land titile midterms

8/10/2019 Land Titile Midterms

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LAND TITILE MIDTERMS

Cadastral System of Land Registration

Enabling Law

Act 2259, as amended. PD 1529 Sec 35 - 38

Characteristics/Purpose:

When in the opinion of the President of the

Philippines public interest so requires that

title to any unregistered lands be settled

and adjudicated, he may to this end direct

and order the Director of Lands to cause to

be made a cadastral survey of the lands

involved and the plans and technicaldescription thereof prepared in due form.

Sec 35 (a), PD1529

When public interest so requires that title

to any unregistered lands be settled and

adjudicated

To expedite the settlement and adjudication

of titles to properties.

Nature of Proceedings

A proceeding in rem, initiated by the filing

of a petition for registration by the

government, and the persons claiming

ownership of the land subject thereof are

compelled to go to court to make known

and substantiate their claim or interest

therein.

PROCEDURE-NNCPPAHDI

1. Notice of Cadastral Survey published once in

OG, posted, copy furnished the mayor and

barangay captain.2. Notice of date of survey by BLM and posting,

marking of boundaries/setting of monuments.

3. Cadastral Survey

4. Filing of Petition

5. Publication*, Mailing, Posting.

6. Filing of Answer

7. Hearing

8. Decision

9. Issuance of Decree and OCT

- Publication twice in successive OG issues.

Filing of Petition

When the lands have been surveyed or

plotted, the Director of Lands,

represented by the Solicitor General, shall

institute original registration proceedings

by filing the necessary petition in the

Court of First Instance of the place where

the land (Sec. 36 PD 1529)

is situated against the holders, claimants,

possessors, or occupants of such lands or

any part thereof, stating in substance that

public interest requires that the title to

such lands be settled and adjudicated and

praying that such titles be so settled and

adjudicated. (Sec. 36 PD 1529)

Contents of Petition

The petition shall contain a description of

the lands and shall be accompanied by a

plan thereof and may contain such other

data as may serve to furnish full notice to

the occupants of the lands and to all

persons who may claim any right or

interest therein. (Sec. 37, PD 1529)

Where the land consists of two or more

parcels held or occupied by different

persons, the plan shall indicate the

boundaries or limits of the various

parcels as accurately as possible. The

parcels shall be known as "lots" and shall

on the plan filed in the case be given

separate numbers by the Director of

Lands, which numbers shall be known as

"cadastral lot numbers"

Filing of Answer

Any claimant in cadastral proceedings,

whether named in the notice or not, shall

appear before the court by himself or by

some other authorized person in his

behalf, and shall file an answer on or

before the date of initial hearing or within

such further time as may be allowed by

the court. (Sec. 37, PD 1529)

Contents of the Answer

Any claimant in cadastral proceedings,

whether named in the notice or not, shall

appear before the court by himself or bysome other authorized person in his

behalf, and shall file an answer on or

before the date of initial hearing or within

such further time as may be allowed by

the court. (Sec. 37, PD 1529)

The answer shall be signed and sworn to

by the claimant or by some other

authorized person in his behalf, and shall

state whether the claimant is married or

unmarried, and if married, the name of

the spouse and the date of marriage, hisnationality, residence and postal address

Age

Cadastral number of the lot or lots

claimed

Name of the barrio and municipality

Names and addresses of the owners of the

adjoining lots


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If the claimant is in possession of the lots

claimed and can show no express grant of

the land by the government to him or to

his predecessors-in-interest, the answer

shall state the length of time he has held

such possession and the manner in which

it has been acquired, and shall also state

the length of time, as far as known, during

which the predecessors, if any, held

possession

If the claimant is not in possession or

occupation of the land, the answer shall

fully set forth the interest claimed by him

and the time and manner of his

acquisition

if the lots have been assessed for taxation,their last assessed value.

he encumbrances, if any, affecting the lots

and the names of adverse claimants, as far

as known

Each answer must cover one cadastral lot

only. If two cadastral lots or more are

claimed by one person and the evidence

to be submitted are common to all the

cadastral lots, the respective answer must

be related to one another.

