NATURE, MEANING AND PURPOSE- NOTICE OF LIS PENDENS

Section 76. Notice of lis pendens. No action to recover possession of real estate, or to quiet title
thereto, or to remove clouds upon the title thereof, or for partition, or other proceedings of any
kind in court directly affecting the title to land or the use or occupation thereof or the buildings
thereon, and no judgment, and no proceeding to vacate or reverse any judgment, shall have any
effect upon registered land as against persons other than the parties thereto, unless a
memorandum or notice stating the institution of such action or proceeding and the court wherein
the same is pending, as well as the date of the institution thereof, together with a reference to
the number of the certificate of title, and an adequate description of the land affected and the
registered owner thereof, shall have been filed and registered.
NATURE AND PURPOSE OF LIS PENDENS
> Lis pendens literally means a pending suit
> Doctrine that refers to the jurisdiction, power or control which a court acquires over a property
involved in a suit, pending the continuance of the action, until final judgment
The purpose of lis pendens
o To protect the rights of the party causing the registration of the lis pendens
o To advise third persons who purchase or contract on the subject property that they do so at
their peril and subject to the result of the pending litigation
> May involve actions that deal not only with title or possession of a property but also with the
use and occupation of a property
> The litigation must directly involve a specific property which is necessarily affected by the
judgment
> The notice of lis pendens is a notice to the whole world that a particular real property is in
litigation. The inscription serves as a warning that one who acquires interest over litigated
property does so at his own risk, or that he gambles on the result of the litigation over the
property
> A purchaser who buys registered land with full notice of the fact that it is in litigation between
the vendor and third party stands in the shoes of his vendor and his title is subject to the
incidents and results of the pending litigation
The filing of lis pendens in effect
o Keeps the subject matter of litigation within the power of the court until entry of final judgment
so as to prevent the defeat of the latter by successive alienations
o Binds the purchaser of the land subject of the litigation to the judgment or decree that will be
promulgated thereon whether such purchaser is a bona fide purchaser or not
o Doesnt create a non-existent right or lien
> Purpose of this rule is founded on public policy and necessity
EFFECT OF SUCH NOTICE

1. It keeps the subject matter of the litigation within the power of the court until the entry of final
judgment so as to prevent the defeat of the latter by successive alienations
2. It binds the purchaser of the land subject of the litigation to the judgment or decree that will
be promulgated thereon whether such purchaser is a bona fide purchaser or not
> It is not correct to speak of it as part of the doctrine of notice, the purchaser pendent elite is
affected not by notice but because the law doesnt allow litigating parties to give to others,
pending the litigation, rights to the property in dispute so as to prejudice the other party
NOTICE IS ONLY AN INCIDENT IN THE MAIN CASE; MERITS THEREOF UNAFFECTED
> A notice of lis pendens is ordinarily recorded without the intervention of the court where the
action is pending
> It is but an incident in an action, an extrajudicial one. It doesnt affect the merits thereof.
NOTICE NEED NOT BE ANNOTATED ON THE OWNERS COPY
> Annotation at the back of the original copy of the certificate of title on file with the RD is
sufficient to constitute constructive notice to purchasers or other persons subsequently dealing
with the same property
> One who deals with property subject of a notice of lis pendens cannot invoke the right of a
purchaser in good faithneither can he acquire the rights better than those of his predecessorininterest
NOTICE OF LIS PENDENSWHEN APPROPRIATE
1. Action to recover possession of real property
2. Action to quiet title thereto
3. Action to remove cloud thereon
4. Action for partition
5. Any other proceedings of any kind in court directly affecting the title to the land or the use or
occupation thereof or the buildings thereon
NOTICE NOT PROPER IN THE FOLLOWING
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Preliminary attachments
Proceedings for the probates of wills
Levies on execution
Proceedings for the administration of estate of deceased persons
Proceedings in which the only subject is the recovery of a money judgment

CONTENTS OF NOTICE OF LIS PENDENS

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

A statement of the institution of an action or proceedings

The court where the same is pending
The date of its institution
A reference to the number of certificate of title of the land
An adequate description of the land affected and its registered owner

