LECTURE ON PROPERTY

NOVEMBER 6, 2020
Chapter II. Ownership

I. DEFINITION
II. BUNDLE OF RIGHTS IN OWNERSHIP
III. SPECIFIC RIGHTS OF THE OWNER
IV. LIMITATIONS ON THE RIGHTS OF
OWNERSHIP
I. Definition

--Independent right of exclusive enjoyment and

control of a thing

--For the purpose of deriving all advantages required

by the reasonable needs of the owner/holder of right
and promotion of general welfare

-- A thing pertaining to one person

– Completely subjected to his will
– In everything not prohibited by public law or the
rights of another
 MODE OF ACQUIRING OWNERSHIP

Mode – actual process of acquisition or transfer of

ownership over a thing in question. This is the
proximate cause of the acquisition. (Acap vs. CA,
G.R. No. 118114, December 7, 1995)
Title – the juridical justification for the acquisition
or transfer of ownership of other real right. This is
the remote cause of acquisition.
 MODES OF ACQUIRING
OWNERSHIP
Mode of Acquiring Title of Acquiring
ownership Ownership
● Occupation ● Condition of being without
known owner
● Work which includes
intellectual creation ● Creation. Discovery or
invention
● Law ● Existence of required
conditions
● Tradition
● Contract of the parties
● Donation
● Contract of the parties
● Prescription
● Possession in the concept
of owner
II. Rights Included in Ownership

Art. 428, Civil Code—

1. The owner has the right to enjoy and

dispose of a thing, without other limitations
than those established by law.

2. The owner has also a right of action against

the holder and possessor of the thing in
order to recover it.
5 + 1 BUNDLE OF RIGHTS

1. Jus Utendi: Right to enjoy and receive what

the property produces

2. Jus Fruendi: Right to receive fruits

3. Jus Abutendi: Right to consume a thing by use

A. Jus Disponendi: Right to to alienate,

encumber, transform or even
destroy the thing owned

B. Jus Vindicandi: Right to recover

possession of property based on a
claim of ownership

4. Jus Possidendi: Right to possess the

property (Implied from all the other rights)
III. Specific Rights under the Civil Code

Specific Rights—

1. Right to Self Help

2. Right to Enclose of Fence
3. Right to Receive Just Compensation
4. Right to Accession
5. Right to Space and Subsoil
6. Right to Hidden Treasure
7. Right to Recover Possession
Right to Self Help—

Article 429, Civil Code. The owner or lawful

possessor of a thing has the right to exclude any
person from the enjoyment and disposal thereof. For
this purpose, he may use such force as may be
reasonably necessary to repel or prevent an actual or
threatened unlawful physical invasion or
usurpation of his property.
1. Authorizes the lawful possessor to use force, to
prevent a threatened lawful invasion or usurpation

2. Requisites

a. Lawful possession
b. Actual or threatened unlawful physical
invasion or usurpation of his property
– Must not be a valid exercise of right or public function
c. Force used is reasonably necessary to repel or prevent
the aggression (least damage rule)

d. Physical invasion must not have succeeded yet, and

possession has not been lost
– Once property is lost, the owner can no longer use
force, but must file action to recover
Right to Enclose or Fence—

Article 430, Civil Code. Every owner may enclose or

fence his land or tenements by means of walls,
ditches, live or dead hedges, or by any other means
without detriment to servitudes constituted thereon.
But right is limited by servitudes existing
Thereon—

The owner of lower lands cannot erect works that will

impede or prevent such an easement or charge,
constituted and imposed by the law upon his estate
for the benefit of higher lands belonging to different
owners; neither can the latter do anything to increase
or extend the easement. It is true that the Code
authorizes every owner to enclose his estate by
means of walls, ditches, fences or other device, but
this right is limited by the easement imposed upon his
estate. (Lunod v. Meneses)
Right to Receive Just Compensation (in case
of expropriation)—

Article 435, Civil Code. No person shall be deprived

of his property except by competent authority and for
public use and always upon payment of just
compensation.

