Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Exercise 3
Exercise 3
Exercise 3
Leachon <rachel.leachon@gmail.com>
Exercise 3
3 messages
Ralph Sarmiento <attydeanralph@gmail.com> Thu, Jul 27, 2017 at 6:16 PM
To: Rachel Leachon <rachel.leachon@gmail.com>
After reading the question, research and study the applicable rule and/or jurisprudence.
When you are ready to answer, close all your books, notes, computers, tablets, cellphones, and the like and
then sit down & give yourself 10 to 12 minutes to write your answer.
Try to come up with a topnotch answer – one that will stand out from among the thousands of other
answers from your fellow Bar takers.
In making your answer, please follow the format I gave you in the previous exercise, i.e., it should have four
parts: (a) the exact brief responsive answer; (b) the applicable rule; (c) the application of the rule to the
facts; and (d) conclusion.
Here is the problem for Exercise 3:
A built a house on land belonging to B in the belief that the land was his own. The error discovered,
B formally notified A that he elected to appropriate the house. All efforts to reach an agreement as to
the sum to be paid to A having failed, A began an action to recover the expenditures incurred by him
in building the house. The house was destroyed in a fire of purely accidental origin. Would A be
entitled to recover from B the said expenditures?
Ralph A. Sarmiento
Mobile # +63 920 9387440
FB: facebook.com/attyralph
Twitter: twitter.com/attyralph
"If you can't reduce your argument to a few crisp words and phrases,
there's something wrong with your argument."
~ M. Saatchi
Rachel Leachon <rachel.leachon@gmail.com> Fri, Sep 1, 2017 at 9:11 PM
To: Ralph Sarmiento <attydeanralph@gmail.com>
Exercise 3:
A would be entitled to recover from B the expenditures that he incurred from building the house.
The law provides that the owner of the land on which anything has been built in good faith shall have the right to
appropriate as his own after payment of the necessary and useful expenses to the possessor in good faith.
In this case, A is a possessor in good faith when he built the house on a land believing that it belongs to him. Even though
the house was destroyed by fire, A is still entitled to reimbursement because they have an agreement that B will
appropriate the house and they even negotiated on the amount of reimbursement but they failed to reach a settlement.
The law also provides that the owner bears the risk of loss of a thing due to a fortuitous event. B, as the owner of the
property, bears the loss when the house was accidentally destroyed by fire.
Thus, A is entitled to recover from B the said expenditures, despite the fact the house was destroyed.
[Quoted text hidden]
Ralph Sarmiento <attydeanralph@gmail.com> Wed, Sep 6, 2017 at 11:03 AM
To: Rachel Leachon <rachel.leachon@gmail.com>
A would be entitled to recover from B the expenditures that he incurred from building the house.
The law provides that the owner of the land on which anything has been built in good faith shall have the
right to appropriate as his own after payment of the necessary and useful expenses to the possessor in
good faith.
In this case, A is a possessor in good faith when he built the house on a land believing that it belongs to
him. Even though the house was destroyed by fire, A is still entitled to reimbursement because they have an
agreement that B will (There was no agreement to speak of.) B had already exercised his right to
appropriate the house as his own, and they even negotiated on the amount of reimbursement, but they
failed to reach a settlement.
The law also provides that the owner bears the risk of loss of a thing due to a fortuitous event. B, as the
owner of the property, bears the loss when the house was accidentally destroyed by fire.
Thus, A is entitled to recover from B the said expenditures, despite the fact the house was destroyed.
(Excellent analysis and presentation.)
For comparison, please study this answer given by the legendary Arturo Tolentino on the same question,
which employs the same format I have explained in the previous exercise. Take note of the way he cites the
law and how he applied it:
A would be entitled to recover the expenditures incurred by him in building the house.
The law provides that when something is built in good faith upon the land of another, the latter shall
have the option to appropriate the same upon payment of the expenses to the builder, or to require
the builder to pay the price of the land on which said building was constructed.
In the exercise of this option, B elected to appropriate the house. By so doing, he incurred the
obligation to pay the expenses to A, which is an obligation which does not depend on the continued
existence of the house. It may be said that his exercise of the option given by law made the house
his own by ac cession.
Res perit domino; hence, he must bear the loss and pay the expenses.
First Part – Response to the question posed in the problem:
A would be entitled to recover the expenditures incurred by him in building the house.
Second Part – Statement of the legal basis or applicable law or rule:
The law provides that when something is built in good faith upon the land of another, the latter shall
have the option to appropriate the same upon payment of the expenses to the builder, or to require
the builder to pay the price of the land on which said building was constructed.