PRINCIPLE OF PRIMUS TEMPORE, POTIOR JURE; EFFECT OF LIS PENDENS

> The principle of primus tempore, potior jure gains greater significance in the law on double
sale of immovable property
> Reliance on the principle of constructive notice operates only such upon the registration of the
notice of lis pendens
> More fundamentally, a notice of lis pendens is only a warning to the prospective purchaser or
incumbrancer that the particular property is in litigation and that he should keep his hands off
the same, unless he intends to gamble on the results of the litigation
CARRY OVER OF NOTICE ON SUBSEQUENT TITLES
> In case of subsequent transfers or sales, the RD is duty bound to carry over the notice of lis
pendens on all titles to be issued
> Act of RD in erasing notice of lis pendens is in plain violation of his duty, constitutes
misfeasance in the performance of his duties for which he may be held civilly and even criminally
liable for any prejudice caused to innocent third persons and cannot affect those who are
protected by the notice inscribed in the original title
CANCELLATION OF LIS PENDENS
> Ordinarily a notice which has been filed in a proper case cannot be cancelled while the action
is pending and undetermined, except in cases expressly provided for by statute
> It may be cancelled upon order by the court or upon action by the Register of Deeds at the
instance of the party who caused the registration of the notice
> While the trial court has inherent power to cancel a notice of lis pendens, such power is
exercised under express provisions of law If the annotation was for the purpose of molesting
the
title
of
the
adverse
party
o When the annotation isnt necessary to protect the title of the party who caused it to be
recorded

Section 77. Cancellation of lis pendens. Before final judgment, a notice of lis pendens may
be canceled upon order of the court, after proper showing that the notice is for the purpose of
molesting the adverse party, or that it is not necessary to protect the rights of the party who
caused it to be registered. It may also be canceled by the Register of Deeds upon verified
petition of the party who caused the registration thereof.
At any time after final judgment in favor of the defendant, or other disposition of the action such
as to terminate finally all rights of the plaintiff in and to the land and/or buildings involved, in any
case in which a memorandum or notice of lis pendens has been registered as provided in the
preceding section, the notice of lis pendens shall be deemed canceled upon the registration of a
certificate of the clerk of court in which the action or proceeding was pending
stating the manner of disposal thereof.

How to cancel a notice of lis pendens? Or a notice of lis pendens annotated on the a
landtitle?
Ordinarily a notice of lis pendens which has been filed in a proper case cannot be cancelled while
the action is pending and undetermined, except in cases expressly provided for by statute.
The plaintiff in the case at bar filed a MR which is still pending to date; thus, under normal
circumstances the notice of lis pendens cannot be cancelled. However, it may be cancelled if
anyof these circumstances is present:
If the annotation was for the purpose of molesting the title of the adverse party
When the annotation isnt necessary to protect the title of the party who caused it to be
recorded. It may be cancelled only upon order by the court or upon action by the Register of
Deeds at the instance of the party who caused the registration of the notice.
As stated in Sec. 77 of PD 1529, before final judgment, a notice of lis pendens may be canceled
upon order of the court, after proper showing that the notice is for the purpose of molesting the
adverse party, or that it is not necessary to protect the rights of the party who caused it tobe
registered
. It may also be canceled by the Register of Deeds upon verified petition of the party who caused
the registration thereof. In the case of Magdalena Homeowners vs. CA
(G.R. No. L-60323), the Court ruled that a notice of lis pendens is ordinarily recorded without the
intervention of the court where the action is pending. The notice is but an
incident in an action, an extra judicial one, and does not affect the merits thereof. It is intended
merely to constructively advise all people who deal with the property that they so deal with it at
their own risk, and whatever rights they may acquire in the property in any voluntary transaction
are subject to the results of the action, and may well be inferior and subordinate to those which
may be finally determined and laid down therein.
Thus, as applied in the case at bar, the dismissal of the action for the dismissal of the
defendants titledoes not entail the dismissal of the notice of lis pendens. The continuance or
removal of the notice of lis pendens is not contingent on the existence of a final judgment in the
action, and ordinarily has no effect on the merits thereof. Likewise in the case of Roxas vs.
Spouses Dy (G.R. No. 101728), the Court ruled thatcancellation of a notice of lis pendens, being a
mere incident to an action, may be ordered at any given time by the court having jurisdiction
over it. As the case at bar had properly come within the appellate jurisdiction of the Court of
Appeals because of the perfection of the plaintiffs appeal, it therefore had power to deal with
and resolve any incident in connection with the action subject of the appeal, even before final
judgment.
In short, it is the Court of Appeals which has the jurisdiction to hear the issue of cancellation of
notices of lis pendens.

