Agrarian Reform Law
leasehold, agrarian reform finally shiftred
Reform- broken must be replaced
The conquest
Sovereignty and rule of the Spanish king
Early Filipinos were deprived of the possession
and enjoyment of the fruits of their traditionally
held and cultivated land
The Haciendas
Businesses enterprises by people awarded with
large estates where tillers and farmers worked
Tenancy Laws
Act No. 4054 – Rice Tenancy Act and Act. 4113-
Sugar Tenancy Act were passed in1933-
recognizing that there exists a tenancy
relationship between the landowner and
farmers
The law requires a 50-50 sharing scheme
Establishing Tenancy – Testimonial evidence of
tenancy became recognized as prima facie
evidence
Recognition of Justice- concept of social justice
was incorporated in the 1935 Constitution
Expropriation- 1955 the power of Expropriation
was formerly and explicitly
Leasehold – 1963, the concept of tenancy was
abolished
Transfer; redistribution- from mere tenancy to
resorted to transferring or redistributing lands
to farmers.
How is that possible?- Agrarian Reform is made
possible by legal basis
Sec.9,10 and 21 of Art.2 of the 1987 Consti.
Emphasize the crucial policy and principle of
social justice a just anf dynamic social order in
all phases of national development
Equitable Distribution of wealth
Sec.1 Art.12 of the 1987 Consti.- implies that
one way of achieving social justice, is through
equitable distribution of wealth, opportunities
or resources
Agrarian Reform Restriction of Property- Sec.3
Art.12 ad Sec.1 Art.13- restriction of acquisition
and use of property for purposes of agrarian
reform by the state itself as means of achieving
social justice
Sec.4 Art.13 and Sec,22 Art. 18 sanction the use
of expropriation as a means to implement
agrarian reform
Agrarian reform - = balancing of interest- state
must balance the interests of the landowners
and the farmers.
Character of Agrarian Reform Law
Assoc of Small Land Owners vs Hon. Secretary
Is Agrarian Reform a function of police power or
eminent domain
Police power- taking of something that is
noxious or harmful to the public
Tenancy, Leasehold and Redistribution
3 major Reform laws
Act. 3844- Agrarian Land Reform Code
PD no. 27- Tenant Emancipation Law
RA 6657- Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law
Topic 2 Land Reform Act RA No. 3844 as
amended
From Tenancy to Leasehold
Tenancy (abolished) Elements of Tenancy
 Agreement on joint undertaking
 Either or both furnish the land
 Either or both furnish labor
 Equal Division of fruits
Landowner much more powerful than
landless
Leasehold elements
 Land belongin to one person
 Land is cultivated by another person not
the owner….
 The person has a right to the land as an
owner, possessor, civil law lessee or
usufructury
 There is a payment of price certain in
money or goods or both
Lands Covered
Tenanted areas- sec.4 abolishes tenancy
agreements and declares them contrsry to
public policy, sec. 4 and 5 effectively
convert ipso jure all tenancy agreements
into leasehold agreement
Landed estates- sec 74. And accompanying
provisions allow the acquisition of land
estates by DAR; no particular
Lands of public domain- sec 51 (5) allows
distribution of identified tracts of land
belonging to the public domain for agrarian
reform; categorized in (1) existing lands
Agricultural Leasehold
Cration of Relationship
By operation of law
Statute of frauds- to eliminate fraud in the
contract there are laws governing
Sec5 RA 3844- expressly provides that
agricultural leasehold contracts or
agreements can be oral or written . IN fact
ra 3844 itself states that an agricultural
6 formal requirements partie reduce
agreement into writing
Drawn and crafted w/ 4 copies
Language/dialect should be known to the
agricultural lessee
Acknowledge before the Municipal trial
court of the municipality where theland is
situated
Signed or thumbmark by both parties
Before 2 witnesses chosen by the parties
Relationship (Duration/term)
As a rule, the agricultural leasehold
relationship is for an indefinite period.
Meaning it is effective until it is terminated
Extinguishment
Modes of extinguishing an agricultural lease
relationship
  Abandonment – no knowledge on the
part of the landower
 Voluntary surrender – with notice there
is an acceptable reason
 Absence of successor – surviving
spouse, eldest direct descendant by
consanguity, next eldest descendants in
the order of their age (only absence of
these three is the relationship
extinguished)
Grounds under Section 8 exclusive?
