REGISTRATION

UNDER THE
PROPERTY
REGISTRATION
DECREE AND
CERTIFICATE OF
TITLE
Prepared by:
Divina
Jugo
Rodriguez

2C - Property Law
REGISTRATION UNDER THE PROPERTY
REGISTRATION DECREE
1. Who may apply
2. Form And Contents
3. Dealings With Land
4. What to FIle
5. Where to FIle
6. Publication, Opposition And Default
7. Hearing, Judgment and Decree Of Registration
8. Specific Evidence Of Ownership
9. Cadastral Registration Proceedings
 CERTIFICATE OF TITLE

1. a. Preparation of decree and Certificate of Title

2. b. Entry of Original Certificate of Title
3. c. Ownerʼs duplicate Certificate of Title
4. d. Registration Books
5. e. Transfer Certificate of Title
6. f. Statutory liens affecting title
7. g. Statement of personal circumstances in the certificate
8. h. General incidents of registered land
a. Registered land not subject to prescription
b. Certificate not subject to collateral attack
9. Splitting or consolidation of titles
10. j. Subdivision and consolidation plans
 Who May Apply (Section 14 of PD 1529 as amended)
Possessor of land for 20 years Other Land owners

01 04
in open, continuous, exclusive acquired ownership of land
and notorious possession and in any other manner
occupation of alienable and provided for by law
disposable lands of the public
domain for 20 years
Vendors in pacto de retro

02 Owner By Prescription
ownership of private lands by
05 sale
Sale of land in pacto de retro,
however expiration of period for
prescription under the provision
redemption renders vendee
of existing laws;
substitutes for proceeding

06
Owner by Accession

03 acquired ownership of private lands or

abandoned river beds by right of
accession or accretion under the
Trustees
Trustees on behalf of the
principal, except if not allowed
existing laws in the instrument of trust

Note: Co-owners must apply jointly

 CITIZEN
REQUIREMENT
Under Article XIII, Section 1, of the
Constitution, it states that
“All agricultural, timber, and
mineral lands of the public domain, under the provisions of the
water, minerals, coal, petroleum,
and other mineral oils, all forces of Constitution, aliens are not allowed
potential energy, and other natural to acquire the ownership of urban or
resources of the Philippines belong
to the State, and their disposition, residential lands in the Philippines
exploitation, development, or and, as consequence, all acquisitions
utilization shall be limited to
citizens of the Philippines, or to made in contravention of the
corporations or associations at least prohibitions since the fundamental
sixty per centum of the capital of
which is owned by such citizens, law became effective are null and
subject to any existing right, grant, void per se and ab initio.
lease, or concession at the time of
the inauguration of the Government -Krivenko v. Register of Deeds, G.R. No.
established under this Constitution.
L-630, 15 November 1957
(now embodied under Article XII)”
 Acquisition of Property by prescription
Ordinary Prescription Extraordinary Prescription

● 10 years ● 30 Years
● Good Faith ● Uninterrupted adverse
● Just Title Possession
○ Must be True
○ Must be Just
○ Must be Valid
○ Must be Proved
Acquisition of Property by Accretion or Accession
Acquisition of private lands or abandoned
river beds by right of accession or accretion

● The owners of land ● River beds which are

adjoining the banks of abandoned through the
rivers belong the accretion natural change in the
which they gradually course of waters ipso facto
receive from the effects of belong to the owners
the current of the waters. whose lands are occupied
(NCC, Art. 457) by the new course in
proportion to the area
lost(Art 461)
Acquisition of ownership in any other manner provided
by for law
Cession or Concession by the state

When the government ceded and transferred the property to UP, the Republic of
the Philippines completely removed it from the public domain, and more
specifically, with respect to the areas covered by the timber license of the
petitioner, removed and segregated it from a public forest; it divested itself of its
rights and title thereto and relinquished and conveyed the same to UP; and
made UP the absolute owner thereof, subject only to the existing concession.
That the law intended to transfer the absolute and full ownership, Full means
entire, complete, or possessing all particulars, or not wanting in any essential
quality

- International Hardwood and Veneer Co. v.

