CODAL PROVISIONS  right to bring or continue an action for

forcible entry
 right to compel execution of document
necessary for convenience
CHAPTER 1: GENERAL PROVISIONS  right to continue lease contract as lessor
or lessee
 property right of beneficiary in an
Art 774. Succession: insurance policy
 mode of acquisition
 by virtue of which the:
o property; Art 777. The rights of succession are transmitted
from the moment of his death.
o rights; and
o obligations to the extent of the
value of the inheritance
 of a person are transmitted through his Conditions for transmission of successional
death rights:
 to another or others  actual or presumed death
 either:  rights are transmissible or descendible
o by his will; or  transferee is alive and capacitated to
o by operation of law. inherit

Presumed death:
Art 775. Decedent: a general term applied to  ordinary presumption because of
the person whose property is transmitted ordinary absence
through succession, whether or not he left a will. o disappearance without danger or
Testator, if he left a will. idea of death
o presumed dead at the END of ten
years
Art 776. Inheritance includes:  5 years if over 75
 Extraordinary presumption because of
 all property, rights and obligations of a extraordinary absence
person o Great probability of death
 not extinguished by his death  On board a vessel lost at
sea or a plane that
crashed
Examples of rights extinguished by death:  Member of the armed
forces who has taken part
 personal rights intransmissible by nature
in war
o family and marital rights
 In danger of death under
o parental authority
other circumstances
o support
o Presumed dead at the
o partnership
BEGINNING of four years from
o agency
such disappearance
 right to claim acknowledgment or
recognition Prior to a person’s death, heirs merely have
 right to hold public or private office or job inchoate right to the property, without any right
of disposition or alienation over it.
Examples of rights NOT extinguished by death:
Art 778. Succession may be:

 testamentary Art 2263. The rights to the inheritance of a

 legal/intestate person who died, with or without a will, after the
 mixed effectivity of the NCC, shall be governed by the
NCC.

Art 779. Testamentary succession is that which

results from:

 designation of an heir
 made in a will
o executed in the form prescribed
by law.

Art 780. Mixed succession: that which is effected

partly by will and party by operation of law.

Art 781. Inheritance of a person, what it

includes:

 property and transmissible rights and

obligations existing at the time of his
death
 those which have accrued thereto since
the opening of succession

Art 782. Heir: a person called to the succession

either by provision of a will or by operation of
law.

Devisee: a person to whom gifts of real property

are given by virtue of a will.

Legatee: a person to whom gifts of personal

property are given by virtue of a will.

GR: no difference between heirs, legatees and

devisees in terms of capacity, effect and
solemnity.

