CONFLICT OF LAWS

ATTY. FRETTI G. GANCHOON

 Lecture Outline
I. Preliminary Matters
A. Definition
B. Distinguished from Public International Law
II. Basic Concepts
A. Jurisdiction
B. Ways of Dealing with a Conflicts Case
C. Characterization
D. Choice of Law: Application of municipal law or foreign law
E. Personal Law
F. Renvoi
G. Dépeçage
 Lecture Outline (con’t)

III. Conflict-of-Laws Rules in Different Areas of Civil Law

A. Persons and Family Relations
B. Property
C. Succession
D. Contracts
E. Torts
IV. Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments
 Definition of Conflict of Laws
- Otherwise known as Private International
Law
- It is that part of the law of each State
which determines whether, in dealing
with a legal situation, the law of some
other State will be recognized, given
effect or applied
 Private International Law vs.
Public International Law
• Private International Law governs individuals in their
private transactions which involve a foreign element,
while Public International Law governs States and their
relationship inter se.
• Private International Law is derived from the internal
law of each State, while Public International Law is
principally derived from treaties and international
custom.
• Private International Law is municipal in character,
while Public International law is international in
character.
 Conflict-of-Laws Case
- involves transactions or situations that have a
foreign element
*transactions that cut across territorial lines
*situations that take place abroad, involve
persons of different nationalities, or property
located in another State
- These transactions or situations are affected
by the diverse laws of two or more States.
 Jurisdiction
1. Jurisdiction over the person (in personam)
➢ How acquired: Plantiff – by instituting an action,
Defendant – entry of appearance or service of summons
2. Jurisdiction over the property (in rem / quasi in
rem)
➢ How acquired: service of summons by publication
3. Jurisdiction over the subject matter
➢ Conferred by law, depends on the allegations made in
the pleading.
 Ways of Dealing
with a Conflicts Case
1. Dismiss the case
- lack of jurisdiction
- forum non conveniens
2. Assume jurisdiction
- then apply either municipal law
or the proper foreign law
 Characterization
1. Substance-Procedure Characterization
- determination of whether the issue is substantive
or procedural
- If substantive, apply either municipal law or the
proper foreign law; if procedural, the law of the
forum always applies
2. Subject-Matter Characterization
- assignment of a disputed question to its proper
legal category (e.g. family relations or succession);
the legal category determines the applicable law
 Choice of Law

When is municipal law applied?

When is foreign law applied?
 Municipal law is applied when -
1. A specific law of the forum so decrees.
2. The Doctrine of Processual Presumption or
Presumed Identity Approach directs its application.
3. The case falls under the exceptions to
application of foreign law.
4. It is the Law of the State of the Most Significant
Relationship.
5. The court of the forum accepted the application
renvoi.
 Doctrine of Processual Presumption

