2005 Bar Exams Questions in Civil Law

8/3/2019 2005 Bar Exams Questions in Civil Law

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2005 BAR EXAMS QUESTIONS IN CIVIL LAW

- I -

Gabby and Mila got married at Lourdes Church in Quezon City on July 10, 1990. Prior

thereto, they executed a marriage settlement whereby they agreed on the regime ofconjugal partnership of gains. The marriage settlement was registered in the Register of

Deeds of Manila, where Mila is a resident. In 1992, they jointly acquired a residential

house and lot, as well as a condominium unit in Makati. In 1995, they decided to changetheir property relations to the regime of complete separation of property. Mila consented,

as she was then engaged in a lucrative business. The spouses then signed a private

document dissolving their conjugal partnership and agreeing on a complete separation of

property.

Thereafter, Gabby acquired a mansion in Baguio City, and a 5-hectare agricultural land in

Oriental Mindoro, which he registered exclusively in his name.

In the year 2000, Milas business venture failed, and her creditors sued her for

P10,000,000.00. After obtaining a favorable judgment, the creditors sought to execute onthe spouses house and lot and condominium unit, as well as Gabbys mansion and

agricultural land.

a) Discuss the status of the first and the amended marriage settlements. (2%)

b) Discuss the effect/s of the said settlements on the properties acquired by the spouses.(2%)

c) What properties may be held answerable for Milas obligations? Explain. (2%)

- II -

In 1985, Sonny and Lulu, both Filipino citizens, were married in the Philippines. In 1987,

they separated, and Sonny went to Canada, where he obtained a divorce in the same year.He then married another Filipina, Auring, in Canada on January 1, 1988. They had two

sons, James and John. In 1990, after failing to hear from Sonny, Lulu married Tirso, by

whom she had a daughter, Verna. In 1991, Sonny visited the Philippines where he

succumbed to heart attack.

a) Discuss the effect of the divorce obtained by Sonny and Lulu in Canada. (2%)

b) Explain the status of the marriage between Sonny and Auring. (2%)

c) Explain the status of the marriage between Lulu and Tirso. (2%)

d) Explain the respective filiation of James, John and Verna. (2%)

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e) Who are the heirs of Sonny? Explain. (2%)

- III -

Emil, the testator, has three legitimate children, Tom, Henry and Warlito; a wife named

Adette; parents named Pepe and Pilar; an illegitimate child, Ramon; brother, Mark; and asister, Nanette. Since his wife Adette is well-off, he wants to leave to his illegitimate

child as much of his estate as he can legally do. His estate has a net amount of

P1,200,000.00, and all the above-named relatives are still living. Emil now comes to youfor advice in making a will.

How will you distribute his estate according to his wishes without violating the law on

testamentary succession? (5%)

- IV -

Steve was married to Linda, with whom he had a daughter, Tintin. Steve fathered a sonwith Dina, his secretary of 20 years, whom Dina named Joey, born on September 20,

1981. Joeys birth certificate did not indicate the fathers name. Steve died on August 13,

1993, while Linda died on December 3, 1993, leaving their legitimate daughter, Tintin, as

sole heir. On May 16, 1994, Dina filed a case on behalf of Joey, praying that the latter bedeclared an acknowledged illegitimate son of Steve and that Joey be given his share in

Steves estate, which is now being solely held by Tintin. Tintin put up the defense that an

action for recognition shall only be filed during the lifetime of the presumed parents andthat the exceptions under Article 285 of the Civil Code do not apply to him since the said

article has been repealed by the Family Code. In any case, according to Tintin, Joeys

birth certificate does not show that Steve is his father.

a) Does Joey have a cause of action against Tintin for recognition and partition? Explain.(2%)

b) Are the defenses set up by Tintin tenable? Explain. (2%)

c) Supposing that Joey died during the pendency of the action, should the action be

dismissed? Explain. (2%)

- V -

In 1984, Eva, a Filipina, went to work as a nurse in the USA. There, she met and fell inlove with Paul, an American citizen, and they got married in 1985. Eva acquired

American citizenship in 1987. During their sojourn in the Philippines in 1990, they filed a

joint petition for the adoption of Vicky, a 7-year old daughter of Evas sister. Thegovernment, through the Office of the Solicitor General, opposed the petition on the

ground that the petitioners, being both foreigners, are disqualified to adopt Vicky.

a) Is the governments opposition tenable? Explain. (2%)

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b) Would your answer be the same if they sought to adopt Evas illegitimate daughter?

