GR 84770; (March, 1991) (Digest)
G.R. No. 84770 ; March 18, 1991
LOTH R. AYCO, petitioner, vs. LOURDES S. FERNANDEZ, for herself and in her capacity as natural guardian and mother of BENJAMIN AYCO, and COURT OF APPEALS, ELEVENTH DIVISION, respondents.
FACTS
Private respondent Lourdes S. Fernandez filed a complaint to compel petitioner Loth R. Ayco to acknowledge Benjamin Ayco as his natural child and provide support. Evidence showed Loth and Lourdes had an amorous relationship, resulting in Benjamin’s birth in 1949. Hospital and baptismal records identified Loth as the father, and he provided monthly support until after his marriage in 1952. During the trial, Lourdes filed a motion to dismiss with an affidavit stating Benjamin was her son with another man. The trial court granted the dismissal, but Lourdes later moved to set it aside, claiming she only signed for a potential compromise. The Court of Appeals reversed the dismissal as to Benjamin’s cause of action and remanded the case. After further proceedings, the trial court declared Benjamin as Loth’s natural child, a decision affirmed by the Court of Appeals with an additional award for accrued support.
ISSUE
Whether the Court of Appeals erred in affirming the trial court’s declaration that Benjamin Ayco is the natural child of Loth R. Ayco.
RULING
The Supreme Court denied the petition, affirming the lower courts’ rulings. The legal logic rests on the principle of continuous possession of status and the petitioner’s failure to rebut the evidence. Under the applicable law, whether the Civil Code’s Article 283 or the Family Code’s Articles 172 and 175, an illegitimate child can establish filiation through the open and continuous possession of the status of a child of the alleged father. Both lower courts found Benjamin proved this status through documentary evidence (birth and baptismal records naming Loth as father) and testimonial evidence of Loth’s acts of support and recognition. Critically, Loth failed to testify personally to deny paternity, letting two opportunities to present evidence pass. His reliance on Lourdes’s retracted affidavit was insufficient, as she could have been called as his witness but was not. The Supreme Court emphasized that factual findings of the trial court, especially when affirmed by the appellate court, are accorded great respect. The change of presiding judges did not affect the validity of the proceedings or the decision. Thus, Benjamin successfully established his filiation as Loth’s natural child.