CIVIL LAW BAR QUESTIONS 2025

 

             

1.  

A leased out his penthouse condominium unit to B. Unfortunately, A figured in an accident and perished, leaving his son, C, as his sole heir. Subsequently, C demanded that B vacate the premises by noon of the following day. B refused, showing C the duly executed lease agreement between her and A. B claimed that she has a right to remain in the unit since the term of the lease was yet to expire. C countered that he had nothing to do with the lease contract as it was executed between his father and B and therefore does not bind him. Is C correct? Reason(s).

 

2.  

In a desperate attempt to dispose of her assets, X, a fugitive from justice, called her friend, Y, instructing him to sell her house and lot located at Forbes Park to the first interested buyer for not less than PHP 250 million. Y offered the property for sale to his boss, Z. Enticed by the offer, Z asked Y for a copy of the title and proof of Y’s authority to sell the property. Y presented the title of the property, claiming that his possession of the title was sufficient proof of his authority to sell the property. Relying on the representation of Y, Z bought the property from Y, the agent of X. Is the sale valid? Reason(s).

 

3.  

The government owned a 12-hectare land in Cavite classified as forest land. Informal settlers built shanty houses on the land since it was flat and there were no trees planted thereon. In 2023, the government decided to plant Narra trees on the land and demanded that the informal settlers vacate the same. A, owner of one of the shanty houses, refused, claiming that he already owned the portion of the property he was occupying by virtue of acquisitive prescription. Is the claim of A meritorious? Decide with reason(s).

 

4.  

A, a member of a popular boy band in the Philippines, got his girlfriend, B, pregnant. A and B got married in Hong Kong where the legal age to get married was at least 15 years old. At the time of their marriage, A and B were 17 and 16 years old, respectively, and were both Filipino citizens. Subsequently, A continued with his career while B hid her pregnancy in the United States of America. She only returned to the Philippines after she gave birth to their son. By then though, B was already tired of being A’s deep dark secret. She thus filed a petition for declaration of nullity of marriage on the ground that her marriage with A is void. Will the petition prosper? Reason(s).

 

5.  

A, B, and C are co-owners of a three-hectare agricultural land with a fair market value of PHP 9 million or PHP 3 million per hectare. A offered to sell his share to B and C for a total amount of PHP 10 million. B and C declined the offer and asked A to reduce the purchase price to PHP 3 million, the prevailing fair market value of the land per hectare. A refused and instead sold his one-hectare share to X for PHP 10 million. May B and C go to court for the reduction of the purchase price so they can exercise their right of legal redemption? Reason(s).

 

6.  

A borrowed money from B in the amount of PHP 100,000.00. C, a good friend of A, issued a promissory note in favor of B, binding herself to pay the loan of A on its due date. Was there a novation of the loan agreement between A and B? Reason(s).

 

7.  

A, upon request, lent his white van to his friend, B, to drive his wife C from Tarlac to XYZ Medical Center in BGC for treatment. On his way back to Tarlac and after leaving C at the hospital, people  flagged the white van, thinking it was a UV Express for hire. B stopped and allowed the people to board and collected payment from them as if the van was a UV Express plying its route. As B was driving along the provincial road, a flash flood wrecked the white van. Is B liable to A for the loss of the white van? Reason(s).

 

8.  

A and B were husband and wife. A was pregnant at the time of their wedding but contrary to what she made B believe, he was not the father of her baby. C, A’s exfiancé, was the father. Shortly after the wedding, A gave birth to a baby girl named D. B doted on D but as she grew up, he could not help but notice how she did not look like him or A at all. Acting on his suspicion about D’s true paternity, B had a DNA test in secret where it was confirmed that he was not D’s father. B thus filed for annulment of marriage, which was granted. In view of the annulment decree, what is the status of D—legitimate, legitimated, or illegitimate? Reason(s).

 

9.  

A was adopted by X, the owner of a local chicken and beer restaurant. For several years, X’s business had been struggling. To keep the business afloat, X incurred several loans from banks in the total amount of PHP 2.5 million. One day, X figured in an accident which caused his death, leaving A as his sole heir. Upon inventory, X’s estate was appraised at PHP 1 million. Subsequently, the estate of X paid the banks the entire value of the estate in the amount of PHP 1 million. But the banks still sued A for the unpaid portion of PHP 1.5 million. Will the action prosper? Decide with reason(s).

 

10.

Childhood best friends, A, B, and C took out a business loan from XYZ Bank in the amount of PHP 3 million for their joint venture project. They executed a promissory note binding them to jointly and severally pay the loan on December 1, 2024, without need of demand. On due date, A, B, and C defaulted in the payment of their loan, prompting XYZ Bank to demand the full amount of the loan, but only against A. A opposed the claim, arguing that XYZ Bank should have demanded payment not just from him but from the three of them as co-debtors. Is A correct? Reason(s).

