CONSTITUTIONAL LAW 1

CHAPTER 2: CONSTITUTION OF THE PHILIPPINES

TIMELINE
I. Malolos Constitution
II. The American Regime and the Organic Acts
III. The 1935 Constitution
IV. The Japanese (Belligerent) Occupation
V. The 1973 Constitution
VI. 1987 Constitution (4th Fundamental law to govern the Ph
since it become independent on July 4, 1946)
a. Proclamation No. 1 (February 25, 1986) –
announcing that she (Corazon Aquino) and VP
Laurel assuming Power.
b. EO No.1 (February 28, 1986)
c. Proclamation No. 3 (March 25, 1986) – announcing
the promulgation of the Provisional (Freedom)
Constitution, pending the drafting and
ratification of a new Constitution. It adopted
certain provisions in the 1973 Constitution,
contained additional articles on the executive
department, on government reorganization, and on
existing laws. It also provided of the calling of
a Constitutional Commission to be composed of 30-
50 members to draft a new Constitution.
d. Proclamation No. 9 – creating the Constitutional
Commission of 50 members.
e. Approval of the draft Constitution by the
Constitutional Commission on October 15, 1986
f. Plebiscite held on February 2, 1987.
g. Proclamation No. 58 proclaiming the ratification
of the Constitution
h. Effectivity of the 1987 Constitution: February 2,
1987
SALIENT FEATURES
I. The new constitution consists of 18 articles and is
excessively long compared to the 1938 and 1973
constitution,
II. The Independence of the Judiciary has been
strengthened with new provision for authority, which
now covers even political questions formerly beyond
its jurisdiction.
III. The Bill of rights of the Commonwealth and Marcos
Constitution has been considerably improved in the
1987 Constitution and even bolstered with the creation
of a Commission of Human Rights.
CHAPTER 3: CONCEPT OF STATE
DEFINITIONS
STATE – a community of persons, more or less numerous,
permanently occupying a fixed territory, and possessed of an
independent government organized for political ends to which the great
body of inhabitants render habitual obedience. Legal Concept
Vs NATION (nasci: to be born) – indicates a relation of
birth or origin and implies a common race, usually characterized by
community of language and customs. Racial or ethnic concept

ELEMENTS OF STATES
1. PEOPLE
 refers simply to the inhabitant of the state
(numerous enough to be self-sufficing and to defend
themselves and small enough to be easily
administered and sustained).
2. TERRITORY
 It is the fixed portion of the surface of the earth
inhabited by the people of the state.
 Article 1 of the 1987 Constitution: National
Territory.
 De-emphasizes recollections of our past
deleting reference to the territories we
claim “by historic right or legal title”.
 Sec. 2 of RA 5446 – without prejudice to
the delineation of the baselines of
territorial sea around the territory of
Sabah (“by historic right or legal
title”).
o Second sentence – affirmation of the
archipelago doctrine. (Internal water)
o Magallona vs Ermita
 Petitioners argued that RA 9522, which
adjusted the archipelagic baselines of
the Philippines in accordance with the
United Nations Convention on the Law of
the Sea (UNCLOS III), resulted in the
loss of Philippine maritime territory
and violated constitutional provisions.
Ruling: RA 9522 is not unconstitutional.
Ratio: On the merits, the Court ruled
that RA 9522 is a statutory tool to
demarcate the country's maritime zones
and continental shelf under UNCLOS III,
 not to delineate Philippine territory.
(Study farther)
o Insular shelves under jurisdiction not the
sovereignty of the costal state.
3. GOVERNMENT
 The agency or instrumentality through which the
will of the state is formulated, expressed and
realized.
 FUNCTIONS (not relevant to SC because of the
repudiation of the laissez faire policy in the
Constitution)
a. CONSTITUENTS – Compulsory; reason why government
is established.
 Keeping of order and providing protection
from violence and robbery
 Fixing legal relations between husband and
wife and between parents and children
 The regulation of the holding, transmission
and interchange of property, and the
determination of its liabilities for debt or
for crime.
 Contractual rights between individuals
 Definition and punishment of crimes
 Administration of justice in civil cases
 Administration of political duties,
privileges and relations of citizens
 Dealing of state with foreign powers; the
preservation of the state from external
danger or encroachment and the advancement of
its international interests.
b. MINSTRANTS – optional like public works, charity,
education, regulation of trade and industry, health
and safety regulation
- distinguishes Paternalistic and
individualistic (basic fx of maintain peace and order)

