G.R. No. 42539 ; October 23, 1936
In re Will of the deceased Felisa Javier. SULPICIO RESURRECCION, administrator-appellee, vs. AGUSTIN JAVIER, ET AL., oppositors-appellants.

FACTS

Felisa Francisco Javier executed a will on October 18, 1932, instituting her husband as universal heir and leaving a legacy of P2,000 to her brother, Gil Francisco Javier. The testatrix died on January 22, 1933. It was later established that Gil Francisco Javier had predeceased the testatrix, having died in August 1930—even before the will was made. The probate court ordered the legacy to revert to the estate. Gil’s children (his heirs) appealed, claiming they were entitled to the legacy.

ISSUE

What is the effect of a legacy made in favor of a person who was already dead at the time the will was executed?

RULING

The legacy is void. The institution of Gil Francisco Javier as legatee had no legal effect because he lacked civil personality (extinguished by death) and the capacity to inherit at the time the will was made. His heirs cannot claim the legacy by right of representation, as representation applies only to intestate succession. Furthermore, since the legatee predeceased the testatrix, he could transmit nothing to his heirs. The Court also found insufficient evidence to support the appellants’ claim that the testatrix intended the legacy for Gil’s heirs, noting that if she had known of his death and intended for his children to receive it, she would have named them directly in the will. The appealed judgment was affirmed.

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