08/02/2026
Surname of married woman's lover was used in the love child's birth certificate: Can the woman, who's separated in fact from her husband, have the child's surname changed to her maiden surname? | Articles 164 and 167 of the Family Code | Supreme Court decision in "Ordoรฑa vs. Pasig City Local Civil Registrar" (2021) | House Bill No. 7348 (20th Congress) filed by Rep. Sun J. Shimura of Cebu's 4th congressional district seeks to amend Article 167 of the Family Code by giving a mother the right to impugn โ challenge or question โ her child's legitimacy (in simpler terms, with the proposed amendment, a mother can declare that her child is illegitimate).
๐ข๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฒ๐:
๐. ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฐ, ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ต (๐ญ) ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐: "Children conceived or born during the marriage of the parents are legitimate."
In the 2005 "Gerardo Concepcion vs. Court of Appeals and Ma. Theresa Almonte" case, Gerardo filed a petition for declaration of nullity of his marriage to Theresa on the ground that their marriage was bigamous. Ma. Theresa was already married to a certain Mario when they got married (and Mario was still alive and living in Quezon City). As a result, the Regional Trial Court declared their son Jose Gerardo to be an illegitimate child. When the court denied her motion to have Jose Gerardo's surname changed to her maiden surname, Ma. Theresa brought the case up to the Court of Appeals.
Ma. Theresa and Gerardo were shocked when the Court of Appeals ruled that, legally, Jose Gerardo was not their son but the son of Ma. Theresa and Mario (the first husband). The Court of Appeals ruling, later on affirmed by the Supreme Court, declared that every presumption must be in favor of legitimacy. You can read the full text of this case @ https://lawphil.net/judjuris/juri2005/aug2005/gr_123450_2005.html
๐. ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐บ๐ฝ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ฐ๐น๐๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ. It may be disputed based on the grounds and manner provided under Articles 166, 170, and 171.
๐. ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ณ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐: "The child shall be considered legitimate although the mother may have declared against its legitimacy or may have been sentenced as an adulteress."
๐. ๐๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ "๐ข๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ผรฑ๐ฎ ๐๐. ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ด ๐๐ถ๐๐ ๐๐๐ฅ (๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ญ)" ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ, ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐บ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ต๐๐๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ณ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐ณ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐น๐ถ๐๐. While working in UAE, she entered into a relationship with a man, with whom she later had a son. On the birth certificate, her son's surname is that of her lover's surname, instead of her husband's surname. Claiming that her son is illegitimate, she filed a petition under Rule 108 "Cancellation or Correction of Entries in the Civil Registry" to have her son's surname on the birth certificate changed from her lover's surname to her maiden surname.
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ป๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป'๐ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป, ๐ฐ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ๐ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ณ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ. The Court said that it's only the husband or, in exceptional cases, his heirs who can impugn (challenge or question) her son's legitimacy. ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐, ๐ต๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ, ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ป๐ผ๐๐น๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ด๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ "๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ป๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ถ๐๐๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ [๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐ป] ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐ถ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐ต ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ถ๐น๐น ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฟ๐ป๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ [๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐ณ๐ฒ'๐ ๐น๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ] ๐๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด, ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฒ, ๐ฎ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฎ๐๐๐, ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ผ๐ป ๐ต๐ถ๐บ ๐ฏ๐ ๐น๐ฎ๐."
The Court addressed to Congress and the Senate the "absence of a remedy in favor of a mother in establishing the true filiation of her child."
๐. ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ฝ. ๐ฆ๐๐ป ๐. ๐ฆ๐ต๐ถ๐บ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ฒ๐ฏ๐'๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ต ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ด๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ ๐ณ๐ถ๐น๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐น๐น ๐ก๐ผ. ๐ณ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ด, ๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ณ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ผ๐ ๐ฎ ๐บ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ ๐ถ๐บ๐ฝ๐๐ด๐ป (๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ด๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป) ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ'๐ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐. In simpler terms, with the proposed amendment, a mother can declare that her child is illegitimate.
๐๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ด๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ป๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐:
๐. You can read the full text of "Ordoรฑa vs. Pasig City LCR (2021)" @ https://lawphil.net/judjuris/juri2021/nov2021/gr_215370_2021.html
Richelle Busque Ordoรฑa (Richelle) was married to a certain Ariel O. Libut (Ariel) on October 10, 2000 in Las Piรฑas City. ๐๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ด ๐๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ธ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ถ๐ป ๐ค๐ฎ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ, ๐ฅ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐น ๐ต๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ถ๐น๐น๐ถ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐น๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ต๐ถ๐ฝ. ๐๐ผ๐บ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ต๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฃ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐, ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐น ๐ฏ๐๐ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฑ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ธ ๐๐ผ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ป๐๐น ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฟ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ.
Richelle then worked in UAE where she met Allan D. Fulgueras (Allan), her former colleague in Qatar. She and Allan engaged in an intimate relationship, which resulted in her pregnancy. She went back to the Philippines sometime in 2009 and in early 2010 gave birth to a son in a hospital in Pasig City. ๐๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐ต, ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ป๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ "๐๐น๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐๐น ๐ข๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ผรฑ๐ฎ ๐๐๐น๐ด๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐โ ๐๐ถ๐๐ต "๐๐น๐น๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป ๐๐๐น๐ด๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐" ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐๐ฟ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ.