Explain. (2%)

c) Supposing that they filed the petition to adopt Vicky in the year 2000, will your answerbe the same? Explain. (2%)

- VI -

Hans Herber, a German national, and his Filipino wife, Rhoda, are permanent residents of

Canada. They desire so much to adopt Magno, an 8-year old orphaned boy and a

baptismal godson of Rhoda. Since the accidental death of Magnos parents in 2004, hehas been staying with his aunt who, however, could hardly afford to feed her own family.

Unfortunately, Hans and Rhoda cannot come to the Philippines to adopt Magno although

they possess all the qualifications as adoptive parents.

Is there a possibility for them to adopt Magno?

How should they go about it? (5%)

- VII -

Don was the owner of an agricultural land with no access to a public road. He had been

passing through the land of Ernie with the latters acquiescence for over 20 years.

Subsequently, Don subdivided his property into 20 residential lots and sold them todifferent persons. Ernie blocked the pathway and refused to let the buyers pass through

his land.

a) Did Don acquire an easement of right of way? Explain. (2%)

b) Could Ernie close the pathway and refuse to let the buyers pass? Give reasons. (2%)

c) What are the rights of the lot buyers, if any? Explain. (2%)

- VIII -

State with reason whether each of the following is a nuisance, and if so, give its

classification, whether public or private:

a) A squatters hut (1%)

b) A swimming pool (1%)

c) A house of prostitution (1%)

d) A noisy or dangerous factory in a private land (1%)

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e) Uncollected garbage (1%)

- IX -

Marvin offered to construct the house of Carlos for a very reasonable price of

P900,000.00, giving the latter 10 days within which to accept or reject the offer. On thefifth day, before Carlos could make up his mind, Marvin withdrew his offer.

a) What is the effect of the withdrawal of Marvins offer? (2%)

b) Will your answer be the same if Carlos paid Marvin P10,000.00 as consideration for

that option? Explain. (2%)

c) Supposing that Carlos accepted the offer before Marvin could communicate hiswithdrawal thereof?

Discuss the legal consequences. (2%)

- X -

Bernie bought on installment a residential subdivision lot from DEVLAND. After having

faithfully paid the installments for 48 months, Bernie discovered that DEVLAND hadfailed to develop the subdivision in accordance with the approved plans and

specifications within the time frame in the plan. He thus wrote a letter to DEVLAND

informing it that he was stopping payment. Consequently, DEVLAND cancelled the saleand wrote Bernie, informing him that his payments are forfeited in its favor.

a) Was the action of DEVLAND proper? Explain. (2%)

b) Discuss the rights of Bernie under the circumstances. (2%)

c) Supposing DEVLAND had fully developed the subdivision but Bernie failed to pay

further installments after 4 years due to business reverses. Discuss the rights andobligations of the parties. (2%)

- XI -

Before he left for Riyadh to work as a mechanic, Pedro left his Adventure van with Tito,

with the understanding that the latter could use it for one year for his personal or familyuse while Pedro works in Riyadh. He did not tell Tito that the brakes of the van werefaulty. Tito had the van tuned up and the brakes repaired. He spent a total amount of

P15,000.00. After using the vehicle for two weeks, Tito discovered that it consumed too

much fuel. To make up for the expenses, he leased it to Annabelle. Two months later,Pedro returned to the Philippines and asked Tito to return the van. Unfortunately, while

being driven by Tito, the van was accidentally damaged by a cargo truck without his

fault.

