SAMPLE BAR QUESTIONS 1.

Alfonso, a bachelor without any descendant or ascendant, wrote a last will and testament in which he devised, all the properties of which I may be possessed at the time of my death to his favorite brother Manuel. At the time he wrote the will, he owned only one parcel of land. But by the time he died, he owned 20 parcels of land. His other brothers and sisters insist that his will should pass only the parcel of land he owned at the time it was written, and did not cover his properties acquired, which should be by intestate succession. Manuel claims otherwise. Who is correct? Explain. Answer: Manuel is correct because under Art. 793, NCC, property acquired after the making of a will shall only pass thereby, as if the testator had possessed it at the time of making the will, should it expressly appear by the will that such was his intention. Since Alfonsos intention to devise all properties he owned at the time of his death expressly appears on the will, then all the 20 parcels of land are included in the devise. 2. Cristina, the illegitimate daughter of Jose and Maria, died intestate, without any descendant or ascendant. Her valuable estate is being claimed by Ana, the legitimate daughter of Jose, and Eduardo, the legitimate son of Maria. Is either, both, or neither of them entitled to inherit? Explain. Answer: Neither Ana nor Eduardo is entitled to inherit ab intestate from Cristina. Both are legitimate relatives of Cristinas illegitimate parents and therefore they fall under the prohibition prescribed un Art. 992, NCC (Manuel vs. Ferrer, 242 SCA 477; Diaz vs. CA, 182 SCRA 427). 3. (a) Luis was survived by 2 legitimate children, 2 illegitimate children, his parents, and 2 brothers. He left an estate of P1 million. Who are the compulsory heirs of Luis, how much is the legitime of each, and how much is the free portion of

his estate, if any? (b) Suppose Luis, in the preceding question, died intestate. Who are his intestate heirs, and how much is the share of each in his estate? Suggested Answer: (a) The compulsory heirs are the 2 legitimate children and the 2 illegitimate children. The parents are excluded by the legitimate children, while the brothers are not compulsory heirs at all. Their respective legitimes are: 1. The legitime of the 2 legitimate children is of the estate (P500,000) to be divided between them equally, or P250,000 each. 2. The legitime of each illegitimate child is the legitime of each legitimate child or P125,000. Since the total legitimes of the compulsory heirs is P750,000, the balance of P250,000 is the free portion. (b) The intestate heirs are the 2 legitimate children and the 2 illegitimate children. In intestacy, the estate of the decedent is divided among the legitimate and illegitimate children such that the share of each illegitimate child is the share of each legitimate child. Their shares are: 1. For each legitimate child: P333,333.33 2. For each illegitimate child: P166,666.66