SECTION 7

Liquidation of the Conjugal Partnership

ARTICLE 179. uUpon the dissolution of the conjugal partnership, an inventory shall be formed, but such inventory shall not be necessary:

(1) If, after the dissolution of the partnership, one of the spouses should have renounced its effects and consequences in due time; or

(2) When separation of property has preceded the dissolution of the partnership. (1418a)

ARTICLE 180. The bed and bedding which the spouses ordinarily use shall not be included in the inventory. These effects, as well as the clothing for their ordinary use, shall be delivered to the surviving spouse. (1420)

ARTICLE 181. The inventory having been completed, the paraphernal property shall first be paid. Then, the debts and charges against the conjugal partnership shall be paid. (1422a)

ARTICLE 182. The debts, charges and obligations of the conjugal partnership having been paid, the capital of the husband shall be liquidated and paid to the amount of the property inventoried. (1423a)

ARTICLE 183. The deductions from the inventoried property having been made as provided in the two preceding articles, the remainder of said property shall constitute the credit of the conjugal partnership. (1424)

ARTICLE 184. The loss or deterioration of the movables belonging to either spouse, although through fortuitous event, shall be paid from the conjugal partnership of gains, should there be any.

Those suffered by real property shall not be reimbursable in any case, except those on paraphernal property administered by the husband, when the losses were due to his fault. He shall pay for the same. (1425a)

ARTICLE 185. The net remainder of the conjugal partnership of gains shall be divided equally between the husband and the wife or their respective heirs, unless a different basis of division was agreed upon in the marriage settlements. (1426a)

ARTICLE 186. The mourning apparel of the widow shall be paid for out of the estate of the deceased husband. (1427a)

ARTICLE 187. With regard to the formation of the inventory, rules for appraisal and sale of property of the conjugal partnership, and other matters which are not expressly determined in the present Chapter, the Rules of Court on the administration of estates of deceased persons shall be observed. (1428a)

ARTICLE 188. From the common mass of property support shall be given to the surviving spouse and to the children during the liquidation of the inventoried property and until what belongs to them is delivered; but from this shall be deducted that amount received for support which exceeds the fruits or rents pertaining to them. (1430)

ARTICLE 189. Whenever the liquidation of the partnership of two or more marriages contracted by the same person should be carried out at the same time, in order to determine the capital of each partnership all kinds of proof in the absence of inventories shall be admitted; and in case of doubt, the partnership property shall be divided between the different partnerships in proportion to the duration of each and to the property belonging to the respective spouses. (1431)

CHAPTER 5

Separation of Property of the Spouses and Administration of Property by the Wife During the Marriage

ARTICLE 190. In the absence of an express declaration in the marriage settlements, the separation of property between spouses during the marriage shall not take place save in virtue of a judicial order. (1432a)

ARTICLE 191. The husband or the wife may ask for the separation of property, and it shall be decreed when the spouse of the petitioner has been sentenced to a penalty which carries with it civil interdiction, or has been declared absent, or when legal separation has been granted.

In case of abuse of powers of administration of the conjugal partnership property by the husband, or in case of abandonment by the husband, separation of property may also be ordered by the court, according to the provisions of articles 167 and 178, No. 3.

In all these cases, it is sufficient to present the final judgment which has been entered against the guilty or absent spouse. (1433a)

The husband and the wife may agree upon the dissolution of the conjugal partnership during the marriage, subject to judicial approval. All the creditors of the husband and of the wife, as well as of the conjugal partnership, shall be notified of any petition for judicial approval of the voluntary dissolution of the conjugal partnership, so that any such creditors may appear at the hearing to safeguard his interests. Upon approval of the petition for dissolution of the conjugal partnership, the court shall take such measures as may protect the creditors and other third persons.

After dissolution of the conjugal partnership, the provisions of articles 214 and 215 shall apply. The provisions of this Code concerning the effect of partition stated in articles 498 to 501 shall be applicable. (1433a)

ARTICLE 192. Once the separation of property has been ordered, the conjugal partnership shall be dissolved, and its liquidation shall be made in conformity with what has been established by this Code.

