Ako Legal Wife

Here is a case involving a deceased husband with two families and their dispute on how to distirbute his estate.

Richard and Maya both Filipinos were married and lived in Manila. They begot two children Nimfa and Danny and after some years of marriage Richard being a physician went to Canada. After staying there for three years, Richard got attached to a Filipina nurse named Amy. He got a quick divorce on the ground of desertion and then married the Filipina nurse with whom he also begot two children Dennis and Thessa. Richard while imprisoned in Canada for malpractice died leaving valuable properties in the Philippines. How would Maya, Nimfa, Danny, Amy, Dennis, and Thessa share in the estate of Richard?

Answer:

Only Maya, Nimfa, Danny, Dennis and Thessa shall inherit based on their successional rights whereby Maya, Nimfa and Danny will be entitled to ¼ share each; while Dennis and Thessa shall be entitled to 1/8 share each.

The subsequent marriage of Ricahrd to Amy is not valid in the Philippines because divorce secured against Maya in Canada is not recognize in our country consistent with Art. 15 of the Civil Code of the Philippines providing that “Laws relating to family rights and duties or status, condition and legal capacity of persons are binding upon citizens of the Philippines, even though living abroad.” Therefore, Angelica shall not inherit from Robert.

With respect to Dennis and Thessa, they are considered illegitimate children consistent with Art. 16 of the same Civil Code, which provides that “intestate and testamentary successions, both with respect to the order of succession and to the amount of successional rights and to the intrinsic validity of the testamentary provisions, shall be regulated by the national law of the person whose succession is under consideration, whatever may be the nature of the property and regardless of the country wherein said property may be found.”