G.R. No. 129103 , September 3, 1999.
CLAUDIO DELOS REYES and LYDIA DELOS REYES, petitioners, vs. THE HON. COURT OF APPEALS and DALUYONG GABRIEL, substituted by his heirs, namely: MARIA LUISA G. ESTEBAN, MARIA RITA G. BARTOLOME & RENATO GABRIEL, respondents.

FACTS

Petitioner spouses Claudio and Lydia de los Reyes entered into a verbal contract of sale with respondent Renato Gabriel for a piece of land. Renato Gabriel acted as an agent in conveying the property. The authority of Renato Gabriel to sell the land was not in writing.

ISSUE

Whether the verbal contract of sale executed through an agent without written authority is void.

RULING

The verbal contract of sale is void. Article 1874 of the Civil Code requires that when a sale of land or any interest therein is made through an agent, the authority of the agent must be in writing; otherwise, the sale is void. The concurring opinion of Justice Vitug emphasizes that while such contracts are statutorily denominated as void, they are, in fact, susceptible to ratification by the principal, as gleaned from Articles 1403(1) and 1910 of the Civil Code. However, this susceptibility to ratification does not convert the contract into merely an unenforceable one, as other principles governing void contracts remain applicable. The ratification must be an act of affirmation by the principal. In this case, the agent lacked the requisite written authority, rendering the sale void.