           

 

11.

A had three children, X, Y, and Z. In her will, A instituted only X and Y as her heirs to her entire estate. She disinherited Z because Z married a drug addict who was disrespectful. Is Z’s disinheritance valid? Reason(s).

 

12.

A and B got married in 2018. It was only after the marriage that A discovered B’s true colors. He refused to look for gainful employment and instead relied on A’s salary for all his needs. Worse, he would entertain drinking sprees for his barkada day in and day out in their home. One time, he even asked A to dance for them while they drank. A consequently filed a petition for declaration of nullity of her marriage with B on the ground of B’s psychological incapacity. In his answer, B opposed the petition on the ground that since he was mentally healthy, he cannot be declared psychologically incapacitated. Is B’s argument in accordance with prevailing jurisprudence? Reason(s).

 

13.

X hired Y as her driver for her daily commute to work. One Monday, X woke up an hour late. To get to work on time, she instructed Y to step on the pedal and drive fast. She also threatened to fire him if she got to work late or if he damaged her brand-new car during the drive. Afraid to lose his job, Y beat a red light along Osmeña Avenue. As a result, he hit a motorcycle, resulting in the death of the motorcycle driver. The bereaved family of the victim sued both X and Y for damages. X raised the defense that she was merely a passenger. As such, she could not be held liable for Y’s negligence. Is X correct? Reason(s).

 

14.

On March 15, 2025, A and B got married before Judge C as the solemnizing officer inside her chambers in the Regional Trial Court for Makati City. Unknown to both A and B, Judge C was dismissed from the service by the Supreme Court on March 14, 2025 due to grave misconduct. Judge C was only able to gain access to her chambers on the day of the wedding to collect her things. What is the status of A and B’s marriage? Reason(s).

 

15.

A died intestate and without any ascendants, descendants, and surviving spouse. A was survived by B, his cousin, and C, his sister. Can B demand from C to split A’s estate in half? Reason(s).

 

16.

A and B got married in 1991 without a pre-nuptial agreement. In 1997, A forged B’s signature on the promissory note covering the loan she obtained from P Commercial Bank (PCB) for her printing business. She also forged his signature on the real estate mortgage constituted over three parcels of land which were acquired during their marriage. A subsequently failed to pay the loan, so PCB foreclosed the mortgage.

The three parcels of land were sold to PCB, the highest bidder. Upon learning of the mortgage and sale, B filed a complaint to nullify the real estate mortgage and cancel the certificate of sale, contending that the same were void since he did not consent to the real estate mortgage. Is B correct? Reason(s).

 

17.

A was a public school teacher in XYZ Elementary School. She applied for and was granted several loans on various dates by the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) amounting to PHP 147,000.00. In 2020, she retired from the service. She was subsequently informed by the GSIS that her loan accounts were considered to have been fully settled after her unpaid loans and interests, amounting to PHP 638,172.59, were deducted from her retirement benefits. It turned out that GSIS imposed interest on arrears equivalent to 12% per annum compounded monthly and a penalty equivalent to 6% per annum compounded monthly on A’s loans, leading to the increase of her outstanding loan by 432.135% from the original amount. Failing to obtain a favorable ruling from the GSIS, A went to court, seeking to reduce the interest on arrears and penalties for being unconscionable. Is A’s argument meritorious? Reason(s).

 

18.

A entered into a contract of sale conveying a house and lot in favor of B. Unwilling to pay thousands of pesos for notarization fees, A and B decided not to have the contract of sale notarized. B nonetheless made C, her nephew, a 2nd year law student, check the contract. C informed his aunt that the sale was void because it was not in a public instrument. He thus advised her to file a case in court to declare the contract of sale void. Is C correct? Reason(s).

 

19.

A leased out his condominium unit for 10 years for PHP 50,000.00 a month. Meanwhile, A harbored his mistress X in his house while his wife, B, was in the United States of America. Subsequently, A donated to X the right to receive all rentals from the lessee of the condominium unit. B filed an action to declare the donation void as it was made between A and X who are guilty of concubinage. In their defense, A and X claimed that the action should be dismissed since the crime of concubinage should first be proved in a separate criminal case. Decide with reason(s).

 

20.

On October 18, 2022, the Supreme Court En Banc promulgated the Rule on International Child Abduction Cases (Rule) which implements the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction of 1980. The Rule provides an expeditious procedure to facilitate the prompt return of children who have been wrongfully removed or retained across international boundaries to their state or country of habitual residence. This is based on the presumption that, save in exceptional circumstances, the wrongful removal or retention of the children is not in their best interests. Which of the Guiding Principles and Outcomes under the Supreme Court’s Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations 2022-2027 (SPJI) are sought to be achieved by this Rule? Briefly explain your answer.

 

 

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