If the proper foreign law is not pleaded and

proved as a fact, the court has the right to
presume that the applicable foreign law is
the same as the internal law of the forum
and should therefore apply the latter law.
(e.g. Miciano v. Brimo [1924] – Turkish Law not proved, Suntay v.
Suntay [1952] – Chinese Law not proved, EDI-Staffbuilders Inc. v.
NLRC [2007] – Saudi Arabian Law not proved)
 Exceptions
to Application of Foreign Law
1. Contrary to the public policy of the forum
- e.g. Pakistan International Airlines v. Ople (1990)
2. Penal in nature
3. Procedural in nature
4. Purely fiscal or administrative in nature
5. Application will cause undeniable justice
6. Case involves property situated in the forum
7. Application will endanger foreign relations or vital interest
of the State
8. Contra bonos mores
 Law of the State
of the Most Significant Relationship
Factual contacts of each case are considered, in
order to arrive at the law of the State of the most
significant relationship.
*e.g. if the conflicts case involves a contract, in the
absence of a particular law chosen by the parties in
their contract, consider the place of negotiation,
perfection, execution and performance of the contract,
as well as the nationality or domicile of the contracting
parties (e.g. Pakistan International Airline v. Ople)
 Renvoi
• a procedure whereby a jural matter is referred by the
conflict-of-laws rules of the forum to a foreign State,
the conflict-of-laws rules of which, in turn, refer the
matter back to the law of the forum (“remission”) or a
third State (“transmission”)
• Ways of dealing with renvoi:
1. Accept it, and apply domestic law ✓
e.g. Aznar v. Garcia (1963)
2. Reject it, and apply foreign law
3. Apply domestic law by desistance or mutual
disclaimer of jurisdiction
4. Use foreign court theory
 RECAP: When is municipal law applied
1. A specific law of the forum so decrees.
2. The Doctrine of Processual Presumption or
Presumed Identity Approach directs its application.
3. The case falls under the exceptions to application
of foreign law.
4. It is the Law of the State of the Most Significant
Relationship.
5. The court of the forum accepted the application
renvoi.
Foreign law is applied when -
1. A specific law of the forum so
decrees.
2. It is properly pleaded and proved.
3. It is the Law of the State of the most
significant relationship.
 Personal Law
• Follows a person wherever he is, and
governs his status and capacity to
contract
• Two theories
1. Nationality Theory – lex nationalii
2. Domicilliary Theory – lex domicilii
 Dépeçage
• A situation where different aspects of a
case involving a foreign element is
governed by different systems of law, or
different issues within a case involving a
foreign element are governed by the laws
of different states.
(e.g. will executed in the Philippines by a former
Filipino who is now Canadian, who previously married
in Las Vegas another Canadian who is his first cousin)
 Conflict of Laws Rules
in Different Areas of Civil Law
1.Persons and Family Relations
2.Property
3.Succession
4.Contracts
5.Torts
Persons and Family Relations
Conflict of Law Rules
 Persons and Family Relations
1. Extrinsic validity of marriage
2. Intrinsic validity of marriage
3. Personal relations between spouses
4. Property relations between spouses
5. Grounds for annulment & declaration of nullity of marriage
6. Divorce
7. Grounds for legal separation
8. Paternity, Filiation and Legitimacy
9. Rights and duties between parents and child
10. Adoption and its legal effects
 1. Extrinsic Validity of Marriage

Family Code, Art. 26, 1st paragraph:

All marriages solemnized outside the
Philippines, in accordance with the laws in
force in the country where they were
solemnized, and valid there as such, shall also
be valid in this country, except those prohibited
under Articles 35 (1), (4), (5) and (6), 36, 37
and 38.  lex loci celebrationis
 Exceptions to lex loci celebrationis
Art. 35(1) – marriage between minors
Art. 35(4) – bigamous or polygamous marriages
Art. 35(5) – mistaken identity of the other party
Art. 35(6) – subsequent marriage where judgment of annulment or
absolute nullity of the 1st marriage, the partition and distribution of
property of the spouses and delivery of the children’s presumptive
legitimes were not recorded in the appropriate civil registry or
registries of property
Art. 36 – other party is psychologically incapacitated
Art. 37 – incestuous marriages
Art. 38 – marriages against public policy
 Incestuous Marriages
Family Code, Art. 37 -
Marriages between the following are incestuous and
void from the beginning, whether the relationship
between the parties be legitimate or illegitimate:
1. Between ascendants and descendants of any
degree; and
2. Between brothers and sisters, whether of the full
or half blood.
 Marriages against Public Policy
Family Code, Art. 38 (Marriages against public policy):
1. Between collateral blood relatives, whether legitimate or
illegitimate, up to the fourth civil degree
2. Between step-parents and step-children
3. Between parents-in-law and children-in-law
4. Between adopting parent and the adopted child
5. Between the surviving spouse of the adopting parent and the
adopted child
6. Between the surviving spouse of the adopted child and the adopter
7. Between the adopted child and a legitimate child of the adopter
8. Between the adopted children of the same adopter
9. Between parties where one, with the intention to marry the other,
killed that other person’s spouse or his or her own spouse
 2. Intrinsic Validity of Marriage
Civil Code, Art. 15:
Laws relating to family rights and duties, or
to the status, condition and legal capacity
of persons are binding upon citizens of the
Philippines, even though living abroad.
 personal law (lex nationalii)
3. Personal Relations between the spouses

