G.R. No. L-8451, December 20, 1957
THE ROMAN CATHOLIC APOSTOLIC ADMINISTRATOR OF DAVAO, INC., petitioner, vs. THE LAND REGISTRATION COMMISSION and THE REGISTER OF DEEDS OF DAVAO CITY, respondents.

FACTS

On October 4, 1954, Mateo L. Rodis, a Filipino citizen, executed a deed of sale for a parcel of land in Davao City in favor of the Roman Catholic Apostolic Administrator of Davao, Inc., a corporation sole organized under Philippine laws, with Msgr. Clovis Thibault, a Canadian citizen, as its actual incumbent. When the deed was presented for registration, the Register of Deeds of Davao, citing a previous court resolution involving the Carmelite Nuns of Davao, required the corporation sole to submit an affidavit declaring that 60% of its members were Filipino citizens. The vendee expressed willingness to submit an affidavit but argued the cases were dissimilar, as a corporation sole has only one incorporator and the property would be owned by the Catholic population of Davao. The Register of Deeds referred the matter to the Land Registration Commissioner en consulta. After a hearing, the Commissioner resolved on September 21, 1954, that under Sections 1 and 5 of Article XIII of the Philippine Constitution, the vendee was not qualified to acquire private lands without proof that at least 60% of its capital, property, or assets was owned or controlled by Filipino citizens, noting the incumbent was an alien. The Commissioner ordered the Register of Deeds to deny registration absent such proof. After a motion for reconsideration was denied, the corporation sole filed this petition for mandamus, arguing that under the Corporation Law and settled jurisprudence, the sale was in favor of the Catholic Church, which is qualified to acquire lands for religious purposes.

ISSUE

Whether the Roman Catholic Apostolic Administrator of Davao, Inc., a corporation sole with an alien incumbent, is qualified to acquire and register private agricultural land under the Philippine Constitution, specifically in light of the constitutional requirement that corporations or associations must be at least 60% Filipino-owned to hold such lands.

RULING

The Supreme Court denied the petition and affirmed the resolution of the Land Registration Commissioner. The Court held that the constitutional prohibition in Section 5 of Article XIII applies, allowing only individuals, corporations, or associations qualified to acquire public lands to hold private agricultural land, save for hereditary succession. Under Section 1 of the same Article, corporations or associations must have at least 60% of their capital owned by Filipino citizens. The Court found that a corporation sole, while a juridical person under the Corporation Law, is not exempt from this requirement. The incumbent of the corporation sole, Msgr. Clovis Thibault, being an alien, controls the administration and disposition of the property, effectively exercising rights of ownership. The Court rejected the argument that the property is owned by the Catholic Church as a “moral person” or by the diocese, with the incumbent as a mere administrator, stating that such a theory does not negate the need for compliance with the citizenship requirement for control. The Court also noted that the petitioner’s claim that Filipino citizens comprise more than 80% of the Catholic population in Davao and 60.5% of the clergy was not substantiated by evidence in the record and was a factual matter not properly before the Court in a mandamus proceeding. Therefore, absent proof that at least 60% of the capital or controlling interest of the corporation sole is Filipino-owned, it is disqualified from acquiring private agricultural land, and the Register of Deeds correctly denied registration of the deed of sale.