OWNERSHIP IN GENERAL

 
Art. 427. Ownership may be exercised over things or rights. (n)
 

OWNERSHIP

 

Independent  and  general  right  of  a  person  to  control  a  thing particularly   in   his  possession,   enjoyment,   disposition   and recovery, subject to no restrictions except those imposed  by the state or private persons, without prejudice to the provisions of the law
 

KINDS OF OWNERSHIP

 

1.    Full ownership—all rights of an owner
2.    Naked ownership—ownership where the right  to the use and the fruits have been denied
3.    Sole ownership—ownership is only vested in one person
4.    Co-ownership

 
Art. 428. The owner has the right to enjoy and dispose of a thing, without other limitations than those established by law.
 
The  owner  has  also  a  right  of  action  against  the  holder  and possessor of the thing in order to recover it. (348a)
 

7 RIGHTS OF AN OWNER UNDER ROMAN LAW

 

Jus possidendi -The right to possess

Jus utendi -The right to use

Jus fruendi -The right to the fruits

Jus abutendi -The right to consume

Jus disponendi -The right to dispose

Jus vindicandi -The right to recover

Jus accessiones -The right to accessories

 

ACTIONS TO RECOVER

1.    Replevin

2.    Accion interdictal—forcible entry and unlawful detainer

3.    Accion publiciana

4.    Accion reinvidicatoria

5.    Writ of possession | writ of demolition

6.    Writ of preliminary injunction  

 

REPLEVIN

An action or provisional remedy where the complainant prays for the recovery of the possession of PERSONAL PROPERTY
 

FORCIBLE ENTRY

> Summary action to recover material or physical possession of real property  when  a  person  originally  in  possession  was  deprived thereof by force, intimidation, strategy, threat or stealth

> Action must be brought within 1 year from the dispossession

> Issue involved is mere physical possession or possession de facto and not juridical possession nor ownership
 

UNLAWFUL DETAINER

> Action  that  must  be  brought  when  the  possession  by  a  landlord, vendor,  vendee  or  other  person  of  any  land  or  building  is  being unlawfully withheld after the expiration or termination of the right to hold possession, by virtue of any contract, express or implied

 

>Action must be brought within one year from last demand letter 
 

ACCION PUBLICIANA

 

> Recovery of the better right to possess, and is a plenary action in an ordinary civil proceeding before the RTC

>Must  be  brought  within  a  period  of  10  years  otherwise  the  real right to possess is lost

> Issue is possession de jure
 

ACCION REINVIDICATORIA

 

> Action to recover ownership over real property

> Must be brought in the RTC

> It must be brought within 10 or 30 years as the case may be

> Issue involved is ownership and for this purpose, evidence of title or mode may be introduced

> It  is  permissible  to  file  both  an  action  for  ownership  and  for detainer  over  the  same  land,  and  between  the  same  parties, because the issues involved are different 
 

WRIT OF INJUNCTION

 

> A person deprived of his possession of real or personal property is ordinarily not allowed to avail himself of this remedy, the reason being  that  the  defendant  in  actual  possession  is  presumed disputably to have the better right 
 

WRIT OF POSSESSION

 

> Used  in  connection  with  the  Land  Registration  Law  is  an  order directing  the  sheriff  to  place  a  successful  registrant  under  the Torrens system in possession of the property covered by a decree of the Court 
 

OWNERSHIP HAS LIMITATIONS

1.    Those given by the State or the laws
2.    Those given by the owner himself
3.    Those given by the person who gave the right to its present owner  

 
Art. 429. The owner or lawful possessor of a thing has the right to exclude  any  person  from  the  enjoyment  and  disposal  thereof.  For this  purpose,  he  may  use  such  force  as  may  be  reasonably necessary  to  repel  or  prevent  an  actual  or  threatened  unlawful physical invasion or usurpation of his property. (n)
 

DOCTRINE OF SELF-HELP

 

> The right to counter force with force

> Comparable  with  self-defense  under  justifying  circumstances  in Criminal Law

 
Art. 430. Every owner may enclose or fence his land or tenements by  means  of  walls,  ditches,  live  or  dead  hedges,  or  by  any  other means without detriment to servitudes constituted thereon. (388)
 