EXC: Art 854 and 918 (preterition and

disinheritance) provide for circumstances
where the institution of heirs is void yet the
legacies and devises remain unaffected.
CHAPTER 2: TESTAMENTARY SUCCESSION
SECTION 1: WILLS
SUBSECTION 1: WILLS IN GENERAL
Art 783. Will:
 act whereby a person is permitted (with
the formalities prescribed by law) to
control to a certain degree the
disposition of his estate
 to take effect after his death
Art 784. The making of a will:
 strictly personal act
 cannot be left in whole or in part to the
discretion of a third person
 cannot be accomplished through the
instrumentality of an agent or attorney
Art 785. What cannot be left to the discretion of
third persons:
 duration or efficacy of the designation of
heirs, devises or legatees
 determination of the portions they are to
take
Provided, that they were referred to by name.
Art 786. EXC to 784: What may be entrusted to
third persons:
 distribution of specific property or sums of
money that he may leave to specified
classes or causes
 the designation of the persons,
institutions or establishments to which
such property or sums are to be given or
applied.
Art 787. Testamentary dispositions operative
upon the discretion of another person cannot
be made.
Art 788. If a testamentary disposition admits of
different interpretations, IN CASE OF DOUBT, the
interpretation by which disposition is operative
shall be preferred.
Art 789. Imperfect description or when no
person or property exactly answers the
description; may be cured by:
 examining the will
 extrinsic evidence
o EXC: oral declarations of the
testator as to his intention
Uncertainty arises upon the face of the will, as
to the application of its provisions; intention may
be ascertained by:
 examining the words of the will
 circumstances under which it mas made
o EXC: oral declarations of the
accused as to his intention
Art 790. GR: The words of a will are to be taken
in their ordinary and grammatical sense.
EXC: clear intention to use them in another
sense AND that other can be ascertained.
GR: Technical words in a will are to be taken in
their technical sense.
EXC:
 when the context clearly indicates a
contrary intention; OR
 when the will was drawn solely by the
testator, AND he was unacquainted with
such technical sense
Art 791. The words of a will are to receive an
interpretation which will give to every expression
some effect, rather than one which will render
any of the expressions inoperative.
In two modes of interpreting a will, that which
will prevent intestacy is preferred.
Art 792. GR: The invalidity of one of several
dispositions does not result in the invalidity of
other dispositions.
EXC: testator would not have made such other
dispositions if the first invalid disposition had not
been made.
Art 793. GR: What are given in a will are only
properties already possessed and owned by
the testator at the time of the making of the will.
EXC: If it expressly appears on the will that such
was his intention.
Art 794. GR: Devise or legacy cover all interest
which the testator could bequeath in the
property disposed of.
EXC: If it clearly appears that he intended to
convey a less interest.
Art 795. The validity of the will as to its FORM: law
in force at the time the will is made.
SUBSECTION 2. TESTAMENTARY CAPACITY AND
INTENT
Art 796. All persons may make a will.
EXC: Persons expressly prohibited by law.
Art 797. Persons under eighteen cannot make a
will.
Art 798. The testator needs to be of sound mind
at the time of the execution of the will.
Art 799. Requisites of a sound mind: That the
testator knows:
 the nature of the estate to be disposed
of
 the proper objects of his bounty
 character of the testamentary act
It is not necessary that he be in full possession of
his reasoning faculties or that his mind be wholly
unbroken, impaired or unshattered by disease,
injury or other cause.
Art 800. GR: The law presumes every person is of
sound mind.
EXC: Proof to the contrary.
GR: Burden of proof is upon the person who is
opposing the probate of the will.
EXC: If the testator, one month or less from the
making of his will, was publicly known to be
insane, the person who maintains the validity of
the will must prove that the same was made
during the testator’s lucid interval.
Art 801. Supervening incapacity does not
invalidate an effective will.
Supervening capacity does not validate the will
made by an incapable person.
Art 802. A married woman may make a will SUBSECTION 3. FORMS OF WILLS
without the consent of her husband and without
Art 804. Every will must be:
authority of the court.
 in writing
 executed in a language or dialect
Art 803. A married woman may dispose by will known to the testator.
of:

 all her separate property

NOTARIAL WILLS
 her share of the conjugal partnership or
absolute community property Art 805. Notarial wills must be:

 subscribed AT THE END by the testator

himself, or by the testator’s name written
by some other person
o in his presence, AND
o by his express direction
 attested and subscribed by three or
more credible witnesses in the presence
of the testator and one another
 signed at every page, except the last
page, on the left margin, by the testator
and the instrumental witnesses
 numbered correlatively in letters in the
upper part of the page

The attestation which must state:

o the number of pages

o that the testator signed the will
and every page thereof in the
presence of the witnesses
o that the witnesses witnessed and
signed the will and all its pages in
the presence of the testator and
one another

If the attestation clause is not known to the

witness, it must be interpreted to them.

