GR 102858; (July, 1997) (Digest)
G.R. No. 102858 July 28, 1997
THE DIRECTOR OF LANDS, petitioner, vs. COURT OF APPEALS and TEODORO ABISTADO, substituted by MARGARITA, MARISSA, MARIBEL, ARNOLD and MARY ANN, all surnamed ABISTADO, respondents.
FACTS
On December 8, 1986, private respondent Teodoro Abistado filed a petition for original registration of title over a parcel of land under Presidential Decree No. 1529. During the pendency, Abistado died and was substituted by his heirs. The Regional Trial Court dismissed the petition for want of jurisdiction, finding that while the applicants and their predecessors-in-interest had been in open, continuous, exclusive, and peaceful possession since 1938, they failed to comply with Section 23 of P.D. 1529. The notice of initial hearing was published only in the Official Gazette and not in a newspaper of general circulation. The Court of Appeals reversed the trial court, ruling that publication in the Official Gazette was sufficient to confer jurisdiction and that the lack of newspaper publication was a mere procedural defect that did not prejudice the oppositors. The Director of Lands, through the Solicitor General, filed this petition.
ISSUE
Whether the publication of the notice of initial hearing in a newspaper of general circulation, as required by Section 23 of P.D. 1529, is mandatory for the valid grant of an application for original land registration.
RULING
Yes, newspaper publication is mandatory. The Supreme Court granted the petition, reversed the Decision and Resolution of the Court of Appeals, and dismissed the application for land registration without prejudice.
The Court held that Section 23 of P.D. 1529, which states that the Commissioner of Land Registration shall cause notice to be published once in the Official Gazette and once in a newspaper of general circulation, uses the mandatory term “shall.” While the provision states that publication in the Official Gazette is sufficient to confer jurisdiction upon the court, the requirement for newspaper publication is not dispensable. Land registration is a proceeding in rem, which requires constructive seizure of the land against all persons. To satisfy due process, the notice must be disseminated as widely as possible through publication, mailing, and posting—all of which are compulsory. The failure to publish in a newspaper of general circulation deprives interested parties of notice and opportunity to be heard. The law is clear and allows no excuse for non-compliance; thus, the application must be dismissed.