However, without prejudice to the provisions of article 292, the husband and the wife shall be reciprocally liable for their support during the separation, and for the support and education of their children; all in proportion to their respective property.

The share of the spouse who is under civil interdiction or absent shall be administered in accordance with the Rules of Court. (1434a)

ARTICLE 193. The complaint for separation and the final judgment declaring the same, shall be noted and recorded in the proper registers of property, if the judgment should refer to immovable property. (1437)

ARTICLE 194. The separation of property shall not prejudice the rights previously acquired by creditors. (1438)

ARTICLE 195. The separation of property ceases:

(1) Upon reconciliation of the spouses, in case of legal separation;

(2) When the civil interdiction terminates;

(3) When the absent spouse appears;

(4) When the court, at the instance of the wife, authorizes the husband to resume the administration of the conjugal partnership, the court being satisfied that the husband will not again abuse his powers as an administrator;

(5) When the husband, who has abandoned the wife, rejoins her.

In the above cases, the property relations between the spouses shall be governed by the same rules as before the separation, without prejudice to the acts and contracts legally executed during the separation.

The spouses shall state, in a public document, all the property which they return to the marriage and which shall constitute the separate property of each.

This public document shall be recorded in the Registry of Property.

In the cases referred to in this article, all the property brought in shall be deemed to be newly contributed, even though all or some may be the same which existed before the liquidation effected by reason of the separation. (1439a)

ARTICLE 196. With the conjugal partnership subsisting, the administration of all classes of property in the marriage may be transferred by the courts to the wife:

(1) When she becomes the guardian of her husband;

(2) When she asks for the declaration of his absence;

(3) In case of civil interdiction of the husband.

The courts may also confer the administration to the wife, with such limitations as they may deem advisable, if the husband should become a fugitive from justice or be in hiding as a defendant in a criminal case, or if, being absolutely unable to administer, he should have failed to provide for administration. (1441a)

ARTICLE 197. The wife to whom the administration of all the property of the marriage is transferred shall have, with respect to said property, the same powers and responsibility which the husband has when he is the administrator, but always subject to the provisions of the last paragraph of the preceding article. (1442a)

CHAPTER 6

System of Absolute Community (n)

ARTICLE 198. In case the future spouses agree in the marriage settlements that the system of absolute community shall govern their property relations during marriage, the following provisions shall be of supplementary application. IdsaPs

ARTICLE 199. In the absence of stipulation to the contrary, the community shall consist of all present and future property of the spouses not excepted by law.

ARTICLE 200. Neither spouse may renounce any inheritance without the consent of the other. In case of conflict, the court shall decide the question, after consulting the family council, if there is any.

ARTICLE 201. The following shall be excluded from the community: iimmso

(1) Property acquired by gratuitous title by either spouse, when it is provided by the donor or testator that it shall not become a part of the community;

(2) Property inherited by either husband or wife through the death of a child by a former marriage, there being brothers or sisters of the full blood of the deceased child;

(3) A portion of the property of either spouse equivalent to the presumptive legitime of the children by a former marriage;

(4) Personal belongings of either spouse.

However, all the fruits and income of the foregoing classes of property shall be included in the community.

ARTICLE 202. Antenuptial debts of either spouse shall not be paid from the community, unless the same have redounded to the benefit of the family.

ARTICLE 203. Debts contracted by both spouses or by one of them with the consent of the other shall be paid from the community. If the common property is insufficient to cover common debts, the same may be enforced against the separate property of the spouses, who shall be equally liable.

ARTICLE 204. Debts contracted by either spouse without the consent of the other shall be chargeable against the community to the extent that the family may have been benefited thereby.

ARTICLE 205. Indemnities that must be paid by either spouse on account of a crime or of a quasi-delict shall be paid from the common assets, without any obligation to make reimbursement.

ARTICLE 206. The ownership, administration, possession and enjoyment of the common property belong to both spouses jointly. In case of disagreement, the courts shall settle the difficulty.