Art 806. A notarial will must be acknowledged

before a notary public by the testator and the
witnesses.
Art 807. GR: If the testator is deaf or deaf-mute,
he must personally read the will.
EXC: If unable to do so, he shall designate two
persons to read and communicate the same to
him the contents of the will.
Art 808. If the testator is blind, the will shall be
read to him twice.
 Once by one of the subscribing witnesses
 Again, by the notary public before
whom the will is acknowledged
Art 809. Defects or imperfections in the form of
the attestation or language thereof shall not
render the will invalid, if the will is proved to be
executed in substantial compliance with all the
requirements of 805.
EXC: In cases of:
 bad faith
 forgery
 fraud
 undue and improper pressure
influence
HOLOGRAPHIC WILLS
Art 810. Holographic wills must be entirely
written, dated and signed by the testator. It is:
 subject to no other form
 may be made in or out of the PH
 need not be witnessed
Art 811. In the probate of holographic wills:
If uncontested: at least one witness who knows
the handwriting and signature of the testator
must explicitly declare that the will and
signature are the handwriting of the testator.
If contested: at least three of such witnesses.
EXC: In the absence of witnesses, the court may
resort to expert testimony.
Art 812. Dispositions of the testator written below
his signature must be dated and signed by him
for them to be valid testamentary dispositions.
Art 813. In cases of dispositions signed without
being dated, and the last disposition is with
signature and date, such date validates the
dispositions preceding it, whatever the time of
prior dispositions.
Art 814. The testator must authenticate by his full
signature any:
 insertion
 cancellation
 erasure
 alteration
---------------------------------------
Art 815. Filipino making a will in a foreign county:
will must follow the FORMALITIES established by
the law of the country in which he may be.
and
Art 816. Alien who is abroad: must follow
FORMALITIES prescribed by law:
 where he resides
 where he is a national
 in the New Civil Code.
Art 817. Citizen or subject of another country,
making will in the PH: FORMALITIES:
 of law of his country
 that may be proved and allowed by the
law of his country
Art 818. Two or more persons cannot make a will
jointly, or in the same instrument, either for
reciprocal benefit or benefit of a third person.
Art 819. Wills in 818 executed by Filipinos in a
foreign country shall not be valid in the PH even
if authorized in such foreign country.
SUBSECTION 4: WITNESSES TO WILLS SUBSECTION 5: CODICILS AND INCORPORATION
BY REFERENCE
Art 820. Requisites of witnesses in notarial wills:
Art 825. Codicil:
 of sound mind
 age of 18 years or more  supplement or addition to a will
 not blind, deaf or dumb  made after the execution of a will
 able to read and write  annexed to the same a part thereof
 by which disposition made in the original
is explained, added to or altered.
Art 821. Who are disqualified from being
witnesses:
Art 826. A codicil must be executed in the same
 persons not domiciled in the PH
case of a will.
 convicted of :
o falsification of a document
o perjury
Art 827. Requisites of a document or paper
o false testimony
incorporated by a will into itself, to be
considered part of the will:

Art 822. Subsequent incompetence of witnesses
shall not prevent allowance of a will as long as
they are competent at the time of witnessing.
Art 823. A provision of the will is void if it gives
legacy or devise to:
 a person attesting its execution
 his spouse
 his parent
 his child
EXC: If there are three other competent
witnesses to such will.
 document or paper must exist at the time
of the execution of the will
 the will must clearly describe and identify
it, stating among others the number of
pages
 the document or paper must be
identified by clear and satisfactory proof
as that referred to in the will
 document or paper must be signed by
the testator and the witnesses on each
and every page
o EXC: voluminous books or
inventories

He shall still be admitted as witness, as if no such

devise or legacy is given.

Art 824. A mere charge on the estate of the

testator does not prevent his creditors from
being competent witnesses to the will.
SUBSECTION 6: REVOCATION OF WILLS AND Art 832. Revocation by a new will is effective
TESTAMENTARY DISPOSITIONS even if the new will be inoperative due to:

Art 828. A will may be revoked by the testator at  incapacity of the heirs, devisees or
any time before his death. legatees designated therein
 renunciation by the heirs
Any waiver or restriction of this right is void.

Art 833. Revocation based on a false cause or

Art 829. Revocation of a will done outside the
illegal cause: null and void.
PH, by a person not domiciled in the PH: must
be done in accordance with:

 law of the place where the will is made Art 834. The recognition of an illegitimate child
 law of the place where the testator had in a will shall remain effective even though the
his domicile at the time of revocation same will is revoked.

If done in the PH, then it must follow the New

Civil Code.

Art 830. How may a will be revoked (exclusive):

 by implication of law
 by some will, codicil or other writing
executed in case of wills
 by burning, tearing, cancelling or
obliterating the will
o with intention of revoking it
o by testator himself or some other
person in his presence and by his
express direction

If the burning, tearing, cancellation or

obliteration was made without the express
direction of the testator: the will may still be
established and the estate distributed in
accordance therewith if the following is
established according to the Rules of Court:

 contents of the will

 its due execution
 the fact of its unauthorized destruction,
cancellation or cancellation