University of the Philippines, G.R. No.
521518, 13 August 1991.
 Forms and Contents
Under PD 1529 The following must be complied with in the application for land
registration:
● It must be in writing (section 15);
● If there is more than one applicant, the
● Signed by the applicant/s or their application shall be signed and sworn
authorized person to register on their to by and on behalf of each;(Section 15)
behalf (section 15)
● If the application describes the land as
● Must be sworn before any officer bounded by a public or private way or
authorized to administer oaths in road: it must state whether or not the
the city or province where the applicant claims any and what portion
application was signed(Section 15) of the land within the limits of the
way or road, and whether the applicant
● If deemed necessary the court may desires to have the line of the way or
also conduct ocular inspection and road determined. (section 20)
require facts to be stated as long as it
is not inconsistent with PD 1529
(section 21)
 Forms and Contents

● If the applicant is a non-resident, he ● It must be shown that the applicant

must include in the application an furnished the Director of Lands with a
instrument appointing an agent or copy of the application and all
representative residing in the annexes before submitting the
Philippines. (e.g. Special Power of application to the clerk of
Attorney) (section 16) court.(section 17)
● In the application, the applicant ● If the application covers two or more
shall file together with the titles, the parcels must be situated
application all original muniments within the same province or city
of titles or copies thereof and a ● In case of amendments, consisting of a
survey plan of the land approved substantial change in the boundaries
by the Bureau of Lands.(section 17) or an increase in the area of the land
applied for or which involve the
inclusion of an additional land shall be
subject to the same requirements of
publication and notice as in an original
application
 Contents
● The Application must contain the ● Assessed value of the land and the
following: buildings and improvements
● a description of the land (section 15); thereon
● the citizenship and civil status of the ● Whether or not the property is
applicant(single or married) (section conjugal, paraphernal or exclusive
15) property of the applicant
○ If married - the name of the wife ● Whether or not there are
or husband mortgages or encumbrances of
○ if the marriage has been legally any kind whatsoever affecting the
dissolved - when and how the land, or any other person having
marriage relation terminated. any interest therein, legal or
● the full names and addresses of all equitable, or in possession, thereof;
occupants of the land and those of ● The manner by which the
the adjoining owners (if known) applicant has acquired the land
○ if not known, it shall state the
extent of the search made to
find them.
 Dealings with the land
In cases of dealings with the land pending the application. The party
interested must

● present to the court the pertinent instruments together with a

subdivision plan approved by the Director of Lands (in case of transfer of
portions of such) for the court to order that the decree of registration be
issued in the name of the person to whom the property has been
conveyed by said instruments.
● Give prior notice to the parties; and
● Have the peculiar facts and circumstances obtaining in this case show
that these requirements have been complied with.
WHERE TO FILE?

The Case Shall Be Filed With The

Regional Trial Court Of The
Province Or City Where The
Land Is Situated
 NOTICE
OPPOSITION
DEFAULT
MODE OF NOTICE

Publication

Mail

Posting
 Publication

once in the Official Gazette and once in a newspaper of general

circulation in the Philippines

● Requirements for the publication once in the Official Gazette (only) to be

sufficient to confer the court jurisdiction:
➢ notice must be addressed to all persons appearing to have an
interest in the land involved including the adjoining owners so far as
known, and "to all whom it may concern"; and
➢ Said notice must also require all persons concerned to appear in
court at a certain date and time to show cause why the prayer of said
application shall not be granted.
 Mail

Within seven days after publication of said notice in the Official Gazette,
The Commissioner of Land Registration shall cause a copy of the notice of
initial hearing to be mailed to every person named in the notice whose
address is known.

If the applicant requests to have the line of a public way or road determined:
A copy shall be mailed to the Secretary of Public Highways, to the Provincial Governor,
and to the Mayor of the municipality or city, as the case may be, in which the land lies

If the land borders on a river, navigable stream or shore, or on an arm of the sea where a
river or harbor line has been established, or on a lake or if it appears that a tenant-farmer
or the national government may have a claim adverse to that of the applicant
Notice of the initial hearing shall be given in the same manner to the Secretary of
Agrarian Reform, the Solicitor General, the Director of Lands, the Director of Mines and/or
the Director of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, as may be appropriate.
 Posting

posting by the sheriff of the province or city, as the case may be, or by his
deputy, in a conspicuous place on each parcel of land included in the
application and also in a conspicuous place on the bulletin board of the
municipal building of the municipality or city in which the land or portion
thereof is situated, fourteen days at least before the date of initial
hearing.