Third Part – Applicable of the law to the facts of the problem:
In the exercise of this option, B elected to appropriate the house. By so doing, he incurred the
obligation to pay the expenses to A, which is an obligation which does not depend on the continued
existence of the house. It may be said that his exercise of the option given by law made the house
his own by ac cession.
Fourth Part – Conclusion or Reiteration of the Conclusion (This is optional. For short answers, there
is no need to reiterate the conclusion as long as it’s already clearly stated in the first part of the
answer):
Res perit domino; hence, he must bear the loss and pay the expenses.
MY OTHER SUGGESTED ANSWERS:
Sample Yes Answer:
Yes, A is entitled to recover from B the necessary and useful expenditures incurred by him in building
the house.
The Civil Code provides that if both the landowner and the builder are in good faith, the landowner
has two options. First, he may appropriate for himself what has been built on his land, provided that
he pays the necessary and useful expenses. In such event, the builder is entitled to retain the
property without paying rent until the landowner pays said expenses. Second, the landowner may
oblige the builder to pay the price of the land if said price is not considerably higher than the value of
what has been built thereupon.
Here, A and B are in good faith because both believed the subject land was their own. Since B, the
landowner, elected the first option, which is to appropriate the house, his duty has now been
converted into a monetary obligation to indemnify A. The said obligation holds true despite their
disagreement as to the amount to be paid to A because B never reneged on the option he elected.
Furthermore, the said obligation also holds true notwithstanding the loss of the house because a
monetary obligation cannot be extinguished by fortuitous events because money is a generic thing.
What was lost in this case is the house, not B's money. Besides, B had already appropriated the
house and A had already commenced an action to recover his expenditures before the accident
happened.
Therefore, A is entitled to recover from B the necessary and useful expenditures incurred by him in
building the house because B elected to appropriate the said house for himself.
Sample No Answer:
No, A is not be entitled to recover from B the expenses incurred by him in building the house on B's
land.
Under Articles 448 and 546 of the Civil Code, the owner of the land on which anything has been built
in good faith has the option to appropriate as his own the work after payment of the necessary and
useful expenses incurred by the builder and such builder in good faith has the right of retention over
the property pending full reimbursement of the costs incurred.
However, Article 553 of the Civil Code also provides that one who recovers possession shall not be
obliged to pay for the improvements which have ceased to exist at the time he takes possession of
the thing.
In the case at bar, since the house has been destroyed in a fire, B may no longer be compelled to
reimburse A for the expenses he incurred in building the house. Having ceased to exist, B as the
owner or lawful possessor can no longer benefit from the improvements made. To compel him to pay
would constitute unjust enrichment on the part of A.
Hence, A may no longer recover from B the expenses he incurred in building the house. He must
bear its loss.
AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT THE LENGTH OF AN ANSWER
The most common question that I receive about answering Bar questions concerns the length of the answer.
So, let me answer it here even before you ask about it.
The length of the answer should be the least of your concerns in the Bar. What you should be concerned
with only is "substance." The rule is very simple: NEVER SACRIFICE SUBSTANCE MERELY FOR THE
SAKE OF BREVITY!
However, writing with substance does not mean writing long answers. The answer does not have to be long
and very exhaustive. It just has to be complete with all the required elements. It must be an opening
paragraph that is responsive to the question. The legal basis or applicable law, rule, or principle must be
stated in a separate paragraph, and then it is applied to the facts, explained or discussed in another
paragraph. It exhibits your knowledge of the law and legal principles, and it showcases your skills in legal
analysis and reasoning. If you can do that all in just one sentence, then good, but it is impossible!
So, there really is no hard and fast rule regarding the length of an answer. Some questions would require
short answers only, but some will require longer ones. What's important is that you don't intentionally make
your answers short nor intentionally make them longer than is necessary. So, if the question requires a short
answer, then give it a short answer, and if it requires a longer answer, then give it a longer answer.
It also depends on how much time you have. If the question raises three issues, but your remaining time
allows you to discuss only one, then focus and discuss only the most important of the three. You just have to
work within the time limit and try to give the best answer within the allotted time.
So again, let me emphasize once more, NEVER SACRIFICE SUBSTANCE MERELY FOR THE SAKE OF
BREVITY!! And also remember that SUBSTANCE is judged by the WEIGHT of the answer, NOT by its
LENGTH.
Ralph A. Sarmiento
Mobile # +63 920 9387440
FB: facebook.com/attyralph
Twitter: twitter.com/attyralph
"If you can't reduce your argument to a few crisp words and phrases,
there's something wrong with your argument."
~ M. Saatchi
[Quoted text hidden]