False Answer/Liability

Section 116.Whoever knowingly swears

falsely to any statement required to be

made under oath by this Act shall be

guilty of perjury and liable to the

penalties provided by law for perjury.

(Section 116, Act 496, )

Effect of False Claim

The prosecution for falsification or

perjury is a proceeding in personam

which inquires into the liability of the

accused, any judgment will not affect the

title of the land.

Hearing/Judgment

Like an ordinary registration proceedings,

parties are heard and evidences are

considered in a cadastral case. In due time

a cadastral decree and certificate of title

to the adjudicated owner is issued.

The trial of the case may occur at any

convenient place within the province in

which the lands are situated and shall be

conducted, and orders for default and

confessions entered, in the same manner

as in ordinary land registration

proceedings and shall be governed by the

same rules.

decrees awarded in favor of the personsentitled to the lands or to parts thereof

and such decrees shall be the basis for

issuance of original certificates of title in

favor of said persons and shall have the

same effect as certificates of title granted

on application for registration of land

under ordinary land registration

proceedings. (Sec 38, PD 1529)

Actions during CC Trial

Decree The Judgment/Decision adjudicating

ownership of the land.

Declaration of Finality of Decree and Order

the LRA to issue the Certificate of Title.

Registration of the decree by LRA and

issuance of the Certificate of Title.

Notice of Decision to Parties

The duty of sending notice of decision to

interested parties devolves on the Clerk of

Court, and the period of appeal is 15 days

from the receipt of a copy thereof.

Nature/Effect of Judgment

A final judgment in a cadastral proceeding,

which is in rem, is binding and conclusive

upon the whole world.

Powers of Cadastral Court

Cadastral Courts have jurisdiction to:

1. Adjudicate title to any claimant thereto:

2. Declare land a public land

3. Order the correction of a technical

description.

4. Order the issuance of a new title in place

of the title issued under voluntary

registration proceedings.

5. Resolve overlapping titles/Order

partition.

Cadastral Courts do not have the power to

determine and adjudicate title to a lot

already covered by a homestead patent to

a person other than a patentee.

No jurisdiction to decree again the

registration of land already decreed in an

earlier land registration case. The

jurisdiction over lands already registered

is limited to the necessary correction of

technical errors in the description of the

lands.

Does not have the power to award

damages but confined to the

determination as to whether the

claimants are really entitled to the lots

and the confirmation of title in their

name.

Adjudication of land in cadastral cases

covered by the one year period in Section

32 of PD 1529.


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Judgment as Public Land

G.R. No. L-35778 January 27, 1983,

Republic vs. Vera.

Cost and Expenses

National government, provincial

government, and municipal government

pay each 1/10 of the cost of registration

proceedings, survey, and monumenting,

Remaining 7/10 taxed against the lots.

Vs. PD 1529

Nature of Registration: Compulsory

Applicant: Director of Lands

All class of lands included (vs. involves

private land/public agricultural lands if

confirmation of imperfect title.)

Landowners come as claimant/Filing of

Answer

Government asks the court to settle and

adjudicate title of the lands (vs. Petitioner

comes to court to confirm his title andseeks the registration of the land in his

name.)

Person who requests the survey is the

Government (Landowner)

If none of the applicants can prove that he

is entitled to the land, the same shall be

declared public.

Ordinary Land Registration (PD 1529, 13

steps)

13 steps (SAD-TP-SAH-PIEST

1.) Survey

2.) Filing of Application

3.) Setting of Date for Initial Hearing

4.) Transmittal of Application to the LRA

5.) Publication of Notice

6.) Service of Notice to interested parties

7.) Filing of Answer/Opposition

8.) Hearing

9.) Promulgation of Judgment

10.) Issuance of Decree11.) Entry of Decree in LRA

12.) Sending of a copy of to RoD

13.) Transcription of Decree and issue of Cert. of

Title

WHO MAY APPLY (Sec. 14)

Section 14.Who may apply. The

following persons may file in the proper

Court of First Instance an application for

registration of title to land, whether

personally or through their duly

authorized representatives:

(1) Those who by themselves or through their

predecessors-in-interest have been in open,

continuous, exclusive and notorious

possession and occupation of alienable and

disposable lands of the public domain under a

bona fide claim of ownership since June 12,

1945, or earlier.

