ALGRACE E.

BELLINGAN July 4, 2019

REPUBLIC VS. MANALO

GR No. 221029, April 24, 2018

Facts:
Respondent Marelyn Tanedo Manalo was previously married in the Philippines to a Japanese national
named YOSHINO MINORO as shown by their Marriage Contract. A case for divorce was filed by herein
repondent in Japan and after the proceedings, a divorce decree dated December 6, 2011 was rendered
by the Japanese Court. The petitioner and her divorce Japanese husband are no longer living together and
in fact, petitioner and her daughter are living separately from said Japanese former husband.
Manalo pleads for the recognition of enforcement of the divorced decree rendered by the Japanese court
and for the cancellation of the entry of marriage in the local civil registry, and to use her maiden surname.

Issue:
Whether or not a Filipino citizen has the capacity to remarry under Philippine law after initiating a divorce
proceeding abroad and obtaining a favorable judgment against his or her alien spouse who is capacitated
to remarry.

Ruling:
YES. Paragraph 2 of Article 26 speaks of "a divorce x x x validly obtained abroad by the alien spouse
capacitating him or her to remarry." Based on a clear and plain reading of the provision, it only requires
that there be a divorce validly obtained abroad. It does not demand that the alien spouse should be the
one who initiated the proceeding wherein the divorce decree was granted.
The purpose of the provision is to avoid the absurd situation where the Filipino spouse remains married
to the alien spouse who, after a foreign divorce decree that is effective in the country where it was
rendered, is no longer married to the Filipino spouse. However, before a a foreign divorce decree can be
recognized by our courts, the party pleading it must prove the divorce as a fact and demonstrate its
conformity to the foreign law allowing it.
Thus, a Filipino citizen, who initiated a divorce proceeding abroad and obtained a favorable judgment
against his or her alien spouse who is capacitated to remarry, has the capacity to remarry pursuant to
Article 26 (2) of the Family Code.