MIDTERM EXAMS ON PERSONS AND FAMILY RELATIONS

Atty. Gene R. Abot

Instructions: Please read the questions carefully. Answer each item and explain fully in a clear, concise and
consistent manner. Be mindful of your margins and time allotment.

1. A French national revokes his will in Japan where he is domiciled. He then changed his domicile to the Philippines
where he died. The revocation of his will in Japan is valid under Japanese law but invalid under Philippine law.
The affected heir is a Malaysian national residing in the Philippines. What law will apply? Explain. 5pts.

2. A Japanese national and a Filipino national entered into a contract for services in Thailand. The services will be
rendered in Singapore. In case of breach, what law will govern? Explain. 5pts.

3. Ricky and Princess were sweethearts. Princess became pregnant. Knowing that Ricky is preparing for the
examinations, Marforth, a lawyer and cousin of Princess, threatened Ricky with the filing of a complaint for
immorality in the Supreme Court, thus preventing him from taking examinations unless he marries Princess. As a
consequence of the threat, Ricky married Princess. Can the marriage be annulled on the ground of intimidation
under Article 45 of the Family Code? 5pts.

4. Ben and Eva were both Filipino citizens at the time of their marriage in 1967, When their marriage turned sour,
Ben went to a small country in Europe, got himself naturalized there, and then divorced Eva in accordance with
the law of that country, Later, he returned to the Philippines with his new wife. Eva now wants to know what action
or actions she can file against Ben. She also wants to know if she can likewise marry again. What advice can you
give her? 5pts.

5. The marriage of H and W was annulled by the competent court. Upon finality of the judgment of nullity. H began
looking for his prospective second mate. He fell in love with a sexy woman S who wanted to be married as soon
as possible, i.e., after a few months of courtship. As a young lawyer, you were consulted by H,
a. How soon can H be joined in lawful wedlock to his girlfriend S? Under existing laws, are there certain
requisites that must be complied with before he can remarry? What advice would you give H? 5pts.

b. Suppose that children were born from the union of H and W, what would be the status of said children?
Explain your answer. 5pts.
c. If the subsequent marriage of H to S was contracted before compliance with the statutory condition
for its validity, what are the rights of the children of the first marriage (i.e., of H and W) and of the children
of the subsequent marriage (of H and S)? 5pts.

6. One of the grounds for annulment of marriage is that either party, at the time of their marriage was afflicted with a
sexually-transmissible disease, found to be serious and appears incurable. Two (2) years after their marriage,
which took place on 10 October 1988, Bethel discovered that her husband James has a sexually-transmissible
disease which he contracted even prior to their marriage although James did not know it himself until he was
examined two [2) years later when a child was already born to them. Bethel sues James for annulment of their
marriage. James opposes the annulment on the ground that he did not even know that he had such a disease so
that there was no fraud or bad faith on his part. Decide. 5pts.

B. Suppose that both parties at the time of their marriage were similarly afflicted with sexually-transmissible
diseases, serious and incurable, and both knew of their respective infirmities, can Bethel or James sue for
annulment of their marriage? 5pts.

7. Maria and Luis, both Filipinos, were married by a Catholic priest in Lourdes Church, Quezon City in 1976, Luis
was drunk on the day of his wedding. In fact, he slumped at the altar soon after the ceremony. After marriage,
Luis never had a steady job because he was drunk most of the time. Finally, he could not get employed at all
 because of drunkenness. Hence, it was Maria who had to earn a living to support herself and her child begotten
with Luis. In 1986, Maria filed a petition in the church matrimonial court in Quezon City to annul her marriage with
Luis on the ground of psychological incapacity to comply with his marital obligation. Her petition was granted by
the church matrimonial court. 1) Can Maria now get married legally to another man under Philippine laws after her
marriage to Luis was annulled by the church matrimonial court? Explain. 5pts.

2) What must Maria do to enable her to get married lawfully to another man under Philippine laws? 5pts.

8. Isidro and Irma, Filipinos, both 18 years of age, were passengers of Flight No. 317 of Oriental Airlines. The plane
they boarded was of Philippine registry. While en route from Manila to Greece some passengers hijacked the
plane, held the chief pilot hostage at the cockpit and ordered him to fly instead to Libya. During the hijacking Isidro
suffered a heart attack and was on the verge of death. Since Irma was already eight months pregnant by Isidro,
she pleaded to the hijackers to allow the assistant pilot to solemnize her marriage with Isidro. Soon after the
marriage, Isidro expired. As the plane landed in Libya Irma gave birth. However, the baby died a few minutes after
complete delivery. Back in the Philippines Irma immediately filed a claim for inheritance. The parents of Isidro
opposed her claim contending that the marriage between her and Isidro was void ab initio on the following
grounds: (a) they had not given their consent to the marriage of their son; (b) there was no marriage license; (c)
the solemnizing officer had no authority to perform the marriage; and, (d) the solemnizing officer did not file an
affidavit of marriage with the proper civil registrar. Resolve each of the contentions ([a] to [d]) raised by the
parents of Isidro. Discuss fully. 10pts.

9. D and G, age 20 and 19, respectively, and both single, eloped and got married to each other without parental
consent in the case of G, a teenaged student of an exclusive college for girls. Three years later, her parents
wanted to seek judicial annulment on that ground. You were consulted and asked to prepare the proper
complaint. What advice would you give G's parents? Explain your answer. 5pts.

10. On the occasion of Digna's marriage to George, her father gave her a donation propter nuptias of a car.
Subsequently, the marriage was annulled because of the psychological immaturity of George. May Digna's father
revoke the donation and get back the car? Explain. 5pts.

11. Which of the following remedies, i.e., (a) declaration of nullity of marriage, (b) annulment of marriage, (c) legal
separation, and/or (d) separation of property, can an aggrieved spouse avail himself/herself of- Explain.

a. If the wife discovers after the marriage that her husband has AIDS. 5pts.
b. If the wife goes (to) abroad to work as a nurse and refuses to come home after the expiration of her three-
year contract there. 5pts.
c. If the husband discovers after the marriage that his wife has been a prostitute before they got married. 5pts.

d. If the husband has a serious affair with his secretary and refuses to stop notwithstanding advice from relatives
and friends. 5pts.

e. If the husband beats up his wife every time he comes home drunk. 5pts.

12. Additional 5 points: Define marriage.