HEIRS OF MARIO MALABANAN vs.

REPUBLIC, G.R. No. 179987, April 29,

2009

Possessor is entitled to secure judicial

confirmation of his title

2) Those who have acquired ownership of private

lands by prescription under the provision ofexisting laws.

(3) Those who have acquired ownership of private

lands or abandoned river beds by right of

accession or accretion under the existing laws.

(4) Those who have acquired ownership of land in

any other manner provided for by law.

SURVEY

Survey of the land by the Land

Management Bureau or a duly licensed

private surveyor.

It must be drawn in a tracing cloth plan.

It is approved ONLY by the Director of Land

Management.

The Land Management Bureau [also, Bureau

of Lands) is an agency under the DENR (In

contrast to LRA, which is under the DoJ)

FILING OF APPLICATION

Filing of Application for Registration by the

applicant at the RTC of the province, city, or

municipality where the property is situated.

Parts of the Application:

A. Caption

B. Addresses

C. Name and address of the petitioner

D. Nature of the proceeding (ordinary or

cadastral)

E. Technical Description of the land

F. Require interested persons to appear in court atthe time of initial hearing

G. Statement that failure to oppose bar future

claims.

Application is endorsed to MTC if there is

no controversy over the land or its value

is less than Php 100,000.00

The Bureau of Lands must always be

furnished with a copy of the petition and

all pertinent documents.

If land is situated between two

boundaries of two provinces, applicationmust be filed:


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Boundaries are not defined in

the RTC of the place where it is

declared for taxation purposes.

Boundaries are defined

separate plan for each portion

must be made by surveyor and a

separate application for each lotmust be filed with the

appropriate RTC.

If land is owned is common: ALL co-

owners shall file the application for land

registration jointly.

The vendor may file the application for

land sold under Pacto de Retro unless the

period for redemption expire during the

pendency of the registration proceedings

and ownership is consolidated in the

vendee a retro, then the vendee shall be

substituted as applicant.

Land subject of a trust agreement.

Trustee may file on behalf of the

beneficiary unless prohibited by

the instrument creating the trust.

Non-resident registrant (see Section 16)

Note: If the agent/representative dies, or

leaves the Philippines, the applicant shall

forthwith make another appointment for

the substitute, and the court may dismiss

the petition if he fails to do so,

Land Registration Covering two or moreparcels (Sec.18)

May a private corporation file the

application? (See Dir of Lands v IAC and

ACME, GR No. 73002 Dec 29,1986 EN

BANC )

Who may not apply?

Public land sales applicant

Antichretic creditor

Mortgagee

Others

Form of Application:

In writing

Subscribed by applicant

Sworn before an authorized

officer of the place where the

application was signed.

AMENDMENTS refers to changes in the

allegations in the application.

FORMAL AMENDMENTSmere

amendment as to form.

KINDS of AMENDMENTS:

Joinder

Substitution

Discontinuance

Amendments as to form may be allowed

at any stage upon just and equitable

terms. Publication may or may not be

required. (Sec. 19 par. 1)

SUBSTANTIAL AMENDMENTS (Sec 19

par. 2)

Substantial change in the

boundaries

Increase in are of the land

Inclusion of additional land

Publication under Sec. 23 of PD

1529 is a Jurisdictional

Requirements.

The purpose of the new publication is to

give notice to all persons concerning the

amended application. Without a new

publication, the court cannot acquire

jurisdiction over the are not covered by

the original application.

The decision would be a nullity as to the

newly included land. (GR No. L-26127

Benin vs. Tuason.)

What if the amendment is the change of

name of the applicant? Publication not required. (Dir of

Lands v IAC GR No. 73246,

3/2/1993)

Setting of DATE

Notice of Initial Hearing The court shall

issue an order setting the date and hour

of the hearing within 5 days from filing of

the application, which hearing is not

earlier than 45 days nor later than 90

days from the date of the order. (Sec. 23)

Note: If the date of initial hearing is set

beyond 90 day period, Court still acquires

jurisdiction. Applicant is not at fault.

