Article 36 of the Family Code
A marriage contracted by any party who, at the time of the celebration,
was psychologically incapacitated to comply with essential marital
obligations of marriage shall likewise be void even if such incapacity
becomes manifest only after its solemnization. (n) (As amended by
executive Order Number 227 dated July 17, 1987)
• What is Psychological Incapacity?
In Salita Vs Magtolis G.R. No. 106429 June 13, 1994 "The Committee
did not give any examples of psychological incapacity for fear that the
giving of examples would limit the applicability of the provision under the
principle of ejusdem generis. Rather, the Committee would like the judge
to interpret the provision on a case-to-case basis, guided by experience,
the findings of experts and researchers in psychological disciplines, and
by decisions of church tribunals which, although not binding on the civil
courts, may be given persuasive effect since the provision was taken from
Canon Law"
In Santos vs CA and Santos G.R. No. 112019 January 4, 1995 "Article
36 of the Family Code cannot be taken and construed independently of,
but must stand in conjunction with, existing precepts in our law on
marriage. Thus correlated, "psychological incapacity" should refer to no
less than a mental (not physical) incapacity that causes a party to be truly
incognitive of the basic marital covenants that concomitantly must be
assumed and discharged by the parties to the marriage which, as so
expressed by Article 68 of the Family Code, include their mutual
obligations to live together, observe love, respect and fidelity and render
help and support. There is hardly any doubt that the intendment of the law
has been to confine the meaning of "psychological incapacity" to the most
serious cases of personality disorders clearly demonstrative of an utter
intensitivity or inability to give meaning and significance to the marriage."
2 INTERPRETATIONS OF PSYCH INCAPACITY
Vitiation of consent:
1. One does not know the consequences of marriage.
2. If he had known, he would not have consented to contract marriage.
• What are the requirements or requisites of Psychological Incapacity?
In Republic vs CA and Molina or The Molina Doctrine G.R. No. 108763
February 13, 1997 "the following guidelines in the interpretation and
application of Art. 36 of the Family Code are hereby handed down for the
guidance (1) The burden of proof to show the nullity of the marriage
belongs to the plaintiff. Any doubt should be resolved in favor of the
existence and continuation of the marriage and against its dissolution and
nullity. This is rooted in the fact that both our Constitution and our laws
cherish the validity of marriage and unity of the family. Thus, our
Constitution devotes an entire Article on the Family, recognizing it "as the
foundation of the nation." It decrees marriage as legally "inviolable,"
thereby protecting it from dissolution at the whim of the parties. Both the
family and marriage are to be "protected" by the state. (2) The root cause
of the psychological incapacity must be (a) medically or clinically
identified, (b) alleged in the complaint, (c) sufficiently proven by experts
and (d) clearly explained in the decision. (3) The incapacity must be proven
to be existing at "the time of the celebration" of the marriage. (4) Such
incapacity must also be shown to be medically or clinically permanent or
incurable. (5) Such illness must be grave enough to bring about the
disability of the party to assume the essential obligations of marriage. (6)
The essential marital obligations must be those embraced by Articles 68
up to 71 of the Family Code as regards the husband and wife as well as
Articles 220, 221 and 225 of the same Code in regard to parents and their
children. (7) Interpretations given by the National Appellate Matrimonial
Tribunal of the Catholic Church in the Philippines, while not controlling or
decisive, should be given great respect by our courts. (8) The trial court
must order the prosecuting attorney or fiscal and the Solicitor General to
appear as counsel for the state. No decision shall he handed down unless
the Solicitor General issues a certification, which will be quoted in the
decision, briefly staring therein his reasons for his agreement or
opposition, as the case may be, to the petition.
• Psychological Illness as Ground for Nullity of Marriage
In Ferraris vs Ferraris G.R. No. 162368 July 17, 2006 "The term
"psychological incapacity" to be a ground for the nullity of marriage under
Article 36 of the Family Code, refers to a serious psychological illness
afflicting a party even before the celebration of the marriage. It is a malady
so grave and so permanent as to deprive one of awareness of the duties
and responsibilities of the matrimonial bond one is about to assume. As
all people may have certain quirks and idiosyncrasies, or isolated
characteristics associated with certain personality disorders, there is
hardly any doubt that the intendment of the law has been to confine the
meaning of "psychological incapacity" to the most serious cases of
personality disorders clearly demonstrative of an utter insensitivity or
inability to give meaning and significance to the marriage. It is for this
reason that the Court relies heavily on psychological experts for its
understanding of the human personality. However, the root cause must be
identified as a psychological illness and its incapacitating nature must be
fully explained,which petitioner failed to convincingly demonstrate."
• Refusal to fulfill marital obligation
In Chi Ming Tsoi vs CA and Lao Tsoi G.R. No. 119190 January 16, 1997
" If a spouse, although physically capable but simply refuses to perform
his or her essential marriage obligations, and the refusal is senseless and
constant, Catholic marriage tribunals attribute the causes to psychological
incapacity than to stubborn refusal. Senseless and protracted refusal is
equivalent to psychological incapacity. Thus, the prolonged refusal of a
spouse to have sexual intercourse with his or her spouse is considered a
sign of psychological incapacity" further adds " Evidently, one of the
essential marital obligations under the Family Code is "To procreate
children based on the universal principle that procreation of children
through sexual cooperation is the basic end of marriage." Constant non-
fulfillment of this obligation will finally destroy the integrity or wholeness of
the marriage. In the case at bar, the senseless and protracted refusal of
one of the parties to fulfill the above marital obligation is equivalent to
psychological incapacity."
