1. Define Property under the Civil Code.

Answer: Under the Civil Code, Property is a thing which is or may be the object of
appropriation (Art. 414, Civil Code)

2. Define Property as a Subject in a law course.

Answer: Property, as a subject or course in law is considered as branch of civil law
which classifies and defines the different kinds of appropriable objects, provides for their
acquisition and loss, and in general, treats of the nature and consequences of real rights

3. Distinguish between "thing" and "property".

Answer: A thing (cosa) is generally understood to be any object that exists and is
capable of satisfying some human needs. It includes both objects that are already
possessed or owned (res alicujus) and those that are susceptible of appropriation. On
the other hand, property (bienes) refers to any thing which is already the object of
appropriation or is found in the possession of man. Property involves not only material
objects but also intangible things, like rights or credit.

4. Enumerate the Classification of Things and the Classification of Property.

Answer: The following are the three kinds of things, depending on the nature of their
ownership:
a) Res nullius (belonging to no one) – these things belong to no one, and the
because they have not yet been appropriated (examples: wild animals, wild
birds)
b) Res Communes (belonging to everyone) – these things are really owned by
everybody that their use and enjoyment are given to all of mankind (examples:
air we breathe, wind, sunlight, stars)
c) Res Alicujus (belonging to someone) – these are objects, tangible or intangible,
which are owned by privately, either in a collective or individual capacity
(examples: your book, your shares of stocks, your parcel of land)
While property may be classified as follows:
a) Immovable vs. Movable
b) Tangible (anything that can be touched and includes both real and personal
property) vs. Intangible (anything that has no physical substance such as
statutory creations like copyright, trademarks, patents, rights)
c) Consumable (a thing that cannot be used in a manner appropriate to its nature
without being consumed) vs. Non-consumable
d) Fungible (one where the parties have agreed to allow the substitution of the thing
given or delivered with an equivalent thing) vs. Non-fungible (one where the
parties have the intention of having the same identical thing returned after the
intended use)
e) Property of public dominion (those properties for public use, public service and
for the development of the national wealth) vs. Property of private ownership
(patrimonial property, property belonging to private person, either individually or
collectively)
 f) Res Nullius and Res Communes

5. Define "Immovable Property". Give the academic classification of Real Property.

Answer: Article 415. The following are immovable property:
(1) Land, buildings, roads and constructions of all kinds adhered to the
soil;
(2) Trees, plants, and growing fruits, while they are attached to the land or
form an integral part of an immovable;
(3) Everything attached to an immovable in a fixed manner, in such a way
that it cannot be separated there from without breaking the material or
deterioration of the object;
(4) Statues, reliefs, paintings, or other objects for use or ornamentation,
placed in buildings or on lands by the owner of the immovable in such a
manner that it reveals the intention to attach them permanently to the
tenements;
(5) Machinery, receptacles, instruments or implements intended by the
owner of the tenement for an industry or works which may be carried on
in a building or on a piece of land, and which tend directly to meet the
needs of the said industry or works;
(6) Animal houses, pigeon-houses, beehives, fish ponds or breeding
places of similar nature, in case their owner has placed them or preserves
them with the intention to have them permanently attached to the land,
and forming a permanent part of it; the animals in these places are
included;
(7) Fertilizer actually used on a piece of land;
(8) Mines, quarries, and slag dumps, while the matter thereof forms part
of the bed, and waters either running or stagnant;
(9) Docks and structures which, though floating, are intended by their
nature and object to remain at a fixed place on a river, lake, or coast;
(10) Contracts for public works, and servitudes and other real rights over
immovable property.

Academic Classification of Real Properties are as follows:

a) Immovable by nature (paragraph 1, 8)
- Land, buildings, roads and constructions of all kinds adhered to the soil;
- Mines, quarries and slag damps, while the matter thereof forms part of
the bed, and waters either running or stagnant

b) Immovable by destination (paragraph 4-7, 9)

- Statutes, reliefs, paintings or other objects for use or ornamentation,
placed in buildings or on lands owned by the owner of the immovable in
such a manner that it reveals the intention to attach them permanently to
the tenement
- Machinery, receptacles, instruments or implements intended by the owner
of the tenement for an industry or works which may be carried on in a
 building or on a piece of land, and which tend directly to meet the needs
of the said industry or works;
- Animal houses, pigeon-houses, beehives, fish ponds or breeding places
of similar nature, in case their owner has placed them permanently
attached to the land, and forming a permanent part of it; the animals in
these places are included
- Fertilizers actually used on a piece of land
- Docks and structures which, though floating, are intended by their nature
and object to remain at a fixed place on a river, lake or coast

c) Immovable by incorporation (paragraph 1-3)

- Land, buildings, roads and constructions of all kinds adhered to the soil;
- Trees, plants, and growing fruits while they are attached to the land or
form an integral part of an immovable;
- Everything attached to an immovable in a fixed manner, in such a way
that it cannot be separated therefrom without breaking the material or
deterioration of the object

d) Immovable by analogy (paragraph 10)

- Contracts for public works, and servitudes and other real rights over
immovable property

6. When is machinery attached to the land or a tenement considered immovable?

Give the exception? The exception to the exception?
Answer: Machinery which is movable by nature becomes immovable or immobilized
when placed on the land or tenement by a tenant.

Exception to the exception is when the tenant had promised to leave the machinery on
the tenement at the end of the lease, or when he acted only as agent of the owner of the
land. (Valdez vs. Central)

7. Are vessels considered real or personal property? Amplify your answer.

Answer: Under the civil law (Code of Commerce), ships or vessels, whether moved by
steam or by oil, are considered personal property. Although the vessels are considered
personal property, because they can be moved from place to place, they partake of the
nature and condition of real property with regard to their value an importance in the
world of commerce.

8. Are "sugar quotas" real or personal property?

Answer: Jurisprudence provides that “sugar quotas” are considered immovable (real)
property and noted that sugar quotas are inseparable from the land they are attached to,
similar to servitudes and other real rights.
9. According to Manresa, what are the three (3) tests to determine whether
property is movable or immovable?
Answer: Manresa mentions of three tests to determine whether a property is movable or
immovable:
a) If the property is capable of being carried from place to place (test by
description);
b) If such change in location can be made without injuring the real property to
which it may in the meantime be attached (test by description); and
c) If the object is not one of those enumerated in Article 415 (test by exclusion)

The inevitable conclusion is that the property is personal.

10. Is money considered merchandise? Is money real or personal property?

Answer: No, money is not considered merchandise. Money is a legal tender and not
merchandise. Exception is when attempted to be exported or smuggled, money is
considered as merchandise or commodity subject to forfeiture.

Money is personal property. It is considered consumable in a sense that when used,

money leaves the owner who thereby parts with it. Fungible because the debtor need
only to return an equivalent amount in case of simple loan. But if the obligation is that
the identical bills given are the same ones to be returned, the money is non-fungible.