TRANSMITTAL of Application

Transmittal of Application and date of

initial hearing together with all

documents or other evidences attached

thereto by the CLERK of COURT to the

LAND REGISTRATION AUTHORITY.

PUBLICATION of Notice

Publication of Notice of Filing of

Application and date and place of hearing

once in the Official Gazette and once in a

newspaper of general circulation in the

Philippines.

Note: If the publication is made after the

date of the initial hearing , the entire

proceeding will be null and void because

publication must PRECEDE the hearing in

order for the court to acquire jurisdiction

over the property.

SERVICE of Notice

Service of notice upon contiguous owners,

occupants, and those known to have an

interest in the property by the sheriff.

Modes: Publication, Posting, Mailing (Sec.

23)

Mailing is made using registered mail

addressed to persons indicated in Section

23.

Posting conspicuous place on EACH

parcel of land, bulletin board of the


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municipal building, 14 DAYS before the

date of initial hearing.

FILING of ANSWER/OPPOSITION

Who may file? (Sec. 25):

Any person claiming an interest, whethernamed in the notice or not, may appear

and file an opposition on or before the

date of initial hearing, or within such

further time as may be allowed by the

court.

Order of Default (Sec. 26)

If no person appears and answers within

the time allowed, the court shall, upon

motion of the applicant, no reason to the

contrary appearing, order a default to be

recorded and require the applicant to

present evidence.

By the description in the notice "To all

Whom It May Concern", all the world are

made parties defendant and shall be

concluded by the default order.

Where an appearance has been entered and an

answer filed, a default order shall be entered

against persons who did not appear and answer

HEARING

Reception of evidence is governed by

provisions of PD 1529 and the Rules ofCourt shall, insofar as not inconsistent

with the provision of this Decree . Ne

applicable to land registration and

cadastral cases by analogy or in a

suppletory character and whenever

practicable and convenient. (Section 34)

Reference to a referee (Sec. 27, PD 1529)

PROMULGATION of Judgment

Judgment involves the adjudication,

determination, and resolution of the

question of ownership.

Partial Judgment (Sec. 28)

Issuance of Decree

Issuance of decree or ORDER by the court

declaring the decision final and

instructing the Land Registration

Authority to issue a Decree of

Confirmation and Registration.

It is not the court but the LRA which

issues the decree of confirmation and

registration. One year after issuance of

decree, it becomes incontrovertible and

amendments of the same will not be

allowed except merely in case of clerical

errors.

Entry of Decree

Entry of Decree in the Land Registration

Authority

Contents: (Sec. 31)

Effects: (Sec. 32)

Entry of Decree serves as the reckoning date of the

1 year period from which one can impugn the

validity of the registration

CASES

HEIRS OF MARIO MALABANAN vs.REPUBLIC, G.R. No. 179987, April 29,

2009

G.R. No. 173365 Flores vs Bagaoisan April

15,2010

Republic vs. CA, G.R. No.

100709. November 14, 1997

REPUBLIC ACT No. 10023

Public Land Act CA 141

(Registration through Administrative

Proceedings)

Origin

Act No. 2874 is the precursor of CA 141,

the latter taking effect on December 1,

1936.

Torrens System Coverage

Grants of public lands are brought under

the operation of the Torrens system

under Section 103, PD 1529.

Whenever public land is by the

Government alienated, granted orconveyed to any person, the same shall be

brought forthwith under the operation of

this Decree. (Section 103, PD 1529)

Public Lands vs.

Other Governmental Lands

Public land is equivalent to public domain

and includes only those lands capable of

private appropriation. Government lands

include public lands and other lands

owned by the government already

reserved to public use or subject toprivate rights. (Art. 420)

Patrimonial property

Art 421, Art 422 NCC.

Art. 421. All other property of the State, which is

not of the character stated in the preceding article,

is patrimonial property. (340a)

Art. 422. Property of public dominion, when no

longer intended for public use or for public

service, shall form part of the patrimonial

property of the State. (341a)

Friar Lands

Act 1120.