ARTICLE 207. Neither spouse may alienate or encumber any common property without the consent of the other. In case of unjustifiable refusal by the other spouse, the courts may grant the necessary consent.

ARTICLE 208. The absolute community of property shall be dissolved on any of the grounds specified in article 175.

ARTICLE 209. When there is a separation in fact between husband and wife, without judicial approval, the provisions of article 178 shall apply.

ARTICLE 210. Upon the dissolution and liquidation of the community, the net assets shall be divided equally between the husband and the wife or their heirs. In case of legal separation or annulment of marriage, the provisions of articles 176 and 177 shall apply to the net profits acquired during the marriage.

ARTICLE 211. Liquidation of the absolute community shall be governed by the Rules of Court on the administration of the estate of deceased persons.

CHAPTER 7

System of Complete Separation of Property (n)

ARTICLE 212. Should the future spouses agree in the marriage settlements that their property relations during marriage shall be based upon the system of complete separation of property, the following provisions shall supplement the marriage settlements.

ARTICLE 213. Separation of property may refer to present or future property or both. It may be total or partial. In the latter case, the property not agreed upon as separate shall pertain to the conjugal partnership of gains.

ARTICLE 214. Each spouse shall own, dispose of, possess, administer and enjoy his or her own separate estate, without the consent of the other. All earnings from any profession, business or industry shall likewise belong to each spouse.

ARTICLE 215. Each spouse shall proportionately bear the family expenses.

TITLE VII

The Family (n)

CHAPTER 1

The Family as an Institution

ARTICLE 216. The family is a basic social institution which public policy cherishes and protects.

ARTICLE 217. Family relations shall include those:

(1) Between husband and wife;

(2) Between parent and child;

(3) Among other ascendants and their descendants;

(4) Among brothers and sisters.

ARTICLE 218. The law governs family relations. No custom, practice or agreement which is destructive of the family shall be recognized or given any effect.

ARTICLE 219. Mutual aid, both moral and material, shall be rendered among members of the same family. Judicial and administrative officials shall foster this mutual assistance.

ARTICLE 220. In case of doubt, all presumptions favor the solidarity of the family. Thus, every intendment of law or fact leans toward the validity of marriage, the indissolubility of the marriage bonds, the legitimacy of children, the community of property during marriage, the authority of parents over their children, and the validity of defense for any member of the family in case of unlawful aggression.

ARTICLE 221. The following shall be void and of no effect:

(1) Any contract for personal separation between husband and wife;

(2) Every extra-judicial agreement, during marriage, for the dissolution of the conjugal partnership of gains or of the absolute community of property between husband and wife;

(3) Every collusion to obtain a decree of legal separation, or of annulment of marriage;

(4) Any simulated alienation of property with intent to deprive the compulsory heirs of their legitime.

ARTICLE 222. No suit shall be filed or maintained between members of the same family unless it should appear that earnest efforts toward a compromise have been made, but that the same have failed, subject to the limitations in article 2035.

CHAPTER 2

The Family Home (n)

SECTION 1

General Provisions

ARTICLE 223. The family home is the dwelling house where a person and his family reside, and the land on which it is situated. If constituted as herein provided, the family home shall be exempt from execution, forced sale or attachment, except as provided in articles 232 and 243.

ARTICLE 224. The family home may be established judicially or extrajudicially.

SECTION 2

Judicial Constitution of the Family Home

ARTICLE 225. The family home may be constituted by a verified petition to the Court of First Instance by the owner of the property, and by approval thereof by the court.

ARTICLE 226. The following shall be beneficiaries of the family home:

(1) The person establishing the same;

(2) His or her spouse;

(3) His or her parents, ascendants, descendants, brothers and sisters, whether the relationship be legitimate or otherwise, who are living in the family home and who depend upon him for support.

ARTICLE 227. The family home may also be set up by an unmarried person who is the head of a family or household.