Civil Code, Art. 15:

Laws relating to family rights and duties, or
to the status, condition and legal capacity of
persons are binding upon citizens of the
Philippines, even though living abroad.
 personal law (lex nationalii)
**of the husband, unless contrary to law
and good customs of the forum
4. Property Relations between the spouses

Family Code, Art. 80:

In the absence of a contrary stipulation in a marriage
settlement, the property relations of the spouses shall be
governed by Philippine laws, regardless of the place of the
celebration of the marriage and their residence.
This rule shall not apply:
(1) Where both spouses are aliens;
(2) xxx
(3) xxx
 Personal law of the Filipino spouse (lex nationalii)
5. Annulment, Declaration of Nullity of Marriage

❖ Lex loci celebrationis

(based on Article 26, 1st para.)
❖ Personal law (Lex nationalii / Lex
domicilii)
 6. Divorce
Family Code, Art. 26, 2nd paragraph:
Where a marriage between a Filipino citizen
and a foreigner is validly celebrated and a
divorce is thereafter validly obtained abroad
by the alien spouse capacitating him or her to
remarry, the Filipino spouse shall have
capacity to remarry under Philippine law.
 Relevant Jurisprudence on Divorce
under Art. 26, 2nd para.
• Is divorce decree obtained abroad by the former Filipino spouse
valid?
 Rebublic v. Orbecido (2005)
• Is the divorce decree obtained abroad by a Filipino spouse valid?
 Republic v. Manalo (2018) → Galapon v. Republic (22 Jan.
2020)(Korean divorce decree obtained by mutual agreement)
• Can the alien ex spouse, instead of the Filipino spouse, file before
Philippine courts a petition to cancel the marriage certificate?
 Corpus v. Sto. Tomas (2010)
• What are the effects of divorce decree apart from capacitating
the Filipino spouse to remarry?
 Pilapil v. Ibay-Somera (1989)
 Van Dorn v. Romillo (1985)
Rule 108, Section 1, Rules of Court
Any person interested in any act, event, order
or decree concerning the civil status of
persons which has been recorded in the civil
register, may file a verified petition for the
cancellation or correction of any entry
relating thereto, with the Court of First
Instance of the province where the
corresponding civil registry is located.
 Other Family Relations issues
7. Legal Separation – personal law of the spouses
(lex nationalii / lex domicilii)
8. Paternity, Filiation, Legitimation – personal law
of the father
9. Right and duties between parents and child –
common personal law of the spouses or the
personal law of the father (of the mother, if child
is illegitimate)
 10. Adoption and its Legal Effects
R.A. No. 8552, Article V, Effects of Adoption
Section 16. Parental Authority. – Except in cases where the biological parent
is the spouse of the adopter, all legal ties between the biological parent(s)
and the adoptee shall be severed and the same shall then be vested on the
adopter(s).
Section 17. Legitimacy. – The adoptee shall be considered the legitimate
son/daughter of the adopter(s) for all intents and purposes and as such is
entitled to all the rights and obligations provided by law to legitimate
sons/daughters born to them without discrimination of any kind. To this end,
the adoptee is entitled to love, guidance, and support in keeping with the
means of the family.
Section 18. Succession. – In legal and intestate succession, the adopter(s) and
the adoptee shall have reciprocal rights of succession without distinction
from legitimate filiation. However, if the adoptee and his/her biological
parent(s) had left a will, the law on testamentary succession shall govern.
 Property
Conflict of Law Rules
 Property
Civil Code, Art. 16, 1st paragraph:
Real property as well as personal property is subject to the
law of the country where it is situated.