Art.  431.  The  owner  of  a  thing  cannot  make  use  thereof  in  such manner as to injure the rights of a third person. (n)
 

NO INJURY TO RIGHTS OF THIRD PERSONS

 

> This  is  one  of  the  fundamental  bases  of  police  power  and constitutes a just restriction on the right of ownership

 
Art.  432.  The  owner  of  a  thing  has  no  right  to  prohibit  the interference  of  another  with  the  same,  if  the  interference  is necessary   to   avert   an   imminent   danger   and   the   threatened
damage,  compared  to  the  damage  arising  to  the  owner  from  the interference,  is  much  greater.  The  owner  may  demand  from  the person benefited indemnity for the damage to him. (n)
 

STATE OF NECESSITY

 

ANALOGOUS TO THE RULE UNDER CRIMINAL LAW

Any  person  who,  in  order  to  avoid  an  evil  or  injury,  does  an  act  which causes damage to another doesn't incur criminal liability provided that the following requisites are present:
1.    That the evil sought to be avoided actually exists
2.    That the injury feared be greater than that done to avoid it
3.    That  there  be  no  other  practical  or  less  harmful  means  of preventing it
 
Art.  433.  Actual  possession  under  claim  of  ownership  raises disputable presumption of ownership.  The true owner must resort to judicial process for the recovery of the property. (n)
 

RULE OF EVIDENCE

 

REQUIREMENTS TO HAVE DISPUTABLE PRESUMPTION

1.    Actual possession of the property

2.    Claim of ownership
 
Art. 434. In an action to recover, the property must be identified, and  the  plaintiff  must  rely  on  the  strength  of  his  title  and  not  on the weakness of the defendant's claim. (n)
 

REQUISITES IN AN ACTION TO RECOVER

1.    Identity of the property
2.    Strength of the plaintiff’s title
 
Art.  435.  No  person  shall  be  deprived  of  his  property  except  by competent authority  and for  public use and  always upon payment of just compensation.
 
Should this requirement be not first complied with, the courts shall protect and, in a proper case, restore the owner in his possession. (349a)
 

EMINENT DOMAIN V. EXPROPRIATION

- Eminent domain is the power of the state and expropriation is the proceeding
 
Art. 436. When any property is condemned or seized by competent authority  in  the  interest  of  health,  safety  or  security,  the  owner thereof shall not be entitled to compensation, unless he can show that such condemnation or seizure is unjustified. (n)
 
Art. 437. The owner of a parcel of land is the owner of its surface and of everything under it, and he can construct thereon any works or  make  any  plantations  and  excavations  which  he  may  deem proper, without detriment to servitudes and subject to special laws and    ordinances.    He    cannot    complain    of    the    reasonable requirements of aerial navigation. (350a)
 

SURFACE RIGHT OF A LAND OWNER

 
Art.  438.  Hidden  treasure  belongs  to  the  owner  of  the  land, building, or other property on which it is found.
 
Nevertheless,  when  the  discovery  is  made  on  the  property  of another, or of the State or any of its subdivisions, and by chance, one-half  thereof  shall  be  allowed  to  the  finder.  If  the  finder  is  a trespasser, he shall not be entitled to any share of the treasure.
 
If the things found be of interest to science of  the arts, the State may  acquire  them  at  their  just  price,  which  shall  be  divided  in conformity with the rule stated. (351a)
 
Art. 439. By treasure is understood, for legal purposes, any hidden and unknown deposit of money, jewelry, or other precious objects, the lawful ownership of which does not appear. (352)
 

RULES REGARDING HIDDEN TREASURES

 

1.    If the treasure is not hidden, there is no 50-50 sharing
2.    If the precious metals are in their raw  state, it will be owned by the State by virtue of the Regalian doctrine
3.    If  the  owner  finds  the  treasure  in  his  own  land,  he  owns  the treasure
4.    If finder finds it not in his own land, there is 50-50 sharing with the owner of the land
5.    If the finder is hired, then compensation or salary or fixed fee will be given to him
6.    If the finder is a trespasser, then he would not receive anything
 

2 SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT REGARDING “BY CHANCE”

1.    If  there  is  deliberate  search,  it  is  not  to  be  construed  as  “by chance”
2.    Even if there is a deliberate search, still “by chance” since there is uncertainity of finding a treasure