The certification of the Commissioner of Land Registration and of the

sheriff shall be conclusive proof
 Opposition
Requirements:
➢ Actual Interest in the land
➢ their opposition must be on or before the
date of the initial hearing
➢ state all the objections to the application;
➢ He must set forth the interest claimed by
the party filing the same and apply for the
remedy desired; and
➢ Their opposition must be signed and
sworn to by him or by some other duly
authorized person
 Opposition
Persons with Interests or equitable title
➢ A homesteader who complied with
requisites for patent without issued title
➢ purchaser of friar land
➢ An awardee in a sales application
➢ A person claiming to be in possession of
the land and has applied with the Lands
Management Bureau for its purchase
 Opposition
Subdivision plan should be submitted
➢ the opposition or the adverse claim of
any person covers only a portion of the
lot and said portion is not properly
delimited on the plan attached to the
application
➢ undivided co-ownership,
➢ conflicting claims of ownership or
possession,
➢ overlapping of boundaries
ORDER OF
DEFAULT
Order of Default
If no person appears and answers within the time
allowed, the court shall, upon motion of the applicant, no
reason to the contrary appearing, order a default to be
recorded and require the applicant to present evidence.
By the description in the notice "To all Whom It May
Concern", all the world are made parties defendant and
shall be concluded by the default order.

Where an appearance has been entered and an answer

filed, a default order shall be entered against persons
who did not appear and answer.
Hearing,
05.
Judgment
and Decree
Of
Registration
 Hearing

● the court shall decide upon the registration proceedings within ninety days from
the date the case is submitted for decision

● If the court deems it necessary, they may refer the case to a referee who shall then
hear the case and subsequently submit his report to the court within fifteen days
after the termination of such hearing. This hearing may be held at any convenient
place it in the province or city as may be fixed by him and after reasonable notice
thereof shall have been served the parties concerned, the court then may decide on
the case based only on the report of the referee, the court may also set aside the
reports of the referee and order the case to be recommitted for further proceedings.
JUDGMENT

● If the court, after considering the evidence and the reports of the
Commissioner of Land Registration and the Director of Lands, finds that the
applicant or the oppositor has sufficient title proper for registration,
judgment shall be rendered confirming the title of the applicant, or the
oppositor, to the land or portions thereof

● In cases where only a portion of the land subject of registration is

contested, the court may render partial judgment provided that a
subdivision plan showing the contested and uncontested portions
approved by the Director of Lands is previously submitted to said
court.(Section 28)
JUDGMENT

● Judgment by the court becomes final upon the expiration of thirty days to
be counted from the date of receipt of notice of the judgment. An appeal
may be taken from the judgment of the court to the Court of Appeals or to
the Supreme Court in the same manner as in ordinary actions.

● After judgment has become final and executory, the court shall order the
commissioner for the issuance of a decree of registration and the
corresponding certificate of title in favor of the person adjudged entitled to
registration.
 Decree of Registration
The decree of Registration shall contain the following:
➢ the date, hour, and minute of its entry
➢ Signature of the Commissioner of Land Registration
➢ It shall state whether the owner is married or unmarried, and if married, the name
of the husband or wife
➢ If the land adjudicated by the court is conjugal property, the decree shall be
issued in the name of both spouses.
➢ If the owner is under disability, it shall state the nature of the disability, and if a
minor, his age.
➢ A description of the land as finally determined by the court
➢ The decree shall set forth the estate of the owner, and also, in such manner as to
show their relative priorities, all particular estates, mortgages, easements, liens,
attachments, and other encumbrances, including rights of tenant-farmers, if any,
to which the land or owner's estate is subject, as well as any other matters
properly to be determined
 Effects of Decree of
Registration
The decree of registration shall bind the land and
quiet title thereto, subject only to such exceptions
or liens as may be provided by law. It shall be
conclusive upon and against all persons. (Section 31)

Exception:
Persons deprived of land or of any estate or interest
therein by such adjudication or confirmation of title
obtained by actual fraud may file in the proper
Regional Trial Court a petition for reopening and
review of the decree of registration not later than
one year from and after the date of the entry of such
decree of registration.
 Effects of Decree of
Registration
Exception to the Exception
where an innocent purchaser for value has acquired
the land or an interest therein, whose rights may be
prejudiced.

