republic Act No. 26, reconstitution must draw from enumerated sources in a specified order: the owner’s duplicate first, then other duplicates, then certified copies or authenticated records, and finally Sec. 3(f), which permits any other document the court finds sufficient and proper.

In relation to these sources, Sec. 12 of Republic Act No. 26 governs petitions for reconstitution under particular sources, including Sections 2(c), 2(d), 2(e), 2(f), 3(c), 3(d), 3(e), and/or 3(f), and requires the petition to state, among others, that the owner’s duplicate had been lost or destroyed, that no co-owner’s or other duplicate had been issued or, if issued, had also been lost or destroyed, the location and boundaries of the property, occupancy and owners of adjoining properties and those with interest, details of encumbrances, and a statement that no deeds or instruments affecting the property had been presented for registration or that registrations had not yet been accomplished.

The Court examined what Verzosa actually attached to support her petition: a copy of TCT No. 140606 (as presented), a certification from the Registry of Deeds that the original copy was among those burned in the June 11, 1988 fire, a certified copy of the Affidavit of Loss executed by her co-owner Edna V. Garcia, the approved technical description and survey plan, the RTC Order dated December 3, 1999 from Quezon City RTC Branch 93, and the tax declaration and tax receipts.

The Owner’s Duplicate Issue and Secondary Evidence

The Republic’s central contention focused on the fact that the photocopy of TCT No. 140606 served as Verzosa’s proof of the owner’s duplicate, whereas Sec. 3(a) requires the owner’s duplicate itself, not merely a photocopy, because the owner’s duplicate is considered the closest reproduction of the original and its presentation prevents uncertainty about authenticity and fraud.

The Court noted that although only a photocopy of the owner’s certificate had been presented, the RTC and the Court of Appeals treated the petition as falling under Sec. 3(f). The Republic insisted that, even if the petition were treated under Sec. 3(f), the rules on admission of secondary evidence had to be satisfied first. The Supreme Court agreed with the evidentiary principle: the photocopy was secondary evidence, and as such it was inadmissible unless the proponent proved the exceptions under Sec. 3, Rule 130 and established the conditions for their admissibility under Sec. 5 of Rule 130.

To guide the treatment of photocopies in reconstitution proceedings, the Supreme Court discussed Republic v. Mateo (G.R. No. 148025, August 13, 2004). In that case, reconstitution was denied because the petitioners failed to satisfactorily show that the original title was lost or unavailable and failed to address issues regarding illegibility of the photocopy. The Supreme Court then clarified that, although the record in the instant case did not show a conscious ruling on admissibility of the photocopy, Verzosa nonetheless presented additional documentary proof concerning the existence, execution, loss, and contents of the title sought to be reconstituted.

Sufficiency of the Whole Evidence, Including the LRA Report and Technical Documents

The Supreme Court held that the remaining documentary pieces on record supplied sufficient basis for reconstitution even without relying on the disparaged photocopy. It emphasized that Verzosa had submitted: the photocopy of TCT No. 140606, the Registry of Deeds certification regarding the fire, the technical description and survey plan, the tax declaration and receipts, and the LRA report confirming prior existence of the title. It also recognized that Verzosa proved the loss of the owner’s copy through an Affidavit of Loss dated December 29, 1988 executed by her sister.

Further, the LRA report expressly verified the correctness and approval of the plan and technical description for Lot 7, Block 8, and stated that the approved plan and technical description could be used to inscribe the technical description on the reconstituted certificate. The report also referenced that the approved plan and technical description were previously plotted under the same TCT No. 140606.

The Court addressed the Republic’s attack on alleged disparities in the technical description. It noted that TCT No. 140606 reflected land area of 441 square meters, while Verzosa’s Annex “E” stated 221 square meters. The Court observed that Annex “E,” which the Republic’s own arguments treated as separate, actually explained the disparity because it showed that the portion corresponding to Verzosa had already been the subject of a subdivision survey dated 11 June 1984, even before the 1988 fire. The Court thus treated the discrepancy as adequately explained by the documents rather than as a sign that the reconstitu

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