G.R. No. L-6242, February 3, 1912
ARCADIA REYNES, plaintiff-appellant, vs. LA COMPANIA GENERAL DE TOBACOS DE FILIPINAS, ET AL., defendants-appellants.

FACTS

La Compañía General de Tabacos de Filipinas (the Company) sued Alfredo Jeanjaquet for a debt exceeding P55,000 and attached several properties, including a one-half interest in Hacienda Providencia, which the sheriff believed belonged to Jeanjaquet. Arcadia Reynes filed a protest, claiming exclusive ownership of most of the attached properties, and subsequently sued the Company and the sheriffs to have the attachment dissolved. The Company, in its final amended answer, abandoned its initial allegation that the sale of the hacienda interest to Reynes was a simulated transaction designed to defraud creditors (Jeanjaquet being the real purchaser). Instead, it simply asserted that all attached properties belonged to Jeanjaquet. The trial court ruled that some properties, including the one-half interest in Hacienda Providencia, belonged to Jeanjaquet, while others belonged to Reynes. Both parties appealed.

ISSUE

Who is the rightful owner of the attached properties, particularly the one-half undivided interest in Hacienda Providencia, at the time of the attachment?

RULING

The Supreme Court modified the trial court’s decision. It held that Arcadia Reynes is the rightful owner of the one-half undivided interest in Hacienda Providencia and the buildings thereon. The Court based its ruling on the following:
1. Pleadings: The Company’s final amended answer superseded its prior pleadings and eliminated the issue of fraud or simulation in the sale. The case was therefore to be decided solely on the question of ownership.
2. Documentary Evidence: A notarial deed of sale (Exhibit No. 1) executed by Manuela Daniel in favor of Reynes, along with subsequent documents and a court judgment in a case where Daniel sued Reynes for the unpaid balance of the purchase price, conclusively proved that Reynes was the purchaser and owner. Daniel’s later testimony contradicting these documents was deemed unworthy of credit.
3. Source of Funds: Even if Jeanjaquet furnished the money for the purchase, this did not affect Reynes’s ownership, as he could have loaned or given her the money.
The ownership findings of the trial court regarding the other parcels of land, carabaos, and cattle were affirmed. The attachment on the hacienda interest and buildings was ordered dissolved in favor of Reynes.