CA No. 32 as amended by CA no. 316

Application

Lands of the Public Domain (Sec. 2 CA

141)

Only those lands shall be declared open to

disposition or concession which have

been officially delimited and classified(Sec. 8)


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Classification of Lands

(a) Agricultural;

(b) Residential, commercial, industrial, or for

similar productive purposes;

(c) Educational, charitable, or other similarpurposes; and

(d) Reservations for town sites and for public

and quasi-public uses.

G.R. No. L-630 November 15, 1947 KRIVENKO vs.

Register of Deeds

Disposition of Public Agri Lands:

1. For homestead settlement;

2. By sale;

3. By lease; and

4. By confirmation of imperfect or incompletetitles:

(a) By judicial legalization

(b) By administrative legalization (free patent)

Homestead Chapter 4

Any citizen of the Philippines over the age

of 18 years, or the head of a family, may

enter a homestead of not exceeding 12

hectares of agricultural land of the public

domain

Procedure:

1. Filing of application with the Bureau of Lands.

2. Upon approval, Director of Lands authorizes the

applicant to take possession upon payment of

entry fee.

3. Within 6 months from approval, applicant must

begin to CULTIVATE the land. He must cultivate at

least 1/5 of the land, one to five years from date of

approval.

4. Applicant proves to Director of Lands that he

has resided continuously for at least one year in

the municipality where the land is situated(or

adjacent thereto) and has cultivated at least 1/5 of

the land. (PMP required)

5. Director of Lands order that the land be

surveyed by the Bureau and the corresponding

plan prepared.

6. Bureau of Lands prepares the homestead patent

issued in the name of the Republic of the

Philippines and signed by the President.

7. Certified Copy of the Patent is sent to Register of

Deeds and an OCT is issued to patentee.

Requirements:

1. CTC

2. Survey Notification Card, if any or

Approved Plan

3. Notice of Intention to file final proof

4. Barangay certification on posting of notice

5. Final proof of filing

6. Affidavit of land holding by applicant

7. Certification from CENRO that land is A&D

8. Document of ownership if any:

Deed of Donation if acquired by

purchase

Affidavit of Quitclaim/waiver from

survey claimant if applicant is not the

survey claimant

Tax Declaration

9. RTC Certification10. The applicant must be in actual possession

and cultivation of its land applied for

11. Filing, Entry and Final fees of P 50.00,

P5.00 and P 5.00 respectively

Free Patent

Any natural born citizen of the

Philippines who does not own more than

12 hectare of lands and has continuously

occupied AND cultivated, either by him or

his predecessors-in-interest tracts of

public agricultural land subject todisposition.

PROCEDURE or how to prove?

1. Community Tax Certificate for current year

2. Survey Notification Card, if any or

Approved Plan for subdivided lots

3. Land Tax Declaration in the name of the

Applicant or Evidence of payments of realty

taxes

4. Documents to show ownership of the land;

if by purchase (deed of sale)

if by purchase (deed of sale)

if by inheritance (extra judicial

partition/settlement of estate, or

Affidavit of Adjudication, if sole heir,

Waiver/Transfer of Rights from all other

Heirs of Applicant)

5. Posting of notice of Free Patent Application

by the applicant in the Barangay,

Municipality/City where land is located and

Certification of posting of notice from

Barangay Chairman, Municipal/City Mayors

or Members of the Barangay/Municipal

Council, that notice was duly posted

6. Affidavit of landholding by applicant, must

not be more than 12 hectares

7. Certification from CENRO concerned that

land applied for is within A&D

8. Certification from RTC Clerk of Court of

jurisdiction that land is not subject of any land

registration proceedings

9. Joint Affidavit (BL Form No. 28-730-1) if

filed under RA 782, 3872, PD 10723, RA 6940

& RA 9176

10. Single Affidavit (BL Form No. 28-15) of

applicant for Pre-War and Old Cadastral

surveys

11. Certification form DAR/MARO under

existing polices and issuances


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-He is not the owner of any other home lot in

the municipality/city where he resides.

-He is requesting that the land be sold to him

under the provision of R. A. No. 730.

4. If the applicant is single, he must submit an

affidavit stating that he is the head or bread

winner of the family;5. The land is not needed for public use.

