GR 247576; (March, 2021) (Digest)
G.R. No. 247576 , March 15, 2021
Rosario D. Ado-an-Morimoto, Petitioner, vs. Yoshio Morimoto and the Republic of the Philippines, Respondents.
FACTS
Petitioner Rosario D. Ado-an-Morimoto was introduced to respondent Yoshio Morimoto by a friend for the purpose of simulating a marriage to facilitate her acquisition of a Japanese visa. On December 5, 2007, they met at Manila City Hall, signed a blank marriage certificate, and were assured by the solemnizing officer it would not be registered. This was the last time she saw Yoshio. Later, Rosario discovered a Certificate of Marriage registered in San Juan City stating she married Yoshio on December 5, 2007, officiated by a Reverend Roberto Espiritu and predicated on Marriage License No. 6120159. She filed a Petition for Declaration of Nullity of Marriage, asserting no marriage ceremony occurred and there was no valid marriage license. Evidence included a Certification from the Office of the Civil Registrar, National Statistics Office, stating it mistakenly recorded the marriage, and a Certificate from the San Juan City Civil Registrar that no record of Marriage License No. 6120159 existed. The Regional Trial Court denied the petition, and the Court of Appeals affirmed the denial.
ISSUE
Whether or not the registered marriage between petitioner Rosario D. Ado-an-Morimoto and respondent Yoshio Morimoto should be declared null and void.
RULING
Yes, the marriage is void ab initio. The Supreme Court found the marriage was simulated and lacked both essential and formal requisites. The parties had no genuine intent to enter into marital relations, as the marriage was solely to obtain a Japanese visa, thus vitiating consent, an essential requisite under Article 2 of the Family Code. Furthermore, the marriage lacked a valid marriage license and a proper marriage ceremony, which are formal requisites under Article 3. The Court emphasized that a simulated marriage used as a front for illicitly obtaining benefits is totally inexistent. Rosario’s admission against interest—that the marriage was simulated—lent credence to her claim. The absence of essential and formal requisites renders the marriage void ab initio under Article 4 of the Family Code. The Regional Trial Court and Court of Appeals erred in not declaring the marriage null and void.