"innocent purchaser for value" - shall be deemed to

include an innocent lessee, mortgagee, or other
encumbrancer for value.
SPECIFIC EVIDENCE OF
OWNERSHIP

PRESUMPTION: Under the Regalian doctrine, all lands not

otherwise appearing to be clearly within private ownership are
presumed to belong to the State. Hence, all applicants in land
registration proceedings have the burden of overcoming the
presumption that the land thus sought to be registered forms
part of the public domain.

How to defeat presumption?

A person who seeks the registration of title to a piece

of land on the basis of possession by himself and his
predecessors-in-interest must prove his claim by clear
and convincing evidence
Land must be classified as
Alienable and Disposable land.
Executive Proclamation

01 Certification (BFD)
Certification of the Bureau of Forest
03 Executive proclamation
withdrawing from a reservation a
specific area and declaring the
Development that the land has been released same open for entry, sale or other
as alienable and disposable land mode of disposition

Land Classification 04 Legislative act or

02 Map
Land Classification Map showing that
executive proclamation
Legislative act or executive
proclamation reserving a portion
of the public domain for public or
the land lies within the alienable and quasi-public use, which amounts
disposable portion of the public to a transfer of ownership to
domain grantee.
Land must be classified as
Alienable and Disposable land.
Note: it is not enough for the PENRO
or CENRO to certify that a land is

05
alienable and disposable. The
Bureau of lands applicant for land registration must
The report of a land inspector of the Bureau of prove that the DENR Secretary had
Lands that the subject land was found inside approved the land classification and
an agricultural zone and is suitable for rice released the land of the public
cultivation domain as alienable and disposable

DENR Regional Technical

06 CENRO
A certification by the CENRO of the
07
Director
Certification by DENR Regional
Technical Director that a lot had
DENR stating that the land subject of
an application is found within the been verified as belonging to the
alienable and disposable site per a land alienable and disposable area
classification project map.
Section 7 of REPUBLIC
ACT NO. 11573

A duly signed certification by a duly

designated DENR geodetic engineer that
the land is part of alienable and disposable
agricultural lands of the public domain is
sufficient proof that the land is alienable.
The imprinted certification in the plan shall contain a sworn
statement by the geodetic engineer that the land is within
the alienable and disposable lands of the public shall state
the applicable:

01 Forestry
Administrative 03 Executive Order,
Proclamations
Order

04
The Land
Classification Project
02 DENR
Administrative
Map Number
covering the subject
Order land
SURVEY
PLAN
Survey v. Survey plan

Survey Survey Plan

is the act by which the quantity of a serves to establish the true identity of the
parcel of land is ascertained and also land to ensure that it does not overlap a
a paper containing a statement of parcel of land or a portion thereof already
courses, distances and quantity of covered by a previous land registration, and
land. to forestall the possibility that it will be
overlapped by a subsequent registration of
any adjoining land.
POSSESSION
AND
OCCUPATION
Section 7 of REPUBLIC
ACT NO. 11573

Applicant must show both

“possession and occupation”
by “well-nigh
incontrovertible proof.”
Conflict in Possession

RULE: In case of conflict or dispute regarding possession, the

rule of preference under article 538 of the New Civil Code is
controlling

a. The present possessor shall be preferred

b. If there are two (2) possessors, the one longer in
possession
c. If the dates of the possession are the same, the
one who presents a title
d. If both possessors have titles, the court shall
determine the rightful possessor and owner of
the land.
 Tax
Declaration
Taxes

Tax declarations and

realty tax payment of
property are NOT
conclusive evidence of
ownership
SECTION 28-29

SECTION 28. Partial Judgment. — In a case where only a portion of the land subject of
registration is contested, the court may render partial judgment provided that a subdivision plan
showing the contested and uncontested portions approved by the Director of Lands is previously
submitted to said court.