Maximum Area

The applicant can only be granted a

maximum area of 1,000 square meters

PD 2004 amended Section 2 and now

provides:

SEC. 2.Lands acquired under the

provisions of this Act shall not be subject

to any restrictions against encumbrance

or alienation before and after the issuanceof the patents thereon.

RA 730 Steps:

1. Filing of application at the CENRO

2. Investigation and appraisal of the land

applied for

3. Survey of the land if not yet surveyed

4. Investigation report on applicant

5. Comment and recommendation of the

District/City engineer with the concurrence of

the Regional

Director, Department of Public works andHighways

6. Recommendation to the PENRO for

approval of appraisal and request for

authority to sell without public auction

7. Approval of appraisal and grant of authority

to sell by the PENRO.

8. Posting of notice of sale for 30 days in the

following places:

CENRO Bulletin board

Municipal/City Hall BB

Barangay Hall BB

On the land itself

9. Submission of the proofs of posting and

payment of at least 10% of the appraised

value of the land.

10. Order of Award

11. Proof of full payment of the purchase price

of the land

12. Order issuance of Miscellaneous Sales

Patent

13. Approval and signature of the

Miscellaneous Sales Patent by the official

concerned

14. Transmittal of the Miscellaneous Sales

Patent to the Register of Deeds concerned for

the issuance of the corresponding Original

Certificate of the Title to the applicant

Sales Patent

Heirs of Gamos vs Frando G.R. No.

149117. December 16, 2004

Judicial Confirmation of Imperfect Title

WHO MAY APPLY:

1.) Filipinos who by themselves or through their

predecessors-in-interest have been in open,

continuous, exclusive and notorious possession

and occupation of agricultural lands of the public

domain, under a bona fide claim of acquisition or

ownership, since June 12, 1945, or earlier, or since

time immemorial. (CA 141 Sec. 48 as amended byPD No. 1073.

2.) Private domestic corporations or associations

which had acquired lands from Filipino citizens

who had possessed the same in the manner and

for the length of time indicated in paragraph 1

above.

3.) Natural-born citizens of the Philippines who

have lost their citizenship and who has the legal

capacity to enter into a contract under Philippine

laws may be a transferee of private land up to a

maximum area of 5000 sq. m., in case of urbanland or 3 hectares in case of rural land to be used

by him for business or other purposes. (Sec. 5, RA

8179)

4.) Natural-born citizens of the Philippines who

have lost their Philippine citizenship, who have

acquired disposable and alienable lands of the

public domain from Filipino citizens who had

possessed the same in the same manner and for

the length of time indicated in paragraph 1.

WHERE TO APPLY:

The province or city where the land is

situated.

Exception:

Delegated jurisdiction of the MTC

to hear and determine cadastral

or land registration cases

covering lots, where there is no

controversy or opposition, or

contested lots, the value of which

does not exceed Php 100,000.00.

(Republic Act No. 7691 Sec. 4,amending BP 129, Sec. 34)

CONTENTS of APPLICATION:

Name of applicant, citizenship, civil

status, name of spouse, and if marriage is

legally dissolved, the manner of

termination

Description of the land

Verification

Annexes

Survey plan of the land (Sec 17

PD 1529 Technical Descriptions (Sec 14

PD 1529)

Certificate of the Geodetic

Engineer

Certificate regarding the last

assessment for taxation of the

property

The court may require facts to be stated

in the application in addition to those

prescribed by this Decree not inconsistent

therewith and may require the filing of

any additional paper. ( Sec 21 PD 1529)


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Names and addresses of the occupants

and adjoining owners (Sketch Plan). (If

not known, state the extent of the search

made to find them) [Mere statement of

lack of knowledge not enough]

APPLICATION for Judicial Confirmation

A single application covering two or more

parcels of land belonging to an applicant

is allowed, provided they are situated in

the same province or city.

Amendments to the application may be

allowed by the court at any stage of the

proceedings upon just and reasonable

terms.