G.R. No. 143646

April 4, 2001

SPOUSES HENRY G. LIM and ROSARIO T. LIM

vs.
PEPITO M. VERA CRUZ, respondent.
Lis pendens is a Latin term which literally means a pending suit. Notice of lis pendens is filed for
the purpose of warning all persons that the title to certain property is in litigation and that if they
purchase the same, they are in danger of being bound by an adverse judgment. 1 The notice is,
therefore, intended to be a warning to the whole world that one who buys the property does so
at his own risk. This is necessary in order to save innocent third persons from any involvement in
any future litigation concerning the property. 2
Sec. 14, Rule 13 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure, as amended, provides:
"SECTION 14. Notice of lis pendens In an action affecting the title or the right of
possession of real property, the plaintiff and the defendant, when affirmative relief is
claimed in his answer, may record in the office of the registry of deeds of the province in
which the property is situated a notice of the pendency of the action. Said notice shall
contain the names of the parties and the object of the action or defense, and a description
of the property in that province affected thereby. Only from the time of filing of such notice
for record shall a purchaser, or encumbrancer of the property affected thereby, be deemed
to have constructive notice of the pendency of the action, and only of its pendency against
the parties designated by their real names.
The notice of lis pendens hereinabove mentioned may be cancelled only upon order of the
court, after proper showing that the notice is for the purpose of molesting the adverse
party, or that it is not necessary to protect the rights of the party who caused it to be
recorded. (Emphasis ours)
Sec. 77 of Presidential Decree No. 1529 states:
"SECTION 77. Cancellation of lis pendens Before final judgment, a notice of lis
pendens may be cancelled upon order of the court, after proper showing that the notice is
for the purpose of molesting the adverse party, or that it is not necessary to protect the
rights of the party who caused it to be registered. It may also be cancelled by the Register
of Deeds upon verified petition of the party who caused registration thereof."
Lis pendens has been conceived to protect the real rights of the party causing the registration
thereof. With the lis pendens duly recorded, he could rest secure that he would not lose the
property or any part of it. For such notice serves as a warning to a prospective purchaser or
incumbrancer that the particular property is in litigation; and that he should keep his hands off
the same unless of course, he intends to gamble on the results of the litigation. 6Based on this
principle as well as the express provisions of Sec. 14, Rule 13 of the 1997 Rules of Civil
Procedure, as amended, only the particular property subject of litigation is covered by the notice
of lis pendens. In this case, only the 200 square meter portion of the entire area is embraced by
the notice of lis pendens. In causing the annotation of such notice, respondent's aim is to protect
his right as an owner of this specific area. Thus, the ruling of the trial court that the notice of lis

pendens is tantamount to an unlawful dispossession and restriction of petitioners' right of