SECTION 29. Judgment Confirming Title. — All conflicting claims of ownership and interest in
the land subject of the application shall be determined by the court. If the court, after
considering the evidence and the reports of the Commissioner of Land Registration and the
Director of Lands, finds that the applicant or the oppositor has sufficient title proper for
registration, judgment shall be rendered confirming the title of the applicant, or the oppositor, to
the land or portions thereof

Courts in this provision refer to Courts of First Instance which is now the
Regional Trial Courts
SECTION 30

SECTION 30. When Judgment Becomes Final; Duty to Cause Issuance of Decree. — The
judgment rendered in a land registration proceedings becomes final upon the
expiration of thirty days (Now 15 days) to be counted from the data of receipt of
notice of the judgment. An appeal may be taken from the judgment of the court as
in ordinary civil cases.

After judgment has become final and executory, it shall devolve upon the court to
forthwith issue an order in accordance with Section 39 of this Decree to the
Commissioner for the issuance of the decree of registration and the corresponding
certificate of title in favor of the person adjudged entitled to registration.
Writ of Possession

A writ of possession is employed

to enforce a judgment to recover
the possession of land. It
commands the sheriff to enter the
land and give possession of it to
the person entitled under the
judgment.
DECREE OF
REGISTRATION
The land becomes a registered
land only upon the transcription of
the decree in the original
registration book by the Register
of Deeds, and not on the date of
issuance of the decree
CADASTRAL
PROCEEDING
NATURE OF CADASTRAL
PROCEEDING

Unlike in ordinary land registration, the

Philippine government initiates cadastral
land registration in that titles to all lands
within a stated area shall be adjudicated,
whether their inhabitants desire to have
titles issued

Under the Property Registration

Decree, surveying these lands is
preparatory to initiate cadastral land
registration proceedings before the
proper court.
 CADASTRAL PROCEEDING

01 Cadastral 04 Filing of answer

Survey

Hearing the
02 Filing of
Petition for 05 Petition
Registration

03 Notice of Survey
and Publication
06 Judgement
CERTIFICATE
OF TITLE
 CERTIFICATE OF TITLE
Registration
08
Preparation of
Decree and 04 Books
Certificate of Title
Entry of
Transfer
Certificate of
02 Original
Certificate of 05 Title
Title
Statutory liens
03 Owner’s duplicate
Certificate of Title
06 affecting title
GENERAL INCIDENTS OF
REGISTERED LAND
General incidents of

7
registered land
Registered land shall be
subject to such burdens and
incidents as may arise by
operation of law
Registered land not subject to
prescription
7.1 No title to registered land in
derogation of the title of the
registered owner shall be
acquired by prescription.
Certificate not subject
to collateral attack
7.2 It’s composed mostly of
hydrogen and helium
CERTIFICATE OF TITLE

Splitting of
08 Consolidation of
Titles

09 Subdivision and
Consolidation
plans
Preparation of Decree
and Certificate of Title

ISSUANCE OF DECREE OF REGISTRATION AND CERTIFICATE

OF TITLE

1. Upon finality of judgment that the subject land is private

property, the court shall within 15 days from entry of
judgment direct the Land Registration Authority
Administrator to issue the corresponding decree of
registration and certificate of title. The period within
which the court may issue a decree is generally
imprescriptible.
2. He shall then transmit these to the Registry of Deeds in
the city or province where the property lies upon which
the decree of registration shall be entered into the
Registration Book where this shall constitute the original
certificate of title, whose effectivity shall be upon the
date of entry thereof.
Decree of
Registration
The Decree of Registration bears the date, hour, and
minute of its entry and may be registered in the name
of applicant-claimant or oppositor. It shall also state
the civil status of the person it is registered to (i.e:
single/married, minority, under disability). The Decree
binds the land, quiets title thereto, and is conclusive
against the whole world. Upon complete registration
in the Registry of Deeds, the property becomes
registered land and any defect in the manner of
transcribing the technical description should be
considered a formal and not substantial defect
ENTRY OF ORIGINAL CERTIFICATE
& TRANSFER CERTIFICATE (SEC.
40, 43, & 45 OF PD 1529)