 DOTRINE OF PARENS PATRIAE

o Parens Patriae (parent of his or her country) –
State in its role as ‘sovereign’ or the state in
its capacity as a provider of protection to
those unable to care for themselves. (States may
resort to exercise of its inherent powers: Police
Power, Eminent Domain and Power of Taxation)
Ex. Cabanas v. Pilapil – State chose the mother
of an illegitimate child against his uncle to be
 the trustee of insurance proceeds left him by his
father, who had expressly designated the uncle.
Soriano v. Laguardia – suspension of the
petitioner’s television program for offensive and
obscene language uttered and without a doubt
accessible to the children.
 DE JURE AND DE FACTO GOVERNMENT
o De Jure – rightful title but no power or control.
o De Facto – government of fact; exercises power or
control but without legal title.
 3 Kinds of Government:
 The government that gets possession
and control of, or usurps, by force or
by the voice of the majority, the
rightful legal government and
maintains itself against the will of
latter.
 That established as an independent
government by the inhabitants of a
country who rise in insurrection
against the parent state.
 That which is established and
maintained by military forces who
invade and occupy a territory of the
enemy in the course of was.
(Government of paramount force) –
Japanese belligerent during the
occupation of the PH in WWII.
Characteristics:
1. Maintained by active
military power against
rightful authority
2. Obeyed in civil matters
Ex. Government under Corazon Aquino
1. Revolutionary government- people power
2. De facto government- because there was no
constitutional basis for its creation, the same
not being sanctioned either under the 1035 or
1973 constitution.
3. acquired a de jure status when it obtained the
continuous public acceptance and support of the
people and the recognition of practically all
foreign governments.
  GOVERNMENT OF THE PHILIPPINES – the corporate
governmental entity through which the functions of
government are exercised throughout the Philippines.
Gov’t Agency – various units of the government
including department, bureau, office, LG or distinct
unit thereof.
 ADMINISTRATION – group of persons in whose hands the
reins of government are for the time being.
Administration runs the government.
Administration is transitional whereas
government is permanent.
4. SOVEREIGNTY – The supreme and uncontrollable power
inherent in a state by which that state is governed.
Sovereignty- possession of sovereign power vs Jurisdiction-
conferment by law of power and authority to apply the law.
4 Kinds of Sovereignty
1. Legal Sovereignty- Sovereignty as the
supreme law-making power. The legal sovereign is
that determinate authority which is able to express in
legal form the highest commands of the state, that power
which can over ride the prescriptions of the divine law, the
principles of morality, the mandates of public opinion.
2. Political Sovereignty- That power behind the legal
sovereign which is legally unknown, unorganized and in
capable of expressing the will of the state in the form of
legal command, yet without power to whose mandates the legal
sovereign will in practice bow and whose will must
ultimately prevail in the state. In a narrower
sense, the electorate constitute the political sovereign,
and in a broader sense, the whole mass of population.
3. Internal Sovereignty- Implies the power of the
state to make and alter its system of government, and to
regulate its private affairs, as well as the rights and
relations of its citizens, without any dictation,
interference, or control on the part of any person or body
or state outside the particular political community.
4. External Sovereignty- That the state spoken of is
not subject to the control, dictation, or government of any
power. It necessarily implies the right and power to receive
recognition as an independent power from other powers, and
to make treaties with them on equal terms, make war or peace
with them, send diplomatic agents to them, acquire territory
 by conquest or occupation, and otherwise to manifest its
freedom and autonomy
Essential characteristics of sovereignty
1. Permanence- The sovereignty of the state continues
without interruption so long as the state itself exists. It
does not cease with the death or temporary dispossession of
a particular bearer or the reorganization of the state, but
shifts immediately to a new bearer, as the center of gravity
shifts from one part of a body to another when it undergoes
external change.
2. Exclusivity- It is the quality by virtue of which there
can be but one supreme power in the state, legally entitled
to the obedience of the inhabitants. To hold otherwise would
be to deny the principle of unity of state and to admit the
possibility of an imperium in imperio.
3. Comprehensiveness- It is the universality of sovereignty
within the territorial limits of the state, that is
sovereign power extends over all persons, association and
things within such territorial limits except those over
which the state has voluntarily consented to waive the
exercise of its jurisdiction.