Should this requirement be not first complied with, the

courts shall protect and, in a proper case, restore the
owner in his possession.
Requisites of a Valid Expropriation

a. For public use or utility

b. Necessity of expropriation: reasonable in view of

purpose of the taking

c. Just compensation: Market value + consequential

damages
Right to Accession—

Article 440, Civil Code. The ownership of property

gives the right by accession to everything which is
produced thereby, or which is incorporated or
attached thereto, either naturally or artificially.
Right to Space and Subsoil—

1. Ownership of surface and everything under the

property

a. Can construct works, make plantings and excavations

b. Respecting servitudes and reasonable requirements of
aerial navigation
c. Easement of lateral and subjacent support

2. Subject to laws and ordinances—

The doctrine that ownership of the land extends to the

periphery of the universe (Cujus est solum ejus est
usque ad coelum, usque ad infernos) is no longer
applied in the modern world, in view of the doctrine that
the air is a public highway. (US vs. Causby)
Right to Hidden Treasure—

Article 438, Civil Code. Hidden treasure belongs to the

owner of the land, building, or other property on which it
is found.

Nevertheless, when the discovery is made on the

property of another, or of the State or any of its
subdivisions, and by chance, one-half thereof shall be
allowed to the finder. If the finder is a trespasser, he shall
not be entitled to any share of the treasure.

If the things found be of interest to science or the arts,

the State may acquire them at their just price, which shall
be divided in conformity with the rule stated.
Article 439, Civil Code. By treasure is understood, for
legal purposes, any hidden and unknown deposit of
money, jewelry or other precious objects, the lawful
ownership of which does not appear
1. Legal concept of hidden treasure

a. Consist of money, jewels or other precious objects

b. Hidden and unknown, such that the finding is a real
discovery

2. Owner also owns hidden treasure found in the land

subject to:

a. Right of a finder by chance who is not a

trespasser/intruder: ½ of treasure

b. Right of a usufructuary who finds treasure: ½ of

treasure

c. Right of State to acquire things of interest to science or

the arts
What is meant by chance?
“By chance” means by “good luck” whether there
was deliberate search for the treasure or not but
there was no proper agreement on how the
treasure, if found, would be divided.

The reason is because it is extremely difficult to

find hidden treasure without looking for it
deliberately. (Paras, Civil Code)
May the state acquire hidden treasure?
YES, if the things found be of interest to science
of the arts, the state may acquire them at their just
price which shall be divided in conformity with the
rule stated. (Civil Code, Article 438, Par.3)
If the hidden treasure is found by chance under a
municipal plaza, who owns the treasure?
Half of the treasure goes to the finder and the
other half goes to the municipality.

However, if the hidden treasure is scientifically or

artistically valuable, the finder's half has to be
given to the municipality or state, who in turn will
give him a just price therefor. The acquisition
here by the municipality or the state is a particular
form of eminent domain or expropriation, hence,
the procedure thereon should be substantially
followed (Paras, Civil Code)
Right to Recover Possession—

1. Movable Property: Replevin

– for manual delivery of property

– Prescription of Right: 4 years (GF) or 8 years (BF)
2. Immovable Property

a. Accion Reinvindicatoria: Recovery of ownership of real

property
– Including but not limited to possession
– Prescription of Action: 30 years

b. Accion Publiciana: Recovery of a better right to

possess (de jure)

– Judgment as to who has the better right of possession

– Also, actions for ejectment not filed within 1 year must

be filed as accion publiciana
– Prescription: 10 years
c. Accion Interdictal: Recovery of actual/physical
possession (de facto)
– FORCIBLE ENTRY: Lawful possessor deprived
through FISTS:

o FISTS (Force, Intimidation, Strategy, Threats, Stealth)

o Prescription: 1 year from dispossession (force,

intimidation, threats) or from knowledge of dispossession
(strategy, stealth)
– UNLAWFUL DETAINER: Possessor refused to vacate
upon demand by owner

– Legal possession (by permission/tolerance) becomes

unlawful upon failure to vacate
– Prescription of action: 1 year from last notice to vacate
In case of leases of residential units, the grounds for
judicial ejectment are limited to those enumerated in,
RA 9653: Rent Control Law of 2009 (See Section on
Special Laws)
3. Requisites for Recovery [Art. 434, Civil Code]

a. Property must be identified

– Through a relocation survey and a title properly

identifying boundaries and location

b. Plaintiff must rely on the strength of his title and not

on weakness of defendant’s title

Right must be founded on positive title and not on

------

lack or insufficiency of defendant’s

Ei incumbit probatio qui dicit, non qui negat: He who

----

asserts, not he who denies must prove

IV. Limitations on Real Right of Ownership

Limitations Provided by Law—

1. In General

a. Police Power: Property taken with no

compensation for general welfare
– When any property is condemned or seized by
competent authority in the interest of health, safety or
security, the owner thereof shall not be entitled to
compensation, unless he can show that such
condemnation or seizure is unjustified. [Art. 436, Civil
Code]
Requisites: To justify the exercise of police power,
the following must appear:

o The interests of the public generally, require such

interference (as distinguished from those of a
particular class).