ARTICLE 228. If the petitioner is married, the family home may be selected from the conjugal partnership or community property, or from the separate property of the husband, or, with the consent of the wife, from her paraphernal property.

ARTICLE 229. The petition shall contain the following particulars:

(1) Description of the property;

(2) An estimate of its actual value;

(3) A statement that the petitioner is actually residing in the premises;

(4) The encumbrances thereon;

(5) The names and addresses of all the creditors of the petitioner and of all mortgagees and other persons who have an interest in the property;

(6) The names of the other beneficiaries specified in article 226.

ARTICLE 230. Creditors, mortgagees and all other persons who have an interest in the estate shall be notified of the petition, and given an opportunity to present their objections thereto. The petition shall, moreover, be published once a week for three consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation.

ARTICLE 231. If the court finds that the actual value of the proposed family home does not exceed twenty thousand pesos, or thirty thousand pesos in chartered cities, and that no third person is prejudiced, the petition shall be approved. Should any creditor whose claim is unsecured, oppose the establishment of the family home, the court shall grant the petition if the debtor gives sufficient security for the debt.

ARTICLE 232. The family home, after its creation by virtue of judicial approval, shall be exempt from execution, forced sale, or attachment, except:

(1) For nonpayment of taxes; or

(2) In satisfaction of a judgment on a debt secured by a mortgage constituted on the immovable before or after the establishment of the family home.

In case of insolvency of the person constituting the family home, the property shall not be considered one of the assets to be taken possession of by the assignee for the benefit of creditors.

ARTICLE 233. The order of the court approving the establishment of the family home shall be recorded in the Registry of Property.

ARTICLE 234. When there is danger that a person obliged to give support may lose his or her fortune because of grave mismanagement or on account of riotous living, his or her spouse, if any, and a majority of those entitled to be supported by him or by her may petition the Court of First Instance for the creation of the family home.

ARTICLE 235. The family home may be sold, alienated or encumbered by the person who has constituted the same, with the consent of his or her spouse, and with the approval of the court. However, the family home shall under no circumstances be donated as long as there are beneficiaries. In case of sale, the price or such portion thereof as may be determined by the court shall be used in acquiring property which shall be formed into a new family home. Any sum of money obtained through an encumbrance on the family home shall be used in the interest of the beneficiaries. The court shall take measures to implement the last two provisions.

ARTICLE 236. The family home may be dissolved upon the petition of the person who has constituted the same, with the written consent of his or her spouse and of at least one half of all the other beneficiaries who are eighteen years of age or over. The court may grant the petition if it is satisfactorily shown that the best interest of the family requires the dissolution of the family home.

ARTICLE 237. In case of legal separation or annulment of marriage, the family home shall be dissolved, and the property shall cease to be exempt from execution, forced sale or attachment.

ARTICLE 238. Upon the death of the person who has set up the family home, the same shall continue, unless he desired otherwise in his will. The heirs cannot ask for its partition during the first ten years following the death of the person constituting the same, unless the court finds powerful reasons therefor.

ARTICLE 239. The family home shall not be subject to payment of the debts of the deceased, unless in his will the contrary is stated. However, the claims mentioned in article 232 shall not be adversely affected by the death of the person who has established the family home.

SECTION 3

Extra-judicial Creation of the Family Home

ARTICLE 240. The family home may be extrajudicially constituted by recording in the Registry of Property a public instrument wherein a person declares that he thereby establishes a family home out of a dwelling place with the land on which it is situated.

ARTICLE 241. The declaration setting up the family home shall be under oath and shall contain:

(1) A statement that the claimant is the owner of, and is actually residing in the premises;

(2) A description of the property;

(3) An estimate of its actual value; and

(4) The names of the claimant’s spouse and the other beneficiaries mentioned in article 226.

ARTICLE 242. The recording in the Registry of Property of the declaration referred to in the two preceding articles is the operative act which creates the family home.