FULL NAMES CIVIL STATUS RESIDENCE

NUMBER OF
PREVIOUS
RESIDENCE/POSTAL CERTIFICATE/S,
CITIZENSHIP
ADDRESS IF APPLICABLE
Registration Book

The original copy of the certificate

of title shall be filed in the Registry
of Deeds. The same shall bound
and shall constitute the
registration book for titled
properties.
“Curtain
Principle”
One of the guiding tenets underlying the torrens
system is the “curtain principle”, in that one does not
need to go behind the certificate of title because it
contains all the information about the title of its
holder. This principle dispenses with the need of
proving ownership by long complicated documents
kept by the registered owner, which may be necessary
under a private conveyancing system, and assures
that all the necessary information regarding
ownership is on the certificate of title.
 isISI Is a
certificate of title
Title is based on the the same as the
right of the owner or title
extent of his interest by itself?ISFNDFDF
which he can maintain,
control, and assert right
to exclusive possession
and enjoyment of the
property.
 isISI Is a
certificate of title
the same as the
A certificate of title, title
however, is a mere itself?ISFNDFDF
evidence of ownership
and is not a title to the
land itself.
 wWhere is the
owner’s duplicate
certificate
The registered owner or delivered?FNDFDF
his duly authorized
representative.
 Who is the
legitimate
The surrender of an owner's duplicate
certificate is conclusive authority for the owner?
Register of Deeds to enter a new certificate
or a memorandum of registration. This does
not apply to mortgagee or lessee who
surrender the same to the Register of Deeds
in view of the cancellation. Unlike the
legitimate owner, a mortgagee or lessee
cannot be issued by the Register of Deeds
and those issued prior to the effectivity of
the PD No. 1529 on June 11, 1978 are deemed
canceled
 Who is the
legitimate
The surrender of an owner's duplicate
certificate is conclusive authority for the owner?
Register of Deeds to enter a new certificate
or a memorandum of registration. This does
not apply to mortgagee or lessee who
surrender the same to the Register of Deeds
in view of the cancellation. Unlike the
legitimate owner, a mortgagee or lessee
cannot be issued by the Register of Deeds
and those issued prior to the effectivity of
the PD No. 1529 on June 11, 1978 are deemed
canceled
 Preferential
The registered owner is entitled and has Right
preferential right of the owner’s duplicate as
against one whose name does not appear in the
certificate but who may have claim to or right to
possession of the land (e.g: co-owner).
Furthermore, it was held in Abad v. Court of
Appeals, mere possession cannot defeat the
title of a holder of registered Torrens title to real
property. Such title is entitled to respect and
great weight until somebody else could show a
better right to the property.
 SECTION 44 &
SECTION 46 OF PD
1529

LIMITATIONS ON REGISTERED OWNER’S ABSOLUTE TITLE

OVER THE PROPERTY
Encumbrances
An “encumbrance” is a burden
upon land, depreciative of its
value, such as lien, easement, or
servitude, which, though adverse
to the interest of the landowner,
does not conflict with his
conveyance of the land in fee.”
 Limitations on Registered Owner’s Absolute Title
Over the Property
1. Liens, claims, or rights existing or arising under the laws or the Constitution which are not by law required to appear
of record in the Registry of Deeds
1. Unpaid real estate taxes levied and assessed within two years immediately preceding the acquisition of any right
over the land
2. Any public highway or private way established or recognized by law, or by any government irrigation canal or lateral
thereof;
3. Any disposition of the property or limitation on the use thereof by virtue of PD No. 27 or any other law or regulation
on agrarian reform
4. Rights incidental to the relation of husband and wife, and landlord and tenant
5. Liability to attachment or levy on execution
6. Liability to any lien of any description established by law on the land and the buildings thereon, or on the interest of
the owner on such lands and buildings
7. Rights incident to the laws of descent or partition between co-owners
8. Taking of the property through eminent domain
9. Right to relieve the land from liability to be recovered by an assignee in insolvency or trustee in bankruptcy under the
laws relative to preferences; and
10. Rights or liabilities created by law and applicable under registered land.
What is a
lien?
A “lien” is a charge on property
usually for the payment of some
debt or obligation. A “lien” is a
qualified right or proprietary
interest, which may be exercised
over the property of another.
 ”No title to registered
land in derogation of
PRESCRIPTION the title of the
registered owner shall
be acquired by
prescription.

Section 47, PD 1529

 ”A certificate of title
shall not be subject to
collateral attack. It
cannot be altered,
COLLATERAL modified, or cancelled
except in a direct
ATTACK
proceeding in
accordance with law.”

