The Director of Lands, petitioner

v.s.

Intermediate Appellate Court and Acme Plywood & Veneer Co. Inc., Etc., respondents

G.R. No. 73002

December 29,1986

Facts:

ACME Plywood & Veneer Co. Inc., a corporation represented by Mr. Rodolfo Nazario
and duly organized in accordance with the laws of the Republic of the Philippines,
acquired five (5) parcels of land from Mariano and Acer Infiel, who are members of the
Dumagat tribe and as such are cultural minorities. These five lands are sought to be
registered by ACME Plywood. The Director of Lands opposes the registration on the
grounds that the land is of public domain and that corporations are prohibited by the
1973 Constitution to lands of public domain except in lease not exceeding 1,000
hectares. ACME Plywood averred that the lands sought to be registered are private lands
pursuant to Republic Act 3872 granting absolute ownership to members of the non-
Christian tribes on land occupied by them or their ancestral lands, whether with the
alienable or disposable public lands or within the public domain. Ownership and
possession of the land sought to be registered was duly recognized by the government.
Intermediate Appellate Court rendered a decision in favor of ACME which the Court of
First Instance of Isabela affirmed. Thus, this appeal.

ISSUE:

Whether or not the lands are part of the public domain.

Whether or not the constitutional prohibition against acquisition by private

corporations will apply.

Ruling:

No. The Court stated that the lands are already private lands not only in the right of
grant but also by operation of law. For the grant to be honoured by the court, it is not
necessary that they have a certificate of title, an application for registration would
suffice. The same being said, the lands are already private lands because of acquisitive
prescription by the corporation’s predecessors and the realistic solution would be to
consider the application for confirmation as filed by the natural persons-transferors.
There is also nothing to prevent ACME from reconveying the lands to the Infiels and the
latter from themselves applying for confirmation of title and, after issuance of the
certificate/s of title in their names, deeding the lands back to Acme. The constitutional
prohibition does not apply in the case at bar because the lands are already private lands
when ACME acquired them from the Infiels. This is supported by a legal, sufficient and
transferable title over the land on October 29, 1962. Since the land acquired by them is a
private land to begin with, ACME has a perfect right to make such acquisition. There is
nothing the Constitution that prohibits private corporations to acquire private lands.
The 1973 Constitution and the present Constitution only gives prohibitions on private
corporations in acquiring lands of the public domain. The Infiels presented evidence
that proved that they were already in possession of the property since time immemorial
and that the lands are private lands, even before Magellan discovered the Philippines.