ARTICLE 243. The family home extrajudicially formed shall be exempt from execution, forced sale or attachment, except:

(1) For nonpayment of taxes;

(2) For debts incurred before the declaration was recorded in the Registry of Property;

(3) For debts secured by mortgages on the premises before or after such record of the declaration;

(4) For debts due to laborers, mechanics, architects, builders, material-men and others who have rendered service or furnished material for the construction of the building.

ARTICLE 244. The provisions of articles 226 to 228 and 235 to 238 are likewise applicable to family homes extrajudicially established.

ARTICLE 245. Upon the death of the person who has extrajudicially constituted the family home, the property shall not be liable for his debts other than those mentioned in article 243. However, he may provide in his will that the family home shall be subject to payment of debts not specified in article 243.

ARTICLE 246. No declaration for the extrajudicial establishment of the family home shall be recorded in the Registry of Property if the estimated actual value of the building and the land exceeds the amount stated in article 231.

ARTICLE 247. When a creditor whose claim is not mentioned in article 243 obtains a judgment in his favor, and he has reasonable grounds to believe that the family home of the judgment debtor is worth more than the amount mentioned in article 231, he may apply to the Court of First Instance for an order directing the sale of the property under execution.

ARTICLE 248. The hearing on the petition, appraisal of the value of the family home, the sale under execution and other matters relative to the proceedings shall be governed by such provisions in the Rules of Court as the Supreme Court shall promulgate on the subject, provided they are not inconsistent with this Code.

ARTICLE 249. At the sale under execution referred to in the two preceding articles, no bid shall be considered unless it exceeds the amount specified in article 231. The proceeds of the sale shall be applied in the following order:

(1) To the amount mentioned in article 231;

(2) To the judgment and the costs.

The excess, if any, belongs to the person constituting the family home.

ARTICLE 250. The amount mentioned in article 231 thus received by the person who has established the family home, or as much thereof as the court may determine, shall be invested in the constitution of a new family home. The court shall take measures to enforce this provision.

ARTICLE 251. In case of insolvency of the person creating the family home, the claims specified in article 243 may be satisfied notwithstanding the insolvency proceedings.

If the assignee has reasonable grounds to believe that the actual value of the family home exceeds the amount fixed in article 231, he may take action under the provisions of articles 247, 248 and 249.

CHAPTER 3

The Family Council (n)

ARTICLE 252. The Court of First Instance may, upon application of any member of the family, a relative, or a friend, appoint a family council, whose duty it shall be to advise the court, the spouses, the parents, guardians and the family on important family questions.

ARTICLE 253. The family council shall be composed of five members, who shall be relatives of the parties concerned. But the court may appoint one or two friends of the family.

ARTICLE 254. The family council shall elect its chairman, and shall meet at the call of the latter or upon order of the court.

TITLE VIII

Paternity and Filiation

CHAPTER 1

Legitimate Children

ARTICLE 255. Children born after one hundred and eighty days following the celebration of the marriage, and before three hundred days following its dissolution or the separation of the spouses shall be presumed to be legitimate.

Against this presumption no evidence shall be admitted other than that of the physical impossibility of the husband’s having access to his wife within the first one hundred and twenty days of the three hundred which preceded the birth of the child.

This physical impossibility may be caused:

(1) By the impotence of the husband;

(2) By the fact that the husband and wife were living separately, in such a way that access was not possible;

(3) By the serious illness of the husband. (108a)

ARTICLE 256. The child shall be presumed legitimate, although the mother may have declared against its legitimacy or may have been sentenced as an adulteress. (109)

ARTICLE 257. Should the wife commit adultery at or about the time of the conception of the child, but there was no physical impossibility of access between her and her husband as set forth in article 255, the child is prima facie presumed to be illegitimate if it appears highly improbable, for ethnic reasons, that the child is that of the husband. For the purposes of this article, the wife’s adultery need not be proved in a criminal case. (n)

ARTICLE 258. A child born within one hundred eighty days following the celebration of the marriage is prima facie presumed to be legitimate. Such a child is conclusively presumed to be legitimate in any of these cases:

(1) If the husband, before the marriage, knew of the pregnancy of the wife;

