G.R. No. L-36033 November 5, 1982
IN THE MATTER OF THE PETITION FOR THE PROBATE OF THE WILL OF DOROTEA PEREZ, (deceased): APOLONIO TABOADA, petitioner, vs. HON. AVELINO S. ROSAL, as Judge of Court of First Instance of Southern Leyte, (Branch III, Maasin), respondent.

FACTS

Petitioner Apolonio Taboada sought the probate of the notarial will of Dorotea Perez. The will, written in Cebuano-Visayan, consisted of two pages. The first page contained the testamentary dispositions and was signed at the bottom by the testatrix alone and at the left margin by the three instrumental witnesses. The second page contained the attestation clause and acknowledgment, signed at the end of the clause by the three attesting witnesses and at the left margin by the testatrix. After ex parte presentation of evidence, the trial court denied probate, holding the will lacked a formality in its execution. The court interpreted Article 805 of the Civil Code to require that the testatrix and all three witnesses must sign at the “end” of the will. The court reasoned the witnesses’ signatures on the left margin of the first page, rather than at the bottom below the testatrix’s signature, was insufficient. The court subsequently denied petitioner’s motion for reconsideration and a motion for appointment of a special administrator.

ISSUE

Whether the will is invalid for failure to comply with Article 805 of the Civil Code because the three instrumental witnesses signed at the left margin of the page containing the testamentary text, instead of at the “end” of the will below the testatrix’s signature.

RULING

The Supreme Court granted the petition and ordered the probate of the will. The legal logic is that Article 805 requires the testator to subscribe the will at its end, and the witnesses to attest and subscribe to it in the presence of the testator and each other. The Court clarified that “attestation” is the act of witnessing the execution, while “subscription” is the act of the witnesses signing their names. The law does not mandate that the witnesses’ signatures be placed at a specific location relative to the testator’s signature, such as directly below it. The requirement is that they sign the will itself as witnesses to its execution. Here, the witnesses signed the very page that contained the end of the testamentary dispositions, thereby subscribing to the will. The Court adopted a liberal interpretation to prevent the testator’s intent from being defeated by a purely technical and overly strict construction of the signature placement, especially where no evidence of bad faith or fraud exists and the statutory purpose of ensuring authenticity is met. The will’s attestation clause, though on a separate page, was duly signed, and the signatures on the first page were consistent with the witnesses attesting to the testatrix’s act of signing.