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a) Who shall bear the P15,000.00 spent for the repair of the van? Explain. (2%)

b) Who shall bear the costs for the vans fuel, oil and other materials while it was with

Tito? Explain. (2%)

c) Does Pedro have the right to retrieve the van even before the lapse of one year?Explain. (2%)

d) Who shall bear the expenses for the accidental damage caused by the cargo truck,

granting that the truck driver and truck owner are insolvent? Explain. (2%)

- XII -

On July 14, 2004, Pedro executed in favor of Juan a Deed of Absolute Sale over a parcelof land covered by TCT No. 6245. It appears in the Deed of Sale that Pedro received

from Juan P120,000.00 as purchase price. However, Pedro retained the owners duplicate

of said title. Thereafter, Juan, as lessor, and Pedro, as lessee, executed a contract of leaseover the property for a period of one (1) year with a monthly rental of P1,000.00. Pedro,

as lessee, was also obligated to pay the realty taxes on the property during the period of

lease.

Subsequently, Pedro filed a complaint against Juan for the reformation of the Deed ofAbsolute Sale, alleging that the transaction covered by the deed was an equitable

mortgage. In his verified answer to the complaint, Juan alleged that the property was sold

to him under the Deed of Absolute Sale, and interposed counterclaims to recoverpossession of the property and to compel Pedro to turn over to him the owners duplicate

of title.

Resolve the case with reasons. (6%)

- XIII -

Rod, the owner of an FX taxi, found in his vehicle an envelope containing TCT No.65432 over a lot registered in Cesars name. Posing as Cesar, Rod forged Cesars

signature on a Deed of Sale in Rods favor. Rod registered the said document with the

Register of Deeds, and obtained a new title in his name. After a year, he sold the lot to

Don, a buyer in good faith and for value, who also registered the lot in his name.

a) Did Rod acquire title to the land? Explain. (2%)

b) Discuss the rights of Don, if any, over the property. (2%)

c) In an ejectment case filed by Don against Cesar, can the latter ask for the cancellation

of Dons title considering that he (Cesar) is the rightful owner of the lot? Explain. (2%)

- XIV -

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Under a written contract dated December 1, 1989, Victor leased his land to Joel for a

period of five (5) years at a monthly rental of P1,000.00, to be increased to P1,200.00 and

P1,500.00 on the third and fifth year, respectively. On January 1, 1991, Joel subleased theland to Conrad for a period of two (2) years at a monthly rental of P1,500.00. On

December 31, 1992, Joel assigned the lease to his compadre, Ernie, who acted on the

belief that Joel was the rightful owner and possessor of the said lot. Joel has beenfaithfully paying the stipulated rentals to Victor. When Victor learned on May 15, 1992

about the sublease and assignment, he sued Joel, Conrad and Ernie for rescission of the

contract of lease and for damages.

a) Will the action prosper? If so, against whom? Explain. (2%)

b) In case of rescission, discuss the rights and obligations of the parties. (2%)

- XV -

Under the law on quasi-delict, aside from the persons who caused injury to persons, whoelse are liable under the following circumstances:

a) When a 7-year-old boy injures his playmate while playing with his fathers rifle.

Explain. (2%)

b) When a domestic helper, while haggling for a lower price with a fish vendor in the

course of buying foodstuffs for her employers family, slaps the fish vendor, causing her

to fall and sustain injuries. Explain. (2%)

c) A carpenter in a construction company accidentally hits the right foot of his co-worker

with a hammer. Explain. (2%)

d) A 15-year-old high school student stabs his classmate who is his rival for a girl while

they were going out of the classroom after their last class. Explain. (2%)

e) What defense, if any, is available to them? (2%)

- XVI -

Dr. and Mrs. Almeda are prominent citizens of the country and are frequent travelers

abroad. In 1996, they booked round-trip business class tickets for the Manila-Hong

Kong-Manila route of the Pinoy Airlines, where they are holders of Gold Mabalos ClassFrequent Flier cards. On their return flight, Pinoy Airlines upgraded their tickets to firstclass without their consent and, inspite of their protestations to be allowed to remain in

the business class so that they could be with their friends, they were told that the business

class was already fully booked, and that they were given priority in upgrading becausethey are elite members/holders of Gold Mabalos Class cards. Since they were

embarrassed at the discussions with the flight attendants, they were forced to take the

flight at the first class section apart from their friends who were in the business class.

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2005 Bar Exams Questions in Civil Law