Reclassification
Davao vs Sps Saliga
Rights
 Security of Tenure –an employee wh
ejoys security of tenure cannot be
terminated w/o just cause
Extinguishment v Dispossession
Extinguishment
 No court approval
 Done through no fault of any of the
parties
 Due to either voluntary act of God
Dispossession
 Requires court order/intervention
 Done due to offense by lessee
 Must be priven in proper forum
Brief Statement of the Rule:
Those lands reclassified before 10 June 1988 as
residential, commercial or mineral etc will be
considered as not agricultural land and
therefore outside the coverage of CARL
Reclassified after June 1988 / after the passage
of the CARP, agricultural lands, which though
re-classified… have to go through conversion-
reclassification alone not enough, must have
conversion, in order not to be covered by carl
Reclassificatio vs Conversion
Reclass- act specifying how agricultural land
shall be utilized for non- agricultural uses. Done
by govt. agencies authorized by law
Conversion- act of changing the current use of a
piece of agri land into some other use – done
only by DAR
CREBA vs Sec. of Agra Reform
After effectivilty of CARP mere reclassification
does not
None whether the land was reclassified by
virtue of a Presidential Proclamation or by
LGUs, it does not matter
Why Dar has the power?
The authority to do so is vested in DAR, w/c is
mandated to preserve and maintain agricultural
lands with increased productivity. ,
Agri to non-gri- DAR
If non-agri to agri- not covered by DAR
Sec.50, RA 6657
The exclusive jurisdiction to classify and identify
landholdings for coverage under the carp is
reposed in the DAR. sec. It is strictly part of the
administrative implementation.
Roxas & Co Inc vs CA
The conversion of agricultural land to uses other
than agricultural requires investigation and
conference w/ the occupants of the land.
SC: Dar is in a better portion to resolve
petitioner’s application .
Gonzalo Puyat & Sons vs Alcaide
- The importance of conducting an
ocular inspection cannot be
understated since it is one of the steps
designed to comply with the
requirements of administrative
Some Government Agencies authorized to
reclassify
Local Government Unit (LGU)
Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board
(HLURB) and its predecessors (Charter, Special
Laws)
(Province of Camarines Sur vs CA)
If prior DAR approval is needed to convert
actual use of land, does that mean that , if the
LGU expropriates and agricultural land, it should
seek prior approval from DAR?
No, prior approval from the DAR applies only in
cases of reclassification. DAR is only necessary
when the LGU reclassifies a land after the
effectivity of CARL- It does not, however, extend
to when the LGU exprorpriates as it is violative
of delegated expropriation powers to LGUs, w/c
enable them to determine , for themselves, the
public purpose. LGUs do not need prior DAR
approval to expropriate for roads, bridges,
schools, etc.
What is the effect if the owners have been
declaring the land as agricultural even if the
same was already reclassified?
Land reclassified in 1975
Owners keep on telling their land is an
agricultural land
Junio et al vs Garilao
It is settled however that a tax dec. serves only
to enable the assessor to identify a propery for
assessment levels, not to bind a provincial/ city
assessor. Consequently, even if the subject
landholding
What if the owners initially voluntarity offered
for sale under the CARL the properties that they
thought within the coverage of CARL but in fact
not covered: answer rom vs roxas
What f the land was reserved for residential
purposes before 10 june 1988 but then
reclassified thereafter.
Vacant lot – reclassified as mineral lands by a
Presidential Proclamation on July 11,1988
School/ state college- Reclassified as schools
site by a Presidential Proclamation on Jul
12,1988
Not covered by RA 6657- school / state college
even w/o the approval by the DAR because the
state college is the landholding of the state
and is owned by the state and it has a different
Reclassification
With respect to landholdings of the state, the
rule on reclassification
Does leasing an area to the private corp. not
make the use of the land A-D-E for the purpose
It depends. In the case of Central Mindanao
Univ. v DARAb the SC held that if the land is not
alienable and disposable, it need not be A-D-E
used for the purpose. In any case, leasing to a
private corp. is still ADE
If not ADE purpose, becomes commercial
purpose, covered in RA 6657
DAR vs DECS
-actual use of the land, not the actual income
FISHPONDS included in CARL?
- Exempted or excluded from coverage
of CARL Amendment of RA 88
Tenant of the Fishpond prejudiced?