However, intestate and testamentary succession, both with

respect to the order of succession and to the amount of
successional rights and to the intrinsic validity of
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.
 lex situs / lex loci rei sitae, with exceptions
Wills and Succession
Conflict of Laws Rules
 Wills and Succession
1. Extrinsic validity of wills
2. Intrinsic validity of wills
3. Revocation of wills
4. Order of Succession
5. Capacity to succeed
6. Probate of wills and Administration of the
estate
 1. Extrinsic Validity of Wills
Civil Code, Art. 17:
The forms and solemnities of contracts,
wills, and other public instruments shall
be governed by the laws of the country
in which they are executed.
 lex loci celebrationis
 2. Extrinsic Validity (con’t)
Civil Code, Art. 815:
When a Filipino is in a foreign country, he
is authorized to make a will in any of the
forms established by the law of the
country in which he may be. Such will
may be probated in the Philippines.
 lex loci celebrationis
 Of note: Joint Wills
Art. 818. Two or more persons cannot make a will
jointly, or in the same instrument, either for their
reciprocal benefit or for the benefit of a third
person.
Art. 819. Wills, prohibited by the preceding article,
executed by Filipinos in a foreign country shall not
be valid in the Philippines, even though authorized
by the laws of the country where they may have
been executed.
 2. Extrinsic Validity (con’t)
Art. 816. The will of an alien who is abroad produces effect in
the Philippines if made with the formalities prescribed by the law
of the place in which he resides, or according to the formalities
observed in his country, or in conformity with those which this
Code prescribes.
Art. 817. A will made in the Philippines by a citizen or subject of
another country, which is executed in accordance with the law of
the country of which he is a citizen or subject, and which might
be proved and allowed by the law of his own country, shall have
the same effect as if executed according to the laws of the
Philippines.
 2. Intrinsic Validity of Wills
and 3. Order of Succession
Civil Code, Art. 16,2nd paragraph:
However, 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 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.
 Personal law (lex nationalii / lex domicilii)
 4. Revocation
Civil Code, Art. 829:
A revocation done outside the Philippines, by a person who does
not have his domicile in this country, is valid when it is done
according to the law of the place where the will was made, or
according to the law of the place in which the testator had his
domicile at the time; and if the revocation takes place in this
country, when it is in accordance with the provisions of this
Code.
 Aliens: Lex loci celebrationis or personal law (lex nationalii
/ lex domicilii) if abroad; if in PH, Civil Code
 Filipinos: Whether done abroad or in PH, Civil Code
 5. Capacity to Succeed
Civil Code, Art. 1039:
Capacity to succeed is governed by the law
of the nation of the decedent.
 personal law (lex nationalii / lex
domicilii)
Jurisprudence: Cayetano v. Leonidas (1984)
 6. Probate of Wills, Administration of Estate

Lex fori
 Rules 73-91, Rules of Court
 Contracts
Conflict of Law Rules
 Contracts
1. Extrinsic validity of contracts
2. Capacity to contract of parties
3. Intrinsic validity of contracts
 1. Extrinsic Validity of Contracts
Civil Code, Art. 17:
The forms and solemnities of contracts,
wills, and other public instruments shall be
governed by the laws of the country in
which they are executed.
 lex loci celebrationis
 Re: Acceptance of Offer by Telegram
Art. 1319. Consent is manifested by the meeting of the
offer and the acceptance upon the thing and the cause
which are to constitute the contract. The offer must be
certain and the acceptance absolute. A qualified
acceptance constitutes a counter-offer.
Acceptance made by letter or telegram does not bind the
offerer except from the time it came to his knowledge.
The contract, in such a case, is presumed to have been
entered into in the place where the offer was made.
 2. Capacity to Contract of Parties

General Rule  Civil Code, Art. 15:

Laws relating to family rights and duties, or to the status,
condition and legal capacity of persons are binding upon
citizens of the Philippines, even though living abroad.
Exception  Civil Code, Art. 16, 1st para.:
Real property as well as personal property is subject to the
law of the country where it is situated.
 Gen. Rule: Personal law (lex nationalii / lex domicilii)
Exception: lex situs / lex loci rei sitae
 3. Intrinsic Validity of Contracts
Rules that can be used:
1. Lex loci celebrationis / contractus
2. Lex loci voluntatis / intentionis
3. Lex loci solutionis
4. Law of the State of the Most Significant
Relationship
(e.g. Continental Mirconesia v. Basso [2015])
 Torts
Conflict of Law Rules
 Torts, Conflict of Law Rules
❖ lex loci delicti commissi
❖Law of the State of the Most Significant
Relationship
(e.g. Saudi Arabian Airlines v. CA [1998])
Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments
 Rules of Court, Rule 39, Section 48
Effect of foreign judgments or final orders. — The effect of a
judgment or final order of a tribunal of a foreign country, having
jurisdiction to render the judgment or final order is as follows:
(a) In case of a judgment or final order upon a specific thing, the
judgment or final order, is conclusive upon the title to the thing, and
(b) In case of a judgment or final order against a person, the
judgment or final order is presumptive evidence of a right as
between the parties and their successors in interest by a subsequent
title.
In either case, the judgment or final order may be repelled by
evidence of a want of jurisdiction, want of notice to the party,
collusion, fraud, or clear mistake of law or fact.
Bar Exam Questions
 2019
F, a Filipina, married J, a Japanese, in the Philippines. After
three (3) years, they had a falling out and thus, separated.
Soon after, F initiated a divorce petition in Japan which was
not opposed by J because under Japanese law, a grant of
divorce will capacitate him to remarry. F’s divorce petition
was granted by the Japanese court with finality.
May the legal effects of the divorce decree be recognized in
the Philippines, and consequently, capacitate F to remarry
here? Explain. (3%)
 2016
Romeo and Juliet, both Filipinos, got married. After a few
years, Juliet got word from her mother that she can go to
the United States for naturalization. Juliet promised she
will be back the moment she becomes an American. After
sometime, Romeo learned from a friend that Juliet already
became a U.S. citizen and even divorced him to marry a
wealthy American businessman. Romeo filed a petition
before the Regional Trial Court praying that an order be
issued authorizing him to remarry pursuant to Article 26 of
the Family Code. Decide the petition with reasons. (5%)
 2015
Alden and Stela were both former Filipino citizens. They were
married in the Philippines but they later migrated to the United
States where they were naturalized as American citizens. In
their union they were able to accumulate several real
properties both in the US and in the Philippines. Unfortunately,
they were not blessed with children. In the US, they executed a
joint will instituting as their common heirs to divide their
combined estate in equal shares, the five siblings of Alden and
the seven siblings of Stela. Alden passed away in 2013 and a
year later, Stela also died. The siblings of Alden who were all
citizens of the US instituted probate proceedings in a US court
impleading the siblings of Stela who were all in the Philippines.
 2015 (con’t)
a) Was the joint will executed by Alden and Stela
who were both former Filipinos valid? Explain with
legal basis. (3%)
b) Can the joint will produce legal effect in the
Philippines with respect to the properties of Alden
and Stela found here? If so, how? (3%)
c) Is the situation presented in Item I an example of
dépeçage? (2%)
 2014 (1)
After undergoing sex reassignment in a foreign country, Jose, who is
now using the name of "Josie," married his partner Ador. Is the
marriage valid? (1%)
(A) Yes, the marriage is valid for as long as it is valid in the place
where it is celebrated following Article 17 of the Civil Code.
(B) Yes, the marriage is valid if all the essential and formal
elements of marriage under the Family Code are present.
(C) No, the marriage is not valid because one essential element of
marriage is absent.
(D) No, the marriage is not valid but is voidable because "Josie"
concealed her real identity.
 2014 (2)
Ted, married to Annie, went to Canada to work. Five (5) years later, Ted
became a naturalized Canadian citizen. He returned to the Philippines to
convince Annie to settle in Canada. Unfortunately, Ted discovered that
Annie and his friend Louie were having an affair. Deeply hurt, Ted
returned to Canada and filed a petition for divorce which was granted. In
December 2013, Ted decided to marry his childhood friend Corazon in
the Philippines. In preparation for the wedding, Ted went to the Local
Civil Registry of Quezon City where his marriage contract with Annie was
registered. He asked the Civil Register to annotate the decree of divorce
on his marriage contract with Annie. However, he was advised by the
National Statistics Office (NSO) to file a petition for judicial recognition
of the decree of divorce in the Philippines.
Is it necessary for Ted to file a petition for judicial recognition of the
decree of divorce he obtained in Canada before he can contract a second
marriage in the Philippines? (4%)
 Thank you,
Good luck and
God bless!