ACT OF STATE
- act done by the sovereign power of a country, or by its
delegate, within the limits of the power vested in him. An act cannot
be questioned or made the subject of legal proceeding in a court of
law.
CHAPTER 4: THE DOCTRINE OF STATE IMMUNITY
- The State may not be sued without its consent. Generally
accepted principles of Internal law that we have adopted as part of
the law of our land inder Article II, Section 2.
Gen. Rule: Sovereign state and itspolitical subdivisions cannot
be sued in the courts except when it has given its consent.
BASIS
- indiscriminate suits = impairment of dignity
- Justice Holmes: Doctrine of non-suability is based NOT on
any formal conception or obsolete theory but on logical and pratical
ground that there can be no legal right against the authority which
makes the law on which the right depends.
- practical demands and inconveniences = divertion from more
pressing matters.
- Take note: the application of the doctrine of immunity
from suit has been restricted to SOVEREIGN OR GOVERNMENTAL ACTIVITIES
and cannot be extended to commercial, private and proprietary acts.

STATE IMMUNITY AS THE “ROYAL PREROGATIVE OF DISHONESTY”

The doctrine of state immunity from suit is also called "the royal
prerogative of dishonesty" because it grants the state the prerogative
to defeat any legitimate claim against it by simply invoking its non-
suability. (Department of Agriculture v. NLRC 11November 1993)
APPLICATION OF THE IMMUNITY DOCTRINE TO THE PHILIPPINES
STEPS:
I. Determine if the suit qualifies as a suit against
the State.
II. If it is a suit against the State, determine if
there is an express consent to be sued.
III. If there is no express consent, determine if
there is an implied consent to be sued.
IV. Even if there is no consent, express or implied,
determine if the casse fall under the exception
to the general rule of state of immunity from
suit.
V. Even if the stated can be sued, determine if it
is liable.
STEP 1: DETERMINE IF THE SUIT QUALIFIES AS A SUIT AGAINST THE
STATE.
 Some instances of a suit against the State:
1. When the Republic is sued by name
2. When the suit is against an unicorporated
government agency
3. When the suit is on its face against a government
officer but the case is such that ultimate liabiity
will belong not to the officer but to the
government. When the complaint is filed against
officials of the state foracts allegedly performed
by them in the discharge of their duties, the suit
is regarded asone against the state where
satisfaction of the judgment against the officials
will requirethe state itself to perform a positive
act, such as the appropriation of the
amountnecessary to pay the damages awarded against
them
Cases when the state immunity doctrine does not apply:
1. Relief does not require action by the State.
2. When the act of the public officer is ultra vires,
or in bad faith, or with malice or gross
negligence.
STEP 2: DETERINE IF THERE IS AN EXPRESS CONSENT TO BE SUED
Express Consent – manisfested either through a general law
or special law.
General law (Act no. 3083) – Gov’t consent and submit
to be sued upon any moneyed claim involving liability arising
from contract, express or implied, which could serve as a basis
of civil action between private parties.
Special Law – enacted by the Philippines Legislature
authorizing an individual to sue the Philippine Governement for
inquiries.
Implied Consent – given when the State istelf commences
litigation or when it enters into a contract.