๐. ๐๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ญ, ๐ฅ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ถ๐น๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐ง๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ ๐ฎ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฅ๐๐น๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ฌ๐ด "๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐น ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐๐ฟ๐" ๐๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ธ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ผ๐น๐น๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐:
(1) change of last name of Alrich Paul in Item 1 from "Fulgueras" to "Ordoรฑa," her maiden name; and
(2) deletion of entries in the paternal information in Item Nos. 13 to 17.
๐ฅ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐๐น๐น๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ผ ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ป๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ณ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ฐ๐ธ๐ป๐ผ๐๐น๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ด๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐/๐๐ฑ๐บ๐ถ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ป๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐ต (๐๐ณ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ฐ๐ธ๐ป๐ผ๐๐น๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ด๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐) ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐น๐น๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฃ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ด๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐ต ๐๐ผ ๐๐น๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐๐น.
๐. ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐ง๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐'๐ ๐ฟ๐๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด
๐๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฎ, ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฅ๐ง๐ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ป๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฅ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ฒ'๐ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐น๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ ๐ฏ๐๐ ๐ฟ๐๐น๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ๐ป ๐ถ๐ ๐ถ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ. Highlights of the RTC's ruling:
(๐ญ) Alrich Paul is an illegitimate child considering that he was conceived and born outside a valid marriage. "Per his Certificate of Live Birth, his mother is petitioner [Richelle] married to Ariel, but his alleged father is Allan."
(๐ฎ) Under Article 176 of the Family Code, as amended by Republic Act 9255, "illegitimate children shall use the surname and be under the parental authority of their mother, and shall be entitled to support in conformity with the Family Code; however, illegitimate children may use the surname of their father if their filiation has been expressly recognized by the father through the record of birth appearing in the civil register, or when an admission in a public document or private handwritten instrument is made by the father."
(๐ฏ) "Thus, [Richelle] wanted to delete the entries in Item Nos. 13 to 17 in Alrich Paul's Certificate of Live Birth to do away with an embarrassing situation when he comes of age and attends school where he can be the object of ridicule and discriminatory remarks from his peers."
"๐ฆ๐๐ถ๐น๐น, ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฅ๐ง๐ ๐ฒ๐
๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐บ๐๐๐ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ ๐ฏ๐ ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐ผ๐ฟ. ๐๐ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐น๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐๐ฒ๐บ ๐ก๐ผ๐. ๐ญ๐ฏ ๐๐ผ ๐ญ๐ณ ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐น๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ, ๐๐น๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐๐น ๐๐ผ๐๐น๐ฑ ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ ๐ต๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ป๐ผ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐น๐น; ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ผ๐๐น๐ฑ ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐บ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐น๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐๐น ๐ถ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฒ, ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐, ๐๐ถ๐น๐น ๐ต๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ป๐ผ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ; that the intended correction was only for the convenience of [Richelle], who is legally married to Ariel, but gave birth to Alrich Paul whose alleged father is Allan; and that the legitime of Alrich Paul might be affected if Item Nos. 13 to 17 were to be deleted." [Boldfacing supplied]
After the RTC denied her Motion for Reconsideration, Richelle appealed to the Court of Appeals.
๐. ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น๐' ๐ฟ๐๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด:
๐๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฐ, ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น๐ ๐ฟ๐๐น๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ฒ, ๐ฐ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ๐ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ณ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ. ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฒ, ๐ถ๐ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ฝ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฅ๐ง๐'๐ ๐ฟ๐๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐น๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐๐น ๐ถ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ถ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ.
"The CA explained that under Article 164 of the Family Code, 'children conceived or born during the marriage of the parents are legitimate.' It then noted that when Alrich Paul was born, [Richelle] was still married to Ariel.
"๐ช๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ [๐ฅ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ฒ'๐] ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐บ๐ถ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐น๐น๐ฎ๐ป, ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ต๐๐๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ, ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐น, ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ ๐๐น๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐๐น, ๐ถ๐ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ณ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ '๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐น๐๐ต๐ผ๐๐ด๐ต ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐บ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ ๐ต๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐น๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ ๐ถ๐๐ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ ๐ต๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ป ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐๐น๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐.' Thus, contrary to what the RTC declared, it ruled that Alrich Paul cannot be deemed the illegitimate child of [Richelle] and Allan based solely on [Richelle's] admission; that the law requires that every reasonable presumption be made in favor of legitimacy; and that the status and filiation of the child cannot be compromised." [Boldfacing supplied]
"The CA further explained that the law sets who may dispute the legitimate status of the child, and that specifically, impugning the legitimacy of a child is a strictly personal right of the husband, or in exceptional cases, his heirs."
"The CA added that it was not for the RTC to rule on the matter: should Ariel or his heirs file an action impugning the status of Alrich Paul as a legitimate child of Ariel, it should be threshed out in a different proceeding. It explained that the well settled rule is that the issue of legitimacy cannot be attacked collaterally.