dominion over the entire 5,432 square meter lot covered by TCT 16375 in their names is,
therefore, an erroneous conclusion.
Pursuant to Section 14, Rule 13 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure, as amended, earlier quoted,
courts can cancel a notice of lis pendens only on two grounds: a) after a proper showing that the
notice is for the purpose of molesting the adverse party; or b) it is not necessary to protect the
interest of the party who caused it to be recorded.
For purposes of annotating a notice of lis pendens, there is nothing in the rules which requires
the party seeking annotation to show that the land belongs to him. In fact, there is no
requirement that the party applying for the annotation of the notice must prove his right or
interest over the property sought to be annotated. 7 Hence, even on the basis of an unregistered
deed of sale, a notice of lis pendens may be annotated on the title. And such annotation can not
be considered as a collateral attack against the certificate of title. This is based on the principle
that the registration of a notice of lis pendens does not produce a legal effect similar to a lien. It
does not create a right or lien. It only means that a person purchases or contracts on the
property in dispute subject to the result of the pending litigation.
The doctrine of lis pendens is founded upon reasons of public policy and necessity, the purpose
of which is to keep the properties in litigation within the power of the court until the litigation is
terminated, and to prevent the defeat of the judgment or decree by subsequent alienation. This
purpose would be rendered meaningless if petitioners are allowed to file a bond, regardless of
the amount, if substitution of said notice. In Tan vs. Lantin 9 , this Court held that the law does not
authorize a Judge to cancel a notice of lis pendens pending litigation upon the mere filing of
sufficient bond by the party on whose title said notice is annotated.

COL. FRANCISCO DELA MERCED vs GOVERNMENT SERVICE INSURANCE SYSTEM

(GSIS) and Spouses VICTOR and MILAGROS MANLONGAT, G.R. No. 167140,
November 23, 2011
A notice of lis pendens is an announcement to the whole world that a particular real property is
in litigation, serving as a warning that one who acquires an interest over said property does so at
his own risk, or that he gambles on the result of the litigation over the said property.[50] The
effect of the annotation of lis pendens on future transactions over the subject property is
discussed by an authority on land titles and registration:
Once a notice of lis pendens has been duly registered, any cancellation or issuance of the title of
the land involved as well as any subsequent transaction affecting the same, would have to be
subject to the outcome of the litigation. In other words, upon the termination of the litigation
there can be no risk of losing the property or any part thereof as a result of any conveyance of
the land or any encumbrance that may be made thereon posterior to the filing of the notice of lis
pendens.[51]

J. CASIM CONSTRUCTION SUPPLIES, INC.,

-versus- REGISTRAR OF DEEDS OF LAS PIAS,

G.R. No. 168655, July 2, 2010
Lis pendens which literally means pending suit refers to the jurisdiction, power or
control which a court acquires over the property involved in a suit, pending the continuance of
the action, and until final judgment. [24] Founded upon public policy and necessity, lis pendens is
intended to keep the properties in litigation within the power of the court until the litigation is
terminated, and to prevent the defeat of the judgment or decree by subsequent alienation. [25] Its
notice is an announcement to the whole world that a particular property is in litigation and
serves as a warning that one who acquires an interest over said property does so at his own risk,
or that he gambles on the result of the litigation over said property. [26]
A notice of lis pendens, once duly registered, may be cancelled by the trial court before
which the action involving the property is pending. This power is said to be inherent in the trial
court and is exercised only under express provisions of law. [27] Accordingly, Section 14, Rule 13 of
the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure authorizes the trial court to cancel a notice of lis
pendens where it is properly shown that the purpose of its annotation is for molesting the
adverse party, or that it is not necessary to protect the rights of the party who caused it to be
annotated. Be that as it may, the power to cancel a notice of lis pendens is exercised only under
exceptional circumstances, such as: where such circumstances are imputable to the party who
caused the annotation; where the litigation was unduly prolonged to the prejudice of the other
party because of several continuances procured by petitioner; where the case which is the basis
for the lis pendens notation was dismissed for non prosequitur on the part of the plaintiff; or
where judgment was rendered against the party who caused such a notation. In such instances,
said notice is deemed ipso facto cancelled.[28]
A necessary incident of registering a notice of lis pendens is that the property covered
thereby is effectively placed, until the litigation attains finality, under the power and control of
the court having jurisdiction over the case to which the notice relates. [33] In this sense, parties
dealing with the given property are charged with the knowledge of the existence of the action
and are deemed to take the property subject to the outcome of the litigation. [34] It is also in this
sense that the power possessed by a trial court to cancel the notice of lis pendens is said to be
inherent as the same is merely ancillary to the main action. [35]
Thus, in Vda. de Kilayko v. Judge Tengco,[36] Heirs of Maria Marasigan v. Intermediate
Appellate Court[37] and Tanchoco v. Aquino,[38] it was held that the precautionary notice of lis
pendens may be ordered cancelled at any time by the court having jurisdiction over the main
action inasmuch as the same is merely an incident to the said action. The pronouncement
in Heirs of Eugenio Lopez, Sr. v. Enriquez,citing Magdalena Homeowners Association, Inc. v. Court
of Appeals,[39] is equally instructive