Art 831. Subsequent wills which do not revoke

previous ones in an express manner annul only
such dispositions inconsistent with or contrary to
it.
SUBSECTION 7: REPUBLICATION AND REVIVAL OF
WILLS
Art 835. The testator cannot republish
dispositions contained in a previous will which is
void to its form.
It must be reproduced in a subsequent will.
Art 836. The execution of a codicil referring to a
previous will shall have the effect of republishing
the will as modified by the codicial.
Art 837. If a second will revoked the first, the
revocation of the second does not revive the
first. It can only be revived by another will or
codicil.
SUBSECTION 8. ALLOWANCE AND
DISALLOWANCE OF WILLS
Art 838. No will shall pass real or personal
property unless proved in accordance with the
Rules of Court.
The testator may petition the court for the
allowance of the will. The same procedure as
allowance of wills after the testator’s death shall
govern.
Allowance of a will shall be conclusive as to its
due execution, subject to appeal.
Art 839. The will shall be disallowed when:
 the formalities required by law are not
complied with
 testator was insane or otherwise mentally
incapable of making a will at the time of
execution
 executed through force, duress, or under
the influence of fear or threats
 procured by undue and improper
pressure and influence on the part of the
beneficiary or some other person
 signature of the testator was procured by
fraud
 testator acted by mistake or did not
intend that the instrument be his will at
the time he affixed his signature thereto
SECTION 2. INSTITUTION OF HEIR Art 844. An error in the name, surname or
circumstances of the heir shall not vitiate
Art 840. Institution of heir: an act by virtue of
institution when it is possible to know with
which a testator designates in his will the person
certainty the person instituted.
or persons who are to succeed him in his
property and transmissible rights and If two persons have the same name and
obligations. circumstances in such a way that the person
instituted cannot be identified, none of them
shall be an heir.
Art 841. A will shall be valid even if:

 it does not contain an institution of an

Art 845. GR: Every disposition in favor of an
heir
unknown person shall be void.
 such institution did not comprise the
entire estate EXC:
 the persons instituted did not accept the
 by some event or circumstance his
inheritance or are incapacitated to
identity becomes certain
succeed
 disposition in favor of a definite class or
Testamentary disposition shall be complied with group of persons is valid
and the remainder shall pass to the legal heirs.

Art 846. Heirs instituted without designation of

Art 842. One who has no compulsory heirs may shares shall inherit in equal parts.
dispose by will of all his estate.

One who has compulsory heirs may dispose of

Art 847. When the testators institute some heirs
his estate to the extent that it does not
individually and some collectively, those
contravene the provisions of the Civil Code with
collectively designated shall be considered as
regard to the legitime of the heirs.
individually instituted.

EXC: clear intention of the testator was

Art 843. The testator shall designate the heir by otherwise.
name and surname.

EXC:
 two persons having the same names: the
testator shall indicate some
circumstance by which the instituted heir
shall be known
 in the omission of the name of the heir,
designation of the testator in such
manner that there can be no doubt as to
who is instituted shall be sufficient.
Art 848. If the testator institutes his brothers and
sisters, some full blood and some half blood, the
inheritance shall be distributed equally.
EXC: a different intention appears.
Art 849. When a testator calls to the succession
a person and his children, they are all deemed
to have been instituted simultaneously and not
successively.
Art 850. GR: The statement of a false cause for
the institution of the heir shall be considered not
written.

EXC: It appears from the will that the testator

would not have made such institution had he
known the falsity of such cause.
JURADO
Inheritance is the totality of all RPOs of the
decedent which are not extinguished by his
death. Succession is the legal mode by which
such RPOs are transmitted. Inheritance is merely
the objective element of succession.
The estate of the decedent and not his heirs is
charged with regard to rights and obligations of
the decedent, as the continuation of the
decedent’s personality.
The rights to inheritance of a person who died,
with or without will, after the effectivity of the
NCC, shall be governed by the NCC.
An heir can sell his undivided share of the
inheritance, but not any particular part of the
estate (Flora v Prado).
Art 1042: The effects of acceptance or
repudiation of an inheritance shall always
retroact to the moment of the death of the
decedent.
Fourth kind of succession: Contractual
succession, when future spouses donate to
each other in their marriage settlements their
future property to take effect upon the death of
the donor.
Devisee/Legatee Heir
Called to succeed to Called to succeed to
individual items of an indeterminate or
property aliquot portion of the
estate
Called to succeed May be called to
by will succeed by will or by
operation of law
GR: The heirs have no legal standing to sue for
the recovery of the estate of administration
proceedings.
EXC:
 executor or administrator is unwilling or
refuses to bring suit
 administrator is alleged to have
participated in the act complained of
and he is made party-defendant
 there is no appointed administrator
An heir does not have the right to dispose of the
decedent’s property if the estate is under
administration. EXC: court approval.
Characteristics of a will:
 a strictly personal act
 unilateral and individual act
 free and voluntary act
 formal and solemn act
 disposition of property
 act mortis causa
 ambulatory and revocable
What does “due execution” mean? It is a
determination of:
 sound and disposing mind of the testator
at the time of the execution
 free execution of the will, without duress,
fraud, menace or undue influence
 genuineness of the will and that it is not a
forgery
 proper testamentary age of the testator
and that he is not prohibited by law from
making a will

