CADASTRAL REGISTRATION PROCEEDINGS

ORDER FOR SPEEDY SETTLEMENT AND ADJUDICATION; SURVEY; NOTICES

Section 35. Cadastral Survey preparatory to filing of petition.
(a) When in the opinion of the President of the Philippines public interest so requires that title to any unregistered lands be settled and adjudicated, he may to this end direct and order the Director of Lands to cause to be made a cadastral survey of the lands involved and the plans and technical description thereof prepared in due form.

(b) Thereupon, the Director of Lands shall give notice to persons claiming any interest in the lands as well as to the general public, of the day on which such survey will begin, giving as fully and accurately as possible the description of the lands to be surveyed. Such notice shall be punished once in the Official Gazette, and a copy of the notice in English or the national language shall be posted in a conspicuous place on the bulletin board of the municipal building of the municipality in which the lands or any portion thereof is situated. A copy of the notice shall also be sent to the mayor of such municipality as well as to the barangay captain and likewise to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan and the Sangguniang Bayan concerned.

(c) The Geodetic Engineers or other employees of the Bureau of Lands in charge of the survey shall give notice reasonably in advance of the date on which the survey of any portion of such lands is to begin, which notice shall be posted in the bulletin board of the municipal building of the municipality or barrio in which the lands are situated, and shall mark the boundaries of the lands by monuments set up in proper places thereon. It shall be lawful for such Geodetic Engineers and other employees to enter upon the lands whenever necessary for the purposes of such survey or the placing of monuments.

(d) It shall be the duty of every person claiming an interest in the lands to be surveyed, or in any parcel thereof, to communicate with the Geodetic Engineer upon his request therefor all information possessed by such person concerning the boundary lines of any lands to which he claims title or in which he claims any interest.

(e) Any person who shall willfully obstruct the making of any survey undertaken by the Bureau of Lands or by a licensed Geodetic Engineer duly authorized to conduct the survey under this Section, or shall maliciously interfere with the placing of any monument or remove such monument, or shall destroy or remove
any notice of survey posted on the land pursuant to law, shall be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand pesos or by imprisonment for not more than one year, or both.

NATURE AND PURPOSE OF CADASTRAL REGISTRATION PROCEEDINGS

> Upon the initiative of the government
> To have titles to all lands in the stated area adjudicated
> Public interest demands that titles to any unregistered land settled and adjudicated
> The principal aim is to settle as much as possible all disputes overthe land and to remove all clouds over the land titles as far as practicable, in a community
> Nature of a proceeding in rem

PROCEDURE LEADING TO THE ADJUDICATION OF PROPERTY THROUGH CADASTRAL PROCEEDINGS

1. Cadastral survey preparatory to filing a petition
2. Filing of petition for registration
3. Notice of survey
4. Publication
> Though there is no express mention of any publication requirement following PD1529, there has to be mailing, posting and publication following the Cadastral Registration Law
> Publication in the OG twice under said law
5. Filing of answer
6. Hearing of petition
7. Judgment

CADASTRAL SURVEY PREPARATORY TO FILING OF PETITION

> Opinion of the president that public interest requires that title to unregistered land be settled and adjudicated
> He may order the Director of Lands to cause to be made a cadastral survey of the lands involved
> Notice to be published in OG, posted in bulletin board of municipal building; sent to mayor and all those concerned
> Geodetic engineer of the LMB shall give advance notices to all claimants of dates of survey

PETITION; LOT NUMBERS

Section 36. Petition for registration. When the lands have been surveyed or plotted, the Director of Lands, represented by the Solicitor General, shall institute original registration proceedings by filing the necessary petition in the Court of First Instance of the place where the land is situated against the holders, claimants, possessors, or occupants of such lands or any part thereof, stating in substance that public interest requires that the title to such lands be settled and adjudicated and praying that such titles be so settled and adjudicated:

The petition shall contain a description of the lands and shall be accompanied by a plan thereof, and may contain such other data as may serve to furnish full notice to the occupants of the lands and to all persons who may claim any right or interest therein.

Where the land consists of two or more parcels held or occupied by different persons, the plan shall indicate the boundaries or limits of the various parcels as accurately as possible. The parcels shall be known as "lots" and shall on the plan filed in the case be given separate numbers by the Director of Lands, which numbers shall be known as "cadastral lot numbers". The lots situated within each municipality shall, as far as practicable, be numbered consecutively
beginning with number "one", and only one series of numbers shall be used for that purpose in each municipality. However in cities or townsites, a designation of the landholdings by blocks and lot numbers may be employed instead of the designation by cadastral lot numbers.

The cadastral number of a lot shall not be changed after final decision has been entered decreasing the registration thereof, except by order of court. Future subdivisions of any lot shall be designated by a letter or letters of the alphabet added to the cadastral number of the lot to which the respective subdivisions
pertain. The letter with which a subdivision is designated shall be known as its "cadastral letter": Provided, however, that the subdivisions of cities or townsites may be designated by blocks and lot numbers.

FILING OF PETITION FOR LAND REGISTRATION

> Director of Lands through the Solicitor General
> Shall institute original registration proceedings

WHAT SHALL THE PETITION CONTAIN?

1. Description of the lands
2. Accompanied by a plan
3. Other data as to facilitate notice to all occupants and persons having claim
4. The parcels shall be called lots and shall be given cadastral lot numbers on the plan