Publication, Mailing, and Posting

The court shall, within five days fromfiling of the application, issue an order

setting the date and hour of the initial

hearing which shall not be earlier than

forty-five days nor later than ninety days

from the date of the order. (Sec 23, PD

1529)

Reason:

To confer jurisdiction

To give notice to all persons

The public shall be given notice of the

initial hearing of the application for land

registration by publication, mailing, andposting:

1.) Publication of notice of initial hearing:

Once in the Official Gazette and once

in a newspaper of general

circulation.

Compliance mandatory and

jurisdictional

A defect in the publication and

notice affects the jurisdiction of the

court.

Publication shall precede the date of

the hearing. Being in rem, notice by publication

binds the whole world.

IF the decree of registration includes

lands not included in the

publication, proceedings are null

and void insofar as the land not

included. (Ratio: Court did not

acquire jurisdiction over the land

not included in the publication.

Benin v. Tuason GR No. L-26217,

June 28, 1974)

If the difference is not substantial, as

it would not affect the identity of theland, republication is not necessary.

(Benin v. Tuason, supra)

If the amendment of the survey plan

during the registration proceedings

does not involve an addition, but on

the contrary, a reduction of the

original area that was published, no

new publication is required.

2.) Mailing of the Notice of Hearing

Administrator of the Land registration

Authority shall cause a copy of the

notice of the initial hearing of the

application to be mailed to the

following:

Every person named in the

notice whose address is

known within 7 days after

publication of notice in the

Official Gazette. Secretary of DPWH, Provincial

Governor, and Mayor of the

municipality or city, as the

case may be, in which the land

lies if applicant requests to

have the line of a public way

or road determined.

Secretary of DAR, SoL Gen,

Director of Land Management,

Director of Mines and/or

Director of Fisheries and

Aquatic resources, as the case

may be, if the land borders ariverm stream, etc. or if a

there is a tenant-farmer, or if

the government may have an

adverse claim.

Other persons the court may

deem proper.

3.) Posting

Posting of the copy of the Notice

of Hearing is a duty of the Sheriff

which must be made at least 14

days (2 weeks) before the date of

initial hearing, in conspicuousplaces.

Note: A certification of the LRA Administrator and

of the Sheriff to the effect that the notice of the

initial hearing has been complied with shall be

conclusive proof of such fact (Sec 24 PD 1529)

Service of notice upon contiguous owners

is indispensable and lack of service

constitutes extrinsic fraud.

ANSWER or OPPOSITION to Application

An oppositor to an application need notbe named in the notice of initial hearing.

Adverse claimants must set forth in their

Answer all their objections to the

application and must claim an interest to

the property applied for, based on a right

of dominion or some other real right

independent of, and not at all

subordinate, to the rights of the

government,

An adverse claimant does not have to

show title in himself, he should however

appear to have an interest in theproperty.

The opposition partakes of the nature on

an Answer with a Counterclaim.

The following may be proper oppositors:

A homesteader who have not yet been

issued his title who had fulfilled all the

conditions required by law to entitle him

to a patent.

A purchaser of friar land before the

issuance of the patent to him (cf Act

1120)

Persons who claim to be in possession ofa tract of public land and have applied


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with the Bureau of Lands for its

purchase.

The Government foreshore leases.

(Leyva vs. Jandoc. GR No. L-16965, Feb.

28, 1962)

The opposition must state all theobjections to the application and set forth

the interest claimed by the oppositor, and

duly sworn to by him, or his duly

authorized representative.

Procedure in Land Registration

PD 1529 governs the procedure in land

registration proceedings. However, the

Rules of Court could be applied in a

suppletory character or whenever

practical or convenient. Motion to intervene in a land registration

case is not allowed. Sec 14 and 15 show

that the applicant and the oppositors are

the only parties in land registration

proceedings.

The government cannot be estopped from

questioning the validity of the certificates

of title, which were granted without

opposition from the government. The

principle of estoppel does not operate

against the government for the acts of its

agents.

Default

If no person appears and answers within

the time allowed, the court shall, upon

motion of the applicant, no reason to the

contrary appearing, order a default to be

recorded and require the applicant to

present evidence. By the description in

the notice "To all Whom It May Concern",

all the world are made parties defendant

and shall be concluded by the default

order. Where an appearance has been entered

and an answer filed, a default order shall

be entered against persons who did not

appear and answer. ( Sec. 26 PD 1529)

Remedy: A person in default may file a

motion to set aside the order of default in

accordance with Section 3(b) of Rule 9 of

the Rules of Court.

