G.R. No. 44634 ; November 9, 1938
BALTAZAR ALUNEN and EMMA ALUNEN, plaintiffs-appellants, vs. TILAN (Pagan), defendant-appellee.

FACTS

Raymundo Baobaoen died intestate in 1928. He had one child, Ursula Baobaoen (who died in 1934), from his first marriage, and was survived by his second wife, Vicente Sumaoi. They had no children. Ursula’s children, Baltazar and Emma Alunen (appellants), are the forced heirs. After Raymundo’s death, Vicente Sumaoi declared the land in question for tax purposes as inherited from him and later sold it to Tilan (appellee) in 1929. Vicente Sumaoi died around 1930. The appellants sued to recover ownership and possession of the land.

ISSUE

Whether Vicente Sumaoi validly inherited the land from her deceased husband Raymundo Baobaoen, thereby conferring valid title to the appellee.

RULING

No. Vicente Sumaoi did not validly inherit the land. Under the Civil Code, as a surviving spouse with no children of the marriage but with a forced heir (Ursula, represented by her children), she was entitled only to a usufruct over one-third of the estate. There was no evidence that her usufructuary right was satisfied via settlement or compensation, nor that she was adjudged an heir. Therefore, she had no ownership rights to convey. The appellee, however, was a purchaser in good faith and is entitled to retain the fruits of the land until the service of summons in 1934. The appellants are declared the owners, and the appellee is ordered to restore possession to them and pay indemnity of P40 per agricultural year from November 3, 1934, until restoration. The lower court’s judgment is reversed.

AI Generated by Armztrong.