Coca v.

Borromeo

Spouses Juan Pangilinan and Teresa Magtuba died intestate in 1943 and 1948,
respectively.
Possessed a homestead, consisting of two parcels of land in Misamis Occidental
Survived by heirs
Prima Pangilinan
Maria, Eusebio, Apolinar YAMUTA (Children of Concepcion Pangilinan- Yamuta)
Francis, Algerian, Benjamin, Perla and Francisco Jr PANGILINAN (Children of
Francisco Pangilinan) and Widow Guadalupe
Special Proceeding before Court of First Instance of Misamis Occidental was
instituted
The administrator presented a project of partition
Heirs of Francisco Pangilinan
Opposed that project of partition.
Contended that the proposed partition contravened the lower courts ealier order
CFI ordered - partitioned the properties:
-Giving attys fees to Crispin Borromeo-Without taking into consideration ownership
of a 12-ha land claimed by the heirs of Francisco Pangilinan, of a 6ha land claimed
by Crispin Borromeo and
:a)Debt to Concepcions estateb)If Prima sold her share to FranciscoNote: WON
Prima was excluded as an heir CFI ordered that a separate ordinary action is
needed to determine ownership of the land in dispute.Later on, they approved the
project of partition but excluded the 12 ha and did not bother to decide how the
remainder should be partitioned and WON Prima had a share in that remainder.CA
sustained CFI.
ISSUES:
WON separate proceedings should be filed to determine ownership?
HELD:
No, the case is an exception.
RATIO:

The probate court may provisionally pass upon the question of inclusion in, or
exclusion from, the inventory of a piece of property without prejudice to its final
determination in a separate action.
GR:
Probate Ct.
may not pass upon ownership
Except:
If the interested parties are all heirs, (case at bar)or if the question is one of collation or advancement,
or the parties consent to the assumption of jurisdiction by the probate court, and the
rights of 3rd parties are not impaired, then the probate court is competent to decide
the question of ownership.
CAB, may be treated as an exception to the general rule that questions of title should
be ventilated in a separate action.
probate court had already received evidence on the ownership of the twelvehectare
portion during the hearing of the motion for its exclusion from the inventory.
The only interested parties are the heirs who have all appeared in the intestate
proceeding.

The just, expeditious and inexpensive solution is to require the heirs of Francisco
Pangilinan to file in the intestate proceeding, Special Proceeding No. 508, a motion
in the form of a complaint