Initially no, not prejudiced bec. If the
tenancy status is confirmed, they will enjoy
the right of agricultural lessess
Dilena vs Alcaraz
SC through J. Castillo held that RA 7881
insofar as it specifically excludes fish ponds
from the coverage of agrarian law
framework, also supersedes RA 3844, As a
result
SC: Ins hrt and to repeat, RA 7881
supersedes RA 3844 with regard to
fishponds and prawn farms. This is
understandable: to subscribe to petitioner’s
view would precisely render the exemption
and exclusion of fishponds and prawn farms
from CARO granted under the amendatory
List of exempt and excluded lands
Fishponds
Mangrove areas
Lands for National defense
School campuses
Churches, mosque
Communal burial ground
Lands with 18% slope and over except
already developed
The Sec. of DAR has the jurisdiction and
authority to declare exemption
Landowners Rights :
Retention Rights: Read the book p19-57
Landowners may retain not more than 5
hectares of his landholdings, plus 3 hectares per
child who is atleast 15 yrs old actually tilling the
land or directly managing the farm (Sec. 6 RA
6657)
Retention and exemption are two distinct of
concepts. Retention presupposes that the
landholding of the landowner is covered by the
provisions of CARL, while exemption
presupposes the land is not covered/ non-
applicability at all
How to exercise retention rights?
Consider the manner of acquisition
Compulsory – retention rights may be exercised
by the landowner at any time before receipt of
the notice of coverage. Otherwise, the
landowner will have a period of 60 days from
receipt of the notice
Voluntary- retention rights must be exercised
simultaneously with the offer for sale or
transfer
Will landowners who have previously exercised
their right to retention under PD 27 be given
new retention rights under RA 6657
Ex: 7 hectares- pd 27 retained area rice and
corn
5 hectares- retained area ra 6657 tobacco
Answer: p 21 in the book
Note: PD 27- primarily devoted to rice and corn
Either or you have to choose
No, if the landowner has already exercised his
right of retention under PD 27, he can no longer
exercise rights of retention under PD 27, he can
no longer exercise rights of retention under RA
6657. However, if the landowner chooses to
retain five hectares in his other landholdings
Requirement for Retention: Land Retained must
be compact or contiguous
e.g retained area
rice- 3 hectares
covered area- barren (di mananuman)
corn- 2 hectares
e.g allowed retained area
retained area
May retention rights be waived?
Yes, failure to manifest intention aafter 60 days
from receipt of notice 2. Failure to state
intention of offer simultaneously with
voluntary offer to sell 3. Execution of any doc.
Expressly waiving v
What if, after the effectivity of RA 6657, but
before receipt of notice of coverage , sold a
total of five hectares or more to 3rd persons
DAR vs CArriedo
The pRovision of the rule w/c declares that the
constitutionally guaranteed retention rights are
defeated by transfer of area exceeding
retention areas is in the nature of a forfeiture
w/c is invalid in this case
Just Compensation
Alita v CA
While the Agrarian reform law is a remedial
measure promulgated pursuant to the
social justice precepts of the Constitution
Almero vs Heirs of PAcquing
However, notwhitstanding , homesteads
are not exempt from operation of agrarian
reform. The right to retain the whole area
can only be enjoyed by the landowner or his
compulsory heirs if (1) they are still the
owners of the original homestead land at
the time of the CARL took effect and (b)
they continue to cultivatethe homestead
land
What if the retained areas, there are
tenants?
Ans: 1. Remaining there and become an
agricultural lessee, governed by the
provisions of RA 3844 or
2.to be a land transfer beneficiary in some
areas agricultural land
Registration Initial Step Prior to Acquisition
Landowners of covered lands will be
registered. Registration is voluntarily and
those who voluntarily register are granted
small incentives by the PARC . Those
covered landowners who did not registr
shall be compulsorily listed and are
deprived of incentives
IN order for far
Land Acquisition:
Modes of Acquisition
Voluntary Offer for Sale:
Voluntary Land Transfer – covered
landowners may enter to a voluntary
agreement on land transfer with qualified
beneficiaries
The transaction will involve a direct
transfer, but the DAR has the duty to ensure
that the terms are not less favorable to the
transferee
VLT schemes were permissible only up tp
June 30,2009. After that, VLT is not longer
allowed
Identification- the land, landowners,
beneficiaries must first be identified in
order to start the compulsory acquisition
process
Two- Notice Requirement
As part of due process, two notices must be
sent to the landowner. The first is a notice
of coverage as provided for by the Rules of
DAR
This is necessary to comply wih
Administrative Due Process from receipt of
this notice
Public Hearing, Investigation and Inspection
Public, Hearing, Investigation and
Inspection are necessary to determine any
claim of exemption or non coverage and to
preliminary hear the side of the landowners
As long as concerned

Notice of Acquisition Offer -After public

hearing and after confirming coverage and
retention rights