o The means are reasonably necessary for the

accomplishment of a purpose, and not unduly
oppressive.
HOW DOES POLICE POWER POSE A LIMIT TO
OWNERSHIP?
Ownership of private property is impaired or
destroyed in the interest of the public welfare
(Director of Lands vs. Abanzado, G.R. No.L-
21814, July 15, 1975). As such, financial
compensation is not given to the owner (U.S. vs.
Toribio, G.R. No.L- 5060, January 26, 1910).
HOW DOES THE POWER OF TAXATION POSE
A LIMIT TO OWNERSHIP?
Real as well as personal property may be taxed
and unless the taxes are paid, there is danger that
the property may be seized and confiscated by
the government. The sale and forfeiture of the
property to the government in the absence of
bidders operate to discharge tax claims up to the
value of the property forfeited (Castro vs.
Collector of Internal Revenue, G.R. No. L-12174,
April 26, 1962).
How does the power of eminent domain pose a
limit to ownership?
The state has the right to acquire private property
for public use upon payment of just compensation.

Eminent domain or expropriation is based on the

need for human progress and community welfare
or development (Republic vs. CA, G.R. No.
100709, November 14, 1997)
b. Taxation: Forced contribution to the operation of
government

c. Eminent Domain: Property taken for public

use/purpose, but subject to due process and payment of
just compensation

Requisites – To justify the exercise of the right of eminent

domain, the following requisites must all be present:

1. Private property as the object of the expropriation;

2. The property is taken by the State or by competent
authority;
3. The purpose of the taking is for public use;
4. The taking must be attended with due process of law;
5. There is payment of just compensation
2. Specific Limitations

a. Legal Servitudes: once requisites are satisfied, the

servient owner may ask the Court to declare the
existence of an easement
– Art. 644 & 678: Aqueduct
– Art. 679: Planting of trees
– Art. 670: Light and View
– Art. 649 & 652: Right of Way
– Art. 637: Passage of water from upper to lower
tenements
– Art. 676: Drainage of buildings
– Art. 684-687: Lateral and subjacent support
b. Must not injure the rights of a third person

– Sic Utere Tuo Ut Alienum Non Laedas

– The owner of a thing cannot make use thereof in
such manner as to injure the rights of a third person.
[Art. 431, Civil Code]
c. Act in State of Necessity—

The owner of a thing has no right to prohibit the

interference of another with the same, if the
interference is necessary to avert an imminent
danger and the threatened damage, compared to the
damage arising to the owner from the interference, is
much greater. The owner may demand from the
person benefited, indemnity for the damage to him.
[Art. 432, Civil Code]
 Chapter III. Accession

I. DEFINITION

II. GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF ACCESSION

III. KINDS OF ACCESSION

IV. PRINCIPLES APPLICABLE TO EACH

A. PRINCIPLES APPLICABLE TO ACCESSION

DISCRETA

B. PRINCIPLES APPLICABLE TO ACCESSION

CONTINUA

V. ACCESSION OVER MOVABLES

I. Definition

ACCESSION: Owner of a thing becomes the owner

of everything that it may produce or which may be
inseparably united or incorporated thereto, either
naturally or artificially.
II. General Principles of Accession

1. Accessory follows the principal: presumption of

ownership of both principal and accessory

2. No one shall be unjustly enriched at the expense of

another: right to acquire but with duty to reimburse
III. Kinds of Accession

1. Accession Discreta

a. Natural
b. Industrial
c. Civil

2. Accession Continua

a. Over Immovables
– Industrial
– Natural
– Alluvion
– Avulsion
– Change of Course of River
– Formation of Islands
b. Over Movables

– Conjunction and Adjunction (process by virtue of

which 2 movable things belonging to different owners
are united in such a way that they form a single
object.

– Commixtion (Mixture of solids) and Confusion

(mixture of liquids)
– Specification (transformation of another's material
by the application or labor) –The material becomes a
thing of a different kind. Labor is the principal.
IV. Principles Governing Each Kind of Accession

A. Accession Discreta – “to the owner belongs the

ownership of the fruits produced by the property.”

Accession Discreta: Accession of Fruits—

Article 441, Civil Code. To the owner belongs:

1. The natural fruits;

2. The industrial fruits;
3. The civil fruits.
Article 442, Civil Code. Natural fruits are the
spontaneous products of the soil, and the young and
other products of animals.

Industrial fruits are those produced by lands of any

kind through cultivation or labor.

