Rubiso v Rivera

1. SHIPPING; REGISTRATION OF THE PURCHASE OF A VESSES. — The requisite of registration in the

registry of the purchase of a vessel is necessary and indispensable in orderer that the purchaser's rights
may be maintained against a claim filed by a third person; pursuant to article 573 of the Code of
Commerce in connection with section 2 of Act No. 1900, which Act, amending said article, provides that
such registration, instead of being made in the commercial registry, shall be entered in the registry of
the Insular Collector of Customs, who, since May 18 1909, has been performing the duties of
commercial register.

2. ID.; ID. — The legal rule set down in the Code of Commerce, subsist, inasmuch as the amendment
solely refers to the official who shall make the entry.

3. ID.; ID. — Ships or vessels, whether moved by steam or by sail, partake to a certain extent, of the
nature and conditions of real property, on account of their value and importance in the world
commerce; and for this reason the provisions of article 573 of the Code of Commerce are nearly
identical with those of article 1473 of the Civil Code.

Facts:

Gelito& Co. was owned by Bonifacio Gelito and Chinaman Sy Qui. One of the properties of the company
was a pilot ship/merchant vessel called Valentina, whose ownership is at question here.

A series of sales had taken place:

1. First, Gelito had sold is 2/3 share to Chinaman Sy Qui.

2. When Sy Qui acquired full ownership of the company, he sold Valentina to Florentino Rivera for
P2,500 on January 4, 1915. The sale was registered in the Bureau of Customs over two months later on
March 17, 1915.

3. Shorty after the sale to Rivera, a suit was brought against Sy Qui to enforce payment of a certain
sum of money. Valentina was placed at a public auction and was purchased by Sy Qui’s creditor, Fausto
Rubiso. He bought the vessel for P55.45. The sale was registered in the Office of the Collector of
Customs on January 27, 1915 and in the commercial registry on March 14, 1925.

The first buyer, Florentino Rivera, contends that he had lost the ship when it got stranded somewhere in
Batangas. He claims that Rubiso took possession of the vessel without his knowledge or consent. Rivera
seeks to be indemnified for the profits he could have collected from the vessel’s voyages had Rivera not
taken it. But, does he have the right to the vessel?

Issue:
Who is the rightful owner of the merchant vessel--Rivera or Rubiso?

Held:

Rubiso. It is true that the sale to Rivera had taken place prior to the public auction where Rubiso bought
the vessel, but the same was entered in the customs registry only on March 17, 1915. Rubiso, however,
had acted more swiftly by registering the property much earlier in the Office of the Collector Customs
and in the commercial registry in the same month. Although the sale to Rivera had taken place first, the
registration made by Rubiso was made earlier.

SHIPPING; REGISTRATION OF THE PURCHASE OF A VESSES

Rubiso did the smart thing by registering the property at the commercial registry. Pursuant to Article
573 of the Code of Commerce, the acquisition of a vessel must be registered at the commercial registry
in order to bind third parties. Such registration is necessary and indispensible in order that the
purchaser’s rights may be maintained against a claim filed by third persons. Pursuant to article 573 of
the Code of Commerce in connection with section 2 of Act No. 1900, which Act, amending said article,
provides that such registration, instead of being made in the commercial registry, shall be entered in the
registry of the Insular Collector of Customs, who, since May 18 1909, has been performing the duties of
commercial register.

With respect to the rights of two purchasers, whichever of them first registered his acquisition of the
vessel is the one entitled to enjoy the protection of the law. By first registration, he becomes the
absolute owner of the boat and is freed from all encumbrances and claims by strangers.

||| (Fubiso v. Rivera, G.R. No. L-11407, [October 30, 1917], 37 PHIL 72-78)