Others: LINA DOCTRINE

Martinez vs. Republic, GR No.

160895. Oct. 30, 2006.

EVIDENCE

1.) Land is a public agricultural land classified as

alienable and disposable.

Presidential Proclamation

Executive Order

Administrative Order (DENR

Secretary)

Bureau of Forest Development

Land Classification Map

Certification by Director of

Forestry

Investigation Reports of Bureau

of Lands investigator

Legislative act or statute

2.) Identity of the land

A.) Survey plan in general

B.) Tracing cloth plan and blueprint copies of plan

Note: The submission of original tracing cloth

plan of the land approved by the Director of Lands

is a statutory requirement of MANDATORY

character which cannot be waived either

expressly or impliedly. (Director vs. Heirs of

Tesalona, GR No. 66130, Oct. 3, 2001)

Additional Note:

Bureau of Lands Tracing cloth plan is

the BEST EVIDENCE, however, blue

print copies and other evidences could

also provide sufficient identification. (Sps. Recto vs Republic, GR No.

160421, Oct. 4, 2004)

C.) Technical Description of the Land

D.) Tax declarations

E.) Boundaries and area.

3.) Possession and occupation of the land for the

length of time and in the manner required by law.

Note:If the applicant claims private

ownership but not because of possession,

he must prove the basis of such claim bysubmitting his muniments of title or

whatever evidence to support the same.

Insufficient proofs of possession

Mere casual cultivation of the land by the

claimant.

Ratio: Possession is not exclusive

and notorious so as to give rise to

a presumptive grant from the

State.

Holding of property by mere tolerance of

the owner. Ratio: Holder is not in the

concept of an owner

Possession of other persons in the land

applied for impugns the exclusive quality

of the applicants possession.

Hearing, Judgment, and Post Judgment

The Court, in the hearing set in the notice, shall:

1.) Hear the parties and their evidence; or,

2.) Refer the case or any part thereof to a referee

or commissioner. Note: In the exercise of delegated

jurisdiction, the MTC can no longer

appoint commissioners.

Note 2: While the referee can receive

evidence and objections, it has no power

to rule on the case. Its main duty is to

receive evidence and submit its findings

and recommendations to the court.

Muniments of Title:

Instruments or written evidence

that the applicant holds or

possesses to enable him to


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substantiate and prove title to his

estate.

Judgment:

Duties of the Court:

a. Render Judgment

b. Order the Land Registration

Authority to issue decree ofregistration.

Note:Only claimed property or a portion thereof

can be adjudicated. If the applicant asserts

ownership and submits evidence only for a

portion of a lot, the inclusion of the portion not

claimed by the applicant is void and of no effect.

The court may reverse its decision even

after the LRA has issued the decree of

registration.

When only a portion of the land is

contested, the court may render partial

judgment, provided that a subdivisionplan showing the contested and

uncontested portions approved by the

Director of Lands is previously submitted.

Reason: Court has no

jurisdiction.

The judgment becomes final upon the

lapse of 15 days counted from receipt of

notice of the judgment. Note however,

that the adjudication of the land in a

registration or cadastral case does not

become final and incontrovertible until

the expiration of one year after the entryof the final decree.As long as the final

decree is not issued,and the one year

within which it may be revised has not

elapsed, the decision remains under the

control and sound discretion of the court

rendering the decree, which court after

hearing, may set aside the decision or

decree or adjudicate the land to another

party. (G.R. No. 77243 October 26, 1989,

Republic vs. Association)

Post Judgment Incidents:

Writ of Possession: The judgment

adjudicating ownership to the successful

applicant impliedly carries with it the

delivery of possession if he is deprived,

since the right of possession is inherent in

that of ownership.

The issuance of a writ of

possession is only a matter of

course if nothing in the past has

been issued in favor of the

registered owner; there is no

prescription as to its issuance.

Writ of Demolition: A complement of thewrit of possession, without which the

latter would be ineffective.