The notice of lis pendens x x x is ordinarily recorded without the intervention

of the court where the action is pending. The notice is but an incident in an action,
an extrajudicial one, to be sure. It does not affect the merits thereof. It is intended
merely to constructively advise, or warn, all people who deal with the property that
they so deal with it at their own risk, and whatever rights they may acquire in the
property in any voluntary transaction are subject to the results of the action, and
may well be inferior and subordinate to those which may be finally determined and
laid down therein. The cancellation of such a precautionary notice is
therefore also a mere incident in the action, and may be ordered by the
Court having jurisdiction of it at any given time. x x x [40]

To be sure, petitioner is not altogether precluded from pursuing a specific remedy, only
that

the

suitable

course

of

action

legally

available

is

not

judicial

but

rather

administrative. Section 77 of P.D. No. 1529 provides the appropriate measure to have a notice
of lis pendens cancelled out from the title, that is by presenting to the Register of Deeds, after
finality of the judgment rendered in the main action, a certificate executed by the clerk of court
before which the main action was pending to the effect that the case has already been finally
decided by the court, stating the manner of the disposal thereof. Section 77 materially states:

SEC. 77. Cancellation of lis pendens. Before final judgment, a notice of lis
pendens may be cancelled upon order of the court, after proper showing that the
notice is for the purpose of molesting the adverse party, or that it is not necessary
to protect the rights of the party who caused it to be registered. It may also be
cancelled by the Register of Deeds upon verified petition of the party who caused
the registration thereof.
At any time after final judgment in favor of the defendant, or other
disposition of the action such as to terminate finally all rights of the
plaintiff in and to the land and/or buildings involved, in any case in which
a memorandum or notice of lis pendens has been registered as provided in
the preceding section, the notice of lis pendens shall be deemed cancelled
upon the registration of a certificate of the clerk of court in which the
action or proceeding was pending stating the manner of disposal
thereof. [42]

No. The doctrine of lis pendens refers to the jurisdiction, power or control which a court acquires over a property involved
in a suit, pending the continuance of the action, and until final judgment. Its purposes are (1) to protect the rights of the
party causing the registration of the lis pendens, and (2) to advise third persons who purchase or contract on the subject
property that they do so at their peril and subject to the result of the pending litigation. A notice of lis pendens is proper in
the following cases: (a) an action to recover possession of real estate; (b) an action to quiet title thereto; (c) an action to
remove clouds thereon; (d) and action for partition; and (e) and any other proceedings of any kind in Court directly

affecting the title to the land or the use or occupation thereof or the buildings thereon (Magdalena etc. vs. CAS, 184 SCRA
325).

The notice of lis pendens should contain a statement of the institution of an action or proceeding, the court where the
same is pending, and the date of its institution. It should also contain a reference to the number of the certificate of title of
the land, an adequate description of the land affected and its registered owner (Section 76, PD 1526). In this case, the
heirs have not complied with the requisites. They are mere movants, not parties to an action contemplated by Section 76
of PD 1529; they failed to present the requisite original petition or complaint upon which the Register of Deeds will base its
action to annotate the lis pendens. A notice of lis pendens based on a motion filed in LRC Case no. 18887 to declare the
OCTs void is not registrable. Only a party to a case has the legal personality to file a notice of lis pendens relative to the
pending case. This motion is insufficient to give them standing in the land registration proceedings or purposes of filing an
application of a notice of lis pendens. It was filed only on November 25, 1998 long after the decision in LRC Case No.
18887 became final and executory. The decision of the Land Registration Court granting the application for registration of
title was dated May 31, 1966 and a certificate of its finality was issued on March 8, 1991.

