Legal Insights
Plain-language guides and case briefs on Philippine law — researched from the firm's law library of 184,000+ statutes, Supreme Court decisions, and agency issuances, and written so non-lawyers can understand and act on them.
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Lost Inheritance: Proving Kinship in Property Disputes
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on why heirs must prove kinship to claim inherited property, and the limits of Torrens title challenges.
Real Action vs Annulment: How Courts Determine Proper Docket Fees in Property Disputes
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies when an annulment of sale case is a real action requiring higher docket fees based on property value.
Finality vs Jurisdiction: Resolving Property Disputes in the Philippines
Understand how Philippine courts resolve property disputes, where finality of judgments and jurisdictional rules intersect, and what this means for litigants.
Breach OF Trust Disbarment FOR Attorneys Misappropriation OF Client Property
Real Property Tax: Who Is the Actual User in a BOT Agreement?
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on real property tax exemption under a Build-Operate-Transfer agreement and who qualifies as actual user.
Tax Exemption and Real Property Assessment: What Electric Cooperatives Must Know
The Supreme Court clarifies when tax exemptions for electric cooperatives take effect and why unpaid real property taxes become final without timely protest.
Protecting Registered Landowners: Injunction Against Unlawful Property Seizure
When can a registered landowner stop a sheriff from enforcing a writ of execution? The Supreme Court explains the limits of lis pendens and the protection of Torrens titles.
Theft Beyond Tangibles: When Telecom Services Became Personal Property
The Supreme Court ruled that telephone services and business can be the object of theft under the Revised Penal Code.
Redemption of Foreclosed Property: What Buyers Must Know About Payment and Transfer of Rights
Learn the rules on redeeming foreclosed property, including payment amounts and assignment of redemption rights, from a Supreme Court ruling.
Equitable Mortgage: When an Absolute Sale Is Really a Loan Security
The Supreme Court explains when a deed of absolute sale is actually an equitable mortgage, and what parties must do to recover property.
Taxing Telecommunications: No Exemption Without Explicit Grant
The Supreme Court rules that the phrase "exclusive of this franchise" in RA 7678 does not exempt Digitel's real properties from real property tax.
Clarifying Ownership When a Property Title Is Held in Trust
A Supreme Court ruling explains how courts determine whether a titled property is truly owned by the registered owner or held in trust for another.
Eminent Domain and Just Compensation: Protecting Property Rights in the Philippines
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on eminent domain, just compensation, and property rights when government takes land without expropriation proceedings.
Heirship Rights vs. Execution Sales: Protecting Inherited Property in the Philippines
Learn how the Supreme Court protects heirs' rights when inherited property faces competing claims, and what the Dela Cruz ruling means for Filipino families.
Land Title Registration: The Imperative of Proving Public Land Status
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on why applicants for land registration must prove the property is alienable and disposable public land.
Protecting the Family Home When Courts Must Investigate Exemption Claims
The Supreme Court voids a writ of execution where the trial court ignored claims that the property was an exempt family home.
Just Compensation in Expropriation: When Is Land "Taken"?
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies when property is and "adjustment factor" to account for the time elapsed since the taking.
Eminent Domain Abandonment of Expropriated Property and the Right to Reconveyance
When the government abandons expropriated land and fails to pay just compensation, owners may reclaim the property. Learn the rules.
When a Counsel's Negligence Endangers Property: Balancing Technical Rules and Substantive Justice
A Supreme Court ruling shows that procedural lapses in an appellant's brief may be excused, but a drugstore's negligent dispensing of medicine still invites liability.
Intent to Gain in Robbery: When Helping a Neighbor Is Not a Crime
The Supreme Court acquitted a man of robbery for helping a neighbor move property, ruling that intent to gain must be proven beyond reasonable doubt.
Lessor's Lien vs Chattel Mortgage: Rights Over Leased Property After Default
When a lessor takes a tenant's property for unpaid rent and a lender later claims the same items under a chattel mortgage, who wins? The Supreme Court clarifies.
Automatic Reversion in Donations: Land Returns to Donor, Improvements Stay With Donee
Supreme Court rules on automatic reversion of donated land when conditions fail, and the fate of buildings on reverted property.
When Courts, Not HLURB, Decide Contract Disputes: Cadimas v. Carrion
The Supreme Court clarifies that not every subdivision property dispute falls under HLURB jurisdiction—ordinary contract breaches belong in regular courts.
Condominium Ownership for Foreign Nationals: Property Rights Under the Condominium Act
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies that foreigners may own condominium units under RA 4726, separating land ownership from unit ownership.