Civil fruits are the rents of buildings, the price of

leases of lands and other property and the amount of
perpetual or life annuities or other similar income.
1. Accession Discreta Natural

Article 444, Civil Code. Only such as are manifest or

born are considered as natural or industrial fruits.

a. Spontaneous products of the soil without the

intervention of man

b. The young of animals

– Products of animals which can be removed
without killing the principal (e.g. fleece, wool, milk,
etc. but not meat, fur, hide)
– Time of Accrual depending on kind.
2. Accession Discreta Industrial: Refers to fruits
produced by the land through labor and cultivation

3. Accession Discreta Civil: Refers to rentals of a

movable or an immovable
Principles Applicable to Accession Discreta—

1. Time of Accrual depending on kind:

a. Annuals: from the time seedlings appear on the

ground

b. Perennials: from the time fruits actually appear on

the plants

c. Young of animals: from the time they are in the

womb, although unborn – beginning of maximum
ordinary period of gestation

d. Fowls: from the time of incubation

2. A receiver of fruits has the obligation to pay the
expenses incurred by a third person in the
production, gathering and preservation. (Art. 443,
Civil Code)

– Exception: Receiver does not have to pay if fruits

are recovered before gathering from a possessor in
bad faith, receiver does NOT have to pay indemnity

– But if recovered after fruits have been gathered,

receiver must pay since the fruits have been
separated from immovable, hence accession
principles will not apply
Accession Continua over Immovables:

Accession by Attachment/Incorporation—

1. Accession Continua Artificial or Industrial: Building,

planting or sowing on land owned by another (over
immovables)

a. GENERAL RULE: Whatever is built, planted or

sown on the land of another + improvements or
repairs made thereon, belong to the owner of the land
subject to the rules on BPS.
b. PRESUMPTIONS:

– All works, sowing and planting are presumed

made by the owner
– All works are presumed made at the owner’s
expense, unless the contrary is proved

– The owner of the principal thing owns the

natural, industrial and civil fruits, except when the
following persons exist:

o Possessor in Good Faith

o Usufructuary
o Lessee
o Antichretic creditor
b. PRESUMPTIONS:

– All works, sowing and planting are presumed

made by the owner
– All works are presumed made at the owner’s
expense, unless the contrary is proved

– The owner of the principal thing owns the

natural, industrial and civil fruits, except when the
following persons exist:

o Possessor in Good Faith

o Usufructuary
o Lessee
o Antichretic creditor
c. Meaning of BAD FAITH

– Bad faith

o On the part of the landowner:

Whenever the building, planting or sowing was done with

the knowledge and without opposition on his part

o On the part of owner of materials: Allows the use of his

materials without protest

o On the part of the builder, planter and sower: Knows

that he does not have title to the land, nor the right to
build thereon OR no permission of the owner of the
materials to pay their value
– Bad faith leads to liability for damages and the loss
of the works or the improvement without
Reimbursement

– Bad faith of one party neutralizes the bad faith of

the other
SUMMARY OF BUILDER, PLANTER AND SOWER
PROVISIONS

ART. 447-455

Case 1: Landowner is BPS using material of another

2. Accession Continua Natural: Land deposits,
etc.

a. ALLUVION: Soil is gradually deposited on banks

adjoining the river

REQUISITES

o Deposit of soil or sediment is gradual and

imperceptible
o As a result of the action of the currents of the
waters of the river
o Land where the accretion takes place is adjacent to
the banks of the rivers
o Deemed to Exist: When the deposit of the sediment
has reached a level higher than the highest level of
the water during the year
EFFECT

o Land automatically owned by the riparian owner

o BUT does not automatically become registered

property

RATIONALE

o To offset the owner’s loss from possible erosion

due to the current of the river
To whom does the improvements made by the
usufructuary belong?
The improvements made by the usufructuary
belong to him and may therefore be registered,
not independently but in the registration
proceedings of the land held in usufruct (2 Paras,
p. 384)
Using lumber belonging to C, B constructed a
house on land belonging to A. He was aware that
the lumber belonged to C and the land to A. Both
A and C were abroad at the time of construction.
Two years later, the two (2) returned to the
Philippines. Subsequently, A commenced an
action against B. C intervened.

What are the rights and obligations of the parties?

Since A is in good faith and B is in bad faith, the
provisions of Arts. 449 to 452 shall be applied. A,
therefore, may avail himself of either of the
following remedies:

(1) appropriate the building plus damages

(2) demand the demolition or removal of the
building at the expense of the builder plus
damages; or
(3) compel B to buy the land plus damages.
If A chooses the first option, C, who is in good
faith, can proceed against B for the value of his
lumber + damages.