 UNINCORPORATED GOV’T AGENCIES

o Has no separte juridical personality but is
merged in the general machinery of the government
like DOJ, BM, GPO
o The State consents to be sued on money claims
involving liability arising from the contract
under Act 3083. But the claim must be filed
 against the Commission on Audit, under CA 327 and
PD 1145.
o The Supreme Court used as basis in dismissing the
cases thelack of implied State consent when
unincorporated governmentagencies entered into
contracts in the exercise of their sovereign
orgovernmental functions. However, the Supreme
Court ruled that themoney claims may still be
filed with the Commission on Audit, pursuantto
Act No. 327
 INCORPORATED GOV’T AGENCIES
o Express consent based on ther charter.
o Has a charter of its own that invests it with a
separate juridical personality, like SSS, UP, and
the City of Manila.
o The test of its suability is found in its
charter. The simple is that it is suability if
its charter says so, and this is true regardless
of the functions it is performing.
o GOCC (Governement owned and controlled
corporation) – not immune from suit, where or not
it performs governmental functions. It may also
be sued for torts.
 LOCAL GOV’TS
o Express consent under the Local Governement Code
and/or charter.
o Municipal corporations, for example, like
provinces and cities, areagencies of the State
when they are engaged in governmental
functionsand therefore should enjoy the sovereign
immunity from suit.Nevertheless, they are subject
to suit even in the performance of such functions
because their charter provides that they can
sueand be sued.
STEP 3: DETERMIN IF THERE IS AN IMPLIED CONSENT TO BE SUED.
Not all contracts entered into by the gov’t operates as a
waiver of its non-suability.
1. Soveriegn and governmental acts (jure imperii)
2. Private, commercial and propriety acts (jure gestionis)
STEP 4: DETERMINE OF THE CASE FALLS UNDER THE EXCEPTIONS TO THE
GENERAL RULE OF STATE IMMUNITY FROM SUIT.
GEN RULE: The state may not be sued without its consent.
Exceptions:
 In these cases, the State may still be sued even if it
has noconsent
1) a public officer may be sued to compel him to do an
act required by law;
2) a public officer may be sued to restrain him from
enforcing a law claimed to be unconstitutional;
3) a public officer may be sued to compel an office to
paydamages from an already appropriate assurance fund or a
revenue officerto refund tax overpayments from a fund
already available for suchpurpose;
4) an action may be filed to secure a judgment that
the officerimpleaded may satisfy himself without the
government itself having to doa positive act to assist him;
5) where the government itself has violated its own
laws, theaggrieved party may directly implead the government
even without firstfiling his claim with the Commission on
Audit, as the doctrine of stateimmunity cannot be used as an
instrument for perpetrating an injustice.(Sanders v.
Veridiano, 10 June 1988)
*The doctrine of state immunity from suit cannot serve
as an instrument for perpetrating an injustice.*

STEPS 5: DETERMINE IF THE STATE IS LIABLE

- when the States waives its immunity, all it does, in
effect, is to give the other party an opportunity to prove, if it can,
that the state has a liability.

STEP 6: DETERMINE IF THE STATE FUNDS OR PROPERTY CAN BE SUBJECT

TO EXECUTION.
Consent to be sued does not mean consent to execution.
- even though the rule as to immunity of a state from
a suit is relaxed, the power of the courts ends when the judgement is
rendered.
Summary
FACTS: Contributions were collected during the Spanish regime for
the relief of the victims of an earthquake but part of the monry was
never distributed and instead deposited with the defendant bank. In an
action for its recovery filed later by the government, the defendant
questioned the competence of the plaintiff contending that the suit
could be instituted only by the intended beneficiaries themselves or
by their heirs.

Ratio:
Loan vs Donation – It was a loan rather donaion based on
documentary evidences and the terms of transfer.
Subrogation of rights – Ph Gov’t inherited the rights and
obligations related to the earthquake relief fund as the successor of
the Spanish Gov’t.
Constitutionality – did not violate the due process clause
of the Ph. Bill of rights – reclaim of funds
Statute of Limitation – does not apply to the Ph Government.
Parens Patriae – the State representattion of the
Legitimate claimants.

The national territory comprises the Philippine archipelago, with all

the islands and waters embraced therein, and all other territories
over which the Philippines has sovereignty or jurisdiction, consisting
of its terrestrial, fluvial and aerial domains, including its
territorial sea, the seabed, the subsoil, the insular shelves, and
other submarine areas. The waters around, between, and connecting the
islands of the archipelago, regardless of their breadth and
dimensions, form part of the internal waters of the Philippines.