Formalities required in the execution of a
notarial will:
 in writing
 in a language or dialect known to the
testator
 subscribed at the end by the testator
himself or by the testator’s name
 attested and subscribed to by 3 or more
credible witnesses in the presence of the
testator and one another
 testator must sign each and every page
on the left margin, except the last
 numbered correlatively in letters placed
on the upper part of each page
 attestation clause executed by the
witnesses
 acknowledged before a notary public
by the testator and the witnesses
 additional requirements in case the
testator is deaf, deaf-mute or blind
A thumbmark is a valid signature if intended by
the testator to be his signature (Garcia v La
Cuesta).
It is not necessary that the testator or witnesses
should actually see the others subscribe their
names to the instrument, provided that he is in
a position to see them sign if he chooses (Nera
v Rimando).
The requirement of at least 3 witnesses in the
probate of a holographic will is mandatory,
given the word “shall”.
Attestation: witnessing of the execution of the
will by the testator in order to see all acts done
in compliance with the requisites for the
execution of a will, and that the signature of the
testator exists as a fact. PURPOSE: render
available proof that there had been
compliance with the statutory requirements in
the execution of a will.
Subscription: manual act of the witnesses in
affixing their signatures to the instrument.
PURPOSE: Identification.
Attestation Subscription
Act of the senses Act of the hand
Mental Mechanical
Purpose is to render
available proof that
the will was Purpose is for
executed in identification
accordance with the
formalities prescribed
by law
Primordial ends of the formalities prescribed by
law for the execution of laws:
 close the door against bad faith and
fraud
 avoid substitution of wills
 guarantee the truth and authenticity
When an interpretation assures such ends, any
other interpretation that adds nothing but
demands requisites entirely unnecessary,
useless and frustrative of the testator’s will must
be disregarded (Avera v Garcia).
The attestation clause is a record of facts where
the instrumental witnesses certify that the will
had been executed before them and that it
had been executed in accordance with the
formalities prescribed by law.
Purpose: preservation in permanent form of the
record of facts so that in case of failure of
memory by the witnesses or in case they are no
longer available, such fact may still be proved.
An acknowledgment is the act of one who has
executed a deed in going before some
competent officer or court, declaring the deed
to be his act. In involves an additional step of
actual declaration to the notary that the
executor attested to the notary that the same is
his own free act and deed.
The notary public cannot be the third witness
because he cannot acknowledge before
himself his witnessing and signing of the will. To
acknowledge is to assent and before means in
front of. It is absurd to even argue that he could
acknowledge his having signed the will in front
of himself.
Rules on formal validity:
Filipino testator, in the Philippines:
 Art 17, NCC
Filipino, foreign country:
 Law of the place where executed
 NCC
Foreigner, Philippines:
 NCC
 Law of his country
Foreigner, foreign country:
 Law of the place of execution
 Law of his own country
 Law of the country where he resides
 NCC
Rules on revocation:
Domiciled in PH or not, in PH:
 NCC
Domiciled in PH, outside PH:
 NCC
Not domiciled in PH, outside PH:
 Laws of the place where will was made
 Laws of the place where testator had his
domicile at the time of revocation
Revocation by implication of law:
 Decree of legal separation, with regard
to the provisions in favor of the offending
spouse in the will of the innocent spouse
 Preterition, which annuls the institution of
heirs
 Bringing of an action by the creditor for
the payment of debt after the execution
of a will where there is legacy of credit to
the legatee or remission of debt of the
legatee
 Transformation of the thing that it does
not retain the form or denomination it
had
 Alienation of the thing to be
bequeathed
 Commission of acts of unworthiness,
which incapacitates a person to
succeed
Express revocation: when in a subsequent will or
codicil or other writing as provided in the case
of wills, there is a revocatory clause expressly
revoking the will or a part thereof.
Implied revocation: provisions of the
subsequent will or codicil are partially or
absolutely inconsistent with those of the
previous will.
What are the questions which a probate court
may determine?
 Identity: won the instrument is the last will
and testament of the decedent
 Due execution: won the instrument was
executed in accordance with the
formalities prescribed by law
 Capacity: won the testator had the
necessary testamentary capacity at the
time of the execution of the will
The probate court has no power to determine
title to properties claimed to be part of the
estate and claimed to belong to outside
parties. All that the court may determine is
whether the property should be included in the
inventory of properties or not.