If B cannot pay by reason of insolvency, he can

proceed against A for the value of the lumber but
not for damages (NCC. Art. 455)
If A chooses the second option, C can proceed
against B for the value of his lumber + damages.
If B cannot pay by reason of insolvency, C has no
other remedy. A cannot be held subsidiarily liable
(NCC. Art. 455)
If A chooses the third option, C can proceed
against B for the value of his lumber + damages.
A cannot be held subsidiarily liable (NCC. Art.
455)
b. AVULSION: A portion of land is segregated from
one estate by the forceful current of a river, creek or
torrent and transferred to another

REQUISITES

o Segregation and transfer of land is sudden and

abrupt
o Caused by the current of the water
o Portion of land transported must be known and
identifiable OR
o Can also apply to sudden transfer by other forces of
nature such as land transferred from a mountain
slope because of an earthquake

RESULT: The ownership of the detached property is

retained by the owner subject to removal within 2
a. ALLUVION: Soil is gradually deposited on banks
adjoining the river

REQUISITES

o Deposit of soil or sediment is gradual and

imperceptible

o As a result of the action of the currents of the

waters of the river

o Land where the accretion takes place is adjacent to

the banks of the rivers

o Deemed to Exist: When the deposit of the sediment

has
reached a level higher than the highest level of the
water during the year
EFFECT

o Land automatically owned by the riparian owner

o BUT does not automatically become registered
property

RATIONALE

o To offset the owner’s loss from possible erosion

due to the current of the river

o Compensate for the subjection of the land to

encumbrances and legal easements
 ALLUVION VS. AVULSION
● The deposit of the soil ● The deposit of the soil
in alluvion is gradual in avulsion is sudden
or abrupt.
● The soil cannot be
● It is identifiable in
identified in alluvion avulsion.
● The soil belongs to
● The soil belongs to
the owner of the the owner from
property to which it is whose property it was
attached in alluvion. detached by avulsion.
A and B owned lands fronting a river. Thru the
force of the current, an identifiable portion of B's
estate was suddenly transferred to A's land.

Who owns the said portions?

B, the original owner since this is a case of
avulsion. (Martinez vs. Municipality of San Mateo,
G.R No. L-2575, March 17, 1908)

Note: Under the NCC, to retain ownership, B

must remove (not merely claim) the property.
c. CHANGE OF COURSE OF RIVER

REQUISITES

1. Change must be sudden or abrupt;

2. Changing of the course must be more or less
permanent;
3. The change in the river bed must be a natural one;
4. There must be a definite abandonment by the
government; and
5. The river must continue to exist.
RESULTS:

o Owners whose lands are occupied by the new

course automatically become owners of the old bed,
in proportion to the area they lost

o Owners of the lands adjoining the old bed are given

the right to acquire the same by paying the value of
the land

– Not exceeding the value of the land invaded by

the new bed (the old property of the owner)

o The new bed opened by the river on a private

estate shall become of public dominion
A owns a parcel of land adjoining the bank of
Pampanga River. The land on the opposite bank
is owned by B. The river suddenly changed its
natural course, and the new river passed through
more than one-half of the land of B.

The ownership of the abandoned river bed is

claimed by: (1) A as the owner of the adjacent
land; (2) B who lost more than one-half of his land
to the new river bed; (3) The government on the
ground that the abandoned river is part of the
public domain.

Who is the rightful owner of the abandoned river

bed?
It is clear under Article 461 that B ipso facto owns
the abandoned river bed in proportion to the area
which is lost (unless of course the government
takes steps to bring back the river to its old
course). As owner of the adjacent land, A is given
the right to reimburse B for the half of the
abandoned river bed.
d. FORMATION OF ISLANDS

1. Belong to the State if:

o Formed on the SEAS within the jurisdiction of the

Philippines
o Formed on LAKES
o Formed on NAVIGABLE or FLOATABLE RIVERS
 – Capable of affording a channel or passage for
ships and vessels
– Must be sufficient not only to float bancas and
light boats, but also bigger watercraft
– Deep enough to allow unobstructed movements
of ships and vessels

TEST: can be used as a highway of commerce, trade

and travel
2. Belong to the Owners of the nearest margins or
banks if

o Formed through successive accumulation of alluvial

deposits

o On NON-NAVIGABLE and NON-FLOATABLE

RIVERS

– If island is in the middle: divided longitudinally

in half.
End of Lecture/Discussion

November 6, 2020