G.R. No. L-19328 December 22, 1989

ALEJANDRO KATIGBAK and MERCEDES K. KATIGBAK, plaintiffs-appellants,
vs.
THE SOLICITOR GENERAL, EPIFANIO VILLEGAS, ARTURO XAVIER, PONCIANO FERNANDO, ROSENDO
DOMINGO and LEONARDO LUCENA, defendants-appellees.
G.R. No. L-19329 December 22, 1989
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee,
vs.
ALEJANDRO KATIGBAK and MERCEDES K. KATIGBAK

Whatever persuasiveness might have been carried by the ruling on the issue of the learned Trial
Judge in 1961, the fact is that the nature of R.A. No. 1379 as penal was in 1962 clearly and
categorically pronounced by this Court in Cabal v. Kapunan, Jr. 14 Citing voluminous authorities,
the Court in that case declared that "forfeiture to the State of property of a public officer or
employee which is manifestly out of proportion to his salary as such ... and his other lawful
income and the income from legitimately acquired property ... has been held ... to partake of the
nature of a penalty"; and that "proceedings for forfeiture of property although technically civil in
form are deemed criminal or penal, and, hence, the exemption of defendants in criminal cases
from the obligation to be witnesses against, themselves is applicable thereto. 15 The doctrine
was reaffirmed and reiterated in 1971 in republic v. Agoncillo. 16 And germane is the 1977 ruling
of the Court in de la Cruz v. Better Living, Inc. 17 involving among others the issue of the validity
and enforceability of a written agreement alleged to be in violation of Republic Act No. 3019,
otherwise known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices-Act to the effect that "the provisions of
said law cannot be given retro active effect."

The forfeiture of property provided for in Republic Act No. 1379 being in the nature of a penalty;
and it being axiomatic that a law is ex-post facto which inter alia "makes criminal an act done
before the passage of the law and which was innocent when done, and punishes such an act," or,
"assuming to regulate civil rights and remedies only, in effect imposes a penalty or deprivation of
a right for something which when done was lawful," it follows that penalty of forfeiture prescribed

by R.A. No. 1379 cannot be applied to acquisitions made prior to its passage without running
afoul of the Constitutional provision condemning ex post facto laws or bills of attainder. 18 But
this is precisely what has been done in the case of the Katigbaks. The Trial Court declared certain
of their acquisitions in 1953, 1954 and 1955 to be illegal under R.A. No. 1379 although made
prior to the enactment of the law, and imposed a lien thereon "in favor of the Government in the
sum of P100,000.00." Such a disposition is, quite obviously, constitutionally impermissible.

As to the issue of whether or not the Prosecuting Fiscal, Leonardo Lucena, should be made
answerable for damages because the filing of the forfeiture proceedings, Civil Case No. 31080,
resulted from a preliminary investigation which was allegedly conducted by Fiscal Lucena in an
arbitrary and highhanded manner, suffice it to state that the trial court found no proof of any
intention to persecute or other ill motive underlying the institution of Civil Case No. 31080. The
trial court further found that during the preliminary investigation by Fiscal Lucena on September
13, 19, 24, 25 and 26, 1956, Alejandro Katigbak was assisted by reputable and competent
counsel, Atty. Estanislao A. Fernandez and Atty. Antonio Carag. The mere fact that the preliminary
investigation was terminated against the objection of Katigbak's counsel, does not necessarily
signify that he was denied the right to such an investigation. What is more, the Trial Court's
factual conclusion that no malice or bad faith attended the acts of public respondents
complained of, and consequently no award of damages is proper, cannot under established rule
be reviewed by this Court absent any showing of the existence of some recognized exception
thereto.