(2) If he consented, being present, to the putting of his surname on the record of birth of the child;

(3) If he expressly or tacitly recognized the child as his own. (110a)

ARTICLE 259. If the marriage is dissolved by the death of the husband, and the mother contracted another marriage within three hundred days following such death, these rules shall govern:

(1) A child born before one hundred eighty days after the solemnization of the subsequent marriage is disputably presumed to have been conceived during the former marriage, provided it be born within three hundred days after the death of the former husband;

(2) A child born after one hundred eighty days following the celebration of the subsequent marriage is prima facie presumed to have been conceived during such marriage, even though it be born within the three hundred days after the death of the former husband. (n)

ARTICLE 260. If after a judgment annulling a marriage, the former wife should believe herself to be pregnant by the former husband, she shall, within thirty days from the time she became aware of her pregnancy, notify the former husband or his heirs of that fact. He or his heirs may ask the court to take measures to prevent a simulation of birth.

The same obligation shall devolve upon a widow who believes herself to have been left pregnant by the deceased husband, or upon the wife who believes herself to be pregnant by her husband from whom she has been legally separated. (n)

ARTICLE 261. There is no presumption of legitimacy or illegitimacy of a child born after three hundred days following the dissolution of the marriage or the separation of the spouses. Whoever alleges the legitimacy or the illegitimacy of such child must prove his allegation. (n)

ARTICLE 262. The heirs of the husband may impugn the legitimacy of the child only in the following cases:

(1) If the husband should die before the expiration of the period fixed for bringing his action;

(2) If he should die after the filing of the complaint, without having desisted from the same;

(3) If the child was born after the death of the husband. (112)

ARTICLE 263. The action to impugn the legitimacy of the child shall be brought within one year from the recording of the birth in the Civil Register, if the husband should be in the same place, or in a proper case, any of his heirs.

If he or his heirs are absent, the period shall be eighteen months if they should reside in the Philippines; and two years if abroad. If the birth of the child has been concealed, the term shall be counted from the discovery of the fraud. (113a)

ARTICLE 264. Legitimate children shall have the right:

(1) To bear the surnames of the father and of the mother;

(2) To receive support from them, from their ascendants, and in a proper case, from their brothers and sisters, in conformity with article 291;

(3) To the legitime and other successional rights which this Code recognizes in their favor. (114)

CHAPTER 2

Proof of Filiation of Legitimate Children

ARTICLE 265. The filiation of legitimate children is proved by the record of birth appearing in the Civil Register, or by an authentic document or a final judgment. (115)

ARTICLE 266. In the absence of the titles indicated in the preceding article, the filiation shall be proved by the continuous possession of status of a legitimate child. (116)

ARTICLE 267. In the absence of a record of birth, authentic document, final judgment or possession of status, legitimate filiation may be proved by any other means allowed by the Rules of Court and special laws. (117a)

ARTICLE 268. The action to claim his legitimacy may be brought by the child during all his lifetime, and shall be transmitted to his heirs if he should die during his minority or in a state of insanity. In these cases the heirs shall have a period of five years within which to institute the action.

The action already commenced by the child is transmitted upon his death to the heirs, if the proceeding has not yet lapsed. (118)

CHAPTER 3

Legitimated Children

ARTICLE 269. Only natural children can be legitimated. Children born outside wedlock of parents who, at the time of the conception of the former, were not disqualified by any impediment to marry each other, are natural. (119a)

ARTICLE 270. Legitimation shall take place by the subsequent marriage between the parents. (120a)

ARTICLE 271. Only natural children who have been recognized by the parents before or after the celebration of the marriage, or have been declared natural children by final judgment, may be considered legitimated by subsequent marriage.

If a natural child is recognized or judicially declared as natural, such recognition or declaration shall extend to his or her brothers or sisters of the full blood: Provided, That the consent of the latter shall be implied if they do not impugn the recognition within four years from the time of such recognition, or in case they are minors, within four years following the attainment of majority. (121a)

ARTICLE 272. Children who are