Suntay v. Suntay (Void Marriages)
G.R. No. 132524. December 29, 1998
Facts:
On October 3, 1967, the trial court rendered a decision declaring null and void and of no effect the marriage celebrated between Emilio Aguinaldo Suntay and Isabel Cojuangco-Suntay . Prior to that, the respondent filed a case against the petition, Emilio Suntay, for parricide. The latter was been diagnosed as suffering from mental aberration classified as schizophernia
Respondent Isabel Aguinaldo Cojuangco Suntay filed before the Regional Trial Court (RTC)7 a petition for issuance in her favor of Letters of Administration of the Intestate Estate of her late grandmother Cristina Aguinaldo Suntay.
Petitioner moved to dismiss the special proceeding case alleging in the main that respondent Isabel should not be appointed as administratrix of the decedents estate (appointed by the court to administer the estate). In support thereof, petitioner argues that under Article 992 of the Civil Code an illegitimate child has no right to succeed by right of representation the legitimate relatives of her father or mother. Emilio Aguinaldo Suntay, respondent Isabel’s father predeceased his mother, the late Cristina Aguinaldo Suntay and thus, opened succession by representation. Petitioner contends that as a consequence of the declaration by the then CFI of Rizal that the marriage of the respondent Isabels parents is null and void, the latter is an illegitimate child, and has no right nor interest in the estate of her paternal grandmother the decedent.
Issue: Whether or not the marriage of respondent Isabel’s parents was void or voidable.
The marriage is voidable. In reading the pertinent portions of the decision of the CFI of Rizal shows that the marriage is voidable. There is no controversy that the marriage between the parties was effected on July 9, 1958, years after plaintiffs mental illness had set in. This fact would justify a declaration of nullity of the marriage under Article 85 of the Civil Code which provides:
Art. 85 (sic) A marriage may be annulled for any of the following causes, existing at the time of the marriage:
xxx xxx xxx
(3) That either party was of unsound mind, unless such party, after coming to reason, freely cohabited with the other as husband and wife;
(3) That either party was of unsound mind, unless such party, after coming to reason, freely cohabited with the other as husband and wife;
xxx xxx xxx
Articles 80, 81, 82 and 8318 of the New Civil Code classify what marriages are void while Article 85 enumerates the causes for which a marriage may be annulled. räläwvirtualibräry
The fundamental distinction between void and voidable marriages is that void marriage is deemed never to have taken place at all. On the other hand, a voidable marriage, is considered valid and produces all its civil effects, until it is set aside by final judgment of a competent court in an action for annulment.
Assuming that a doubt or uncertainty exists between the dispositive portion and the body of the decision, effort must be made to harmonize the whole body of the decision in order to give effect to the intention, purpose and judgment of the court.
Real LexEcon 