Section 48, PD 1529

JURISPRUDENCE

Alabang Development
Corporation vs. Valenzuela
The Court stresses once more that lands already covered by duly issued existing Torrens Titles
(which become incontrovertible upon the expiration of one year from their issuance under
Section 38 of the Land Registration Act) cannot be the subject of petitions for reconstitution of
allegedly lost or destroyed titles filed by third parties without first securing by final judgment
the cancellation of such existing titles. . . . The courts simply have no jurisdiction over petitions
by such third parties for reconstitution of allegedly lost or destroyed titles over lands that are
already covered by duly issued subsisting titles in the names of their duly registered owners.
The very concept of stability and indefeasibility of titles covered under the Torrens System of
registration rules out as anathema the issuance of two certificates of title over the same land to
two different holders thereof. A fortiori, such proceedings for “reconstitution” without actual
notice to the duly registered owners and holders of Torrens Titles to the land are null and void.
Applicants, land officials and judges who disregard these basic and fundamental principles will
be held duly accountable therefor. (Emphasis supplied)
JURISPRUDENCE

HORTIZUELA V TAGUFA &

LUMABAN
Contrary to the pronouncements of the MCTC and the CA, however, the complaint of Hortizuela
was not a collateral attack on the title warranting dismissal. As a matter of fact, an action for
reconveyance is a recognized remedy, an action in personam, available to a person whose
property has been wrongfully registered under the Torrens system in another’s name. In an
action for reconveyance, the decree is not sought to be set aside. It does not seek to set aside
the decree but, respecting it as incontrovertible and no longer open to review, seeks to transfer
or reconvey the land from the registered owner to the rightful owner. Reconveyance is always
available as long as the property has not passed to an innocent third person for value.17 There is
no quibble that a certificate of title, like in the case at bench, can only be questioned through a
direct proceeding. The MCTC and the CA, however, failed to take into account that in a complaint
for reconveyance, the decree of registration is respected as incontrovertible and is not being
questioned. What is being sought is the transfer of the property wrongfully or erroneously
registered in another's name to its rightful owner or to the one with a better right. If the
registration of the land is fraudulent, the person in whose name the land is registered holds it as
a mere trustee, and the real owner is entitled to file an action for reconveyance of the
property.18
 DIVISION AND
CONSOLIDATION
Sec. 49. Splitting or Consolidation of Titles.–– A
SECTION 50. Subdivision and Consolidation Plans. — Any owner
registered owner of several distinct parcels of land subdividing a tract of registered land into lots which do not constitute a
embraced in and covered by a certificate of title subdivision project as defined and provided for under P.D. No. 957, shall
desiring in lieu thereof separate certificates, each file with the Commissioner of Land Registration or with the Bureau of
Lands a subdivision plan of such land on which all boundaries, streets,
containing one or more parcels, may file a written passageways and waterways, if any, shall be distinctly and accurately
request for that purpose with the Register of Deeds delineated.
concerned, and the latter, upon the surrender of the
A registered owner desiring to consolidate several lots into one or more,
owner's duplicate, shall cancel it together with its
requiring new technical descriptions, shall file with the Land Registration
original and issue in lieu thereof separate certificates Commission, a consolidation plan on which shall be shown the lots to be
as desired. A registered owner of several distinct affected, as they were before, and as they will appear after the
consolidation. Upon the surrender of the owner's duplicate certificates and
parcels of land covered by separate certificates of title
the receipt of consolidation plan duly approved by the Commission, the
desiring to have in lieu thereof a single certificate for Register of Deeds concerned shall cancel the corresponding certificates of
the whole land, or several certificates for the different title and issue a new one for the consolidated lots.

parcels thereof, may also file a written request with the

The Commission may not order or cause any change, modification, or
Register of Deeds concerned, and the latter, upon the amendment in the contents of any certificate of title, or of any decree or
surrender of the owner's duplicates, shall cancel them plan, including the technical description therein, covering any real property
registered under the Torrens system, nor order the cancellation of the said
together with their originals, and issue in lieu thereof
certificate of title and the issuance of a new one which would result in the
one or separate certificates as desired. enlargement of the area covered by the certificate of title.