"Thus, the CA declared that the presumption that Alrich Paul is the legitimate child of the legal and subsisting marriage between petitioner and Ariel stands."
After the Court of Appeals denied her Motion for Reconsideration, Richelle appealed to the Supreme Court.
๐. ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐'๐ ๐ฟ๐๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด:
(๐ญ) ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ป๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฅ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ฒ'๐ ๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น, ๐ฐ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐๐ ๐ฟ๐๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต "๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ด๐ผ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ ๐ฟ๐๐น๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐น๐น๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ ๐ฎ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฎ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐น๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐ต."
[Note: In simple terms, Rule 108 is not the proper remedy that Richelle should have taken since she was actually questioning her son's legitimacy.]
"Article 164 of the Family Code provides that 'children conceived or born during the marriage of the parties are legitimate.' Here, [Richelle] admitted to being in a valid and subsisting marriage with Ariel when she conceived and gave birth to Alrich Paul. Thus, Alrich Paul is presumed to be a legitimate child of petitioner and Ariel. However, looking at the Rule 108 petition in this case, [Richelle], mother of Alrich Paul, in effect declared against her child's legitimacy when she alleged that Alrich Paul was the child of Allan.
"Following the pronouncement in Miller, [Richelle's] collateral attack of Alrich Paul's filiation cannot be allowed in a Rule 108 proceeding. Thus, on this ground alone, the RTC should have dismissed the Rule 108 petition."
(๐ฎ) ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ป๐น๐ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ ๐๐ต๐ผ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ถ๐บ๐ฝ๐๐ด๐ป (๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ด๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป) ๐ฎ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ'๐ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ผ๐ฟ, ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฒ๐
๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐, ๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐ต๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ ๐๐ถ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ด๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ผ๐ฑ๐ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ.
"Still, the rule is that the mother is barred from impugning or declaring against the legitimacy of her child, and only the father, or in exceptional instances, his heirs, can contest in an appropriate action the legitimacy of a child born to his wife based on any of the grounds enumerated under Article 166 of the Family Code."
"Here, [Richelle's] declaration in the birth certificate and in the Rule 108 petition that Alrich Paul is illegitimate cannot be countenanced as it runs counter to Article 167 of the Family Code. The presumption that Alrich Paul is legitimate stands in the absence of a direct action timely filed by the proper party."
(๐ฏ) ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ป๐ผ๐๐น๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ด๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐น๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฎ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฎ ๐๐ผ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ผ ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ.
"The hands of the Court are tied as it may only entertain the impugnation of a child's presumed legitimacy in a direct action filed by the proper party and within the prescribed period under the law.
"In light of these, the Court finds the present case as an opportune moment to highlight the absence of a remedy in favor of a mother in establishing the true filiation of her child. Ultimately, the Court's observations are directed to the Legislature inasmuch as the Court is careful not to tread on the realm of judicial legislation."
๐๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐น๐น ๐ก๐ผ. ๐ณ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ด (๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ต ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ด๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐) ๐๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ธ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ณ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ผ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐บ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ ๐ถ๐บ๐ฝ๐๐ด๐ป (๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ด๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป) ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ'๐ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐
Rep. Sun J. Shimura of Cebu's 4th congressional district filed House Bill No. 7348 on January 26, 2025; you can download it fromhttps://docs.congress.hrep.online/legisdocs/basic_20/HB07348.pdf
๐จ๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐น๐น ๐ก๐ผ. ๐ณ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ด, ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ณ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ (boldfacing supplied):
"Art. 167. Legitimate children may impugn the legitimacy of their filiation only upon reaching the age of majority, and solely on the grounds and in the manner prescribed by law.
"In addition, the following may likewise impugn the legitimacy of a child in the cases and in the manner authorized by law:
"(a) The husband, in accordance with Articles 166, 170, and 171 of this Code; and
"(๐ฏ) ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐บ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ, ๐ถ๐ป ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ผ๐๐ป ๐ป๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ/๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ, ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฎ๐๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฏ๐ ๐น๐ฎ๐ ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐น ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐๐ฟ๐ ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ฒ๐ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฟ๐๐๐ต ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑโ๐ ๐ณ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป, ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฏ๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ, ๐ถ๐ป๐ฐ๐น๐๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฏ๐๐ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐น๐ถ๐บ๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ฐ๐๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐, ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐บ๐ผ๐ป๐ถ๐ฎ๐น, ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐น, ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฐ ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด.
"๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐บ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ ๐ถ๐บ๐ฝ๐๐ด๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐
๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฐ๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ผ๐ป๐น๐ ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ด๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ถ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ผ๐ฑ๐ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ๐ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐ญ๐ณ๐ญ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ, ๐๐ถ๐๐ต ๐ฑ๐๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ด๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐น๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐."
๐ก๐ผ๐๐ฒ:
You can read the full text of Articles 164, 167, and related articles of the Family Code @ https://familymatters.netlify.app/family%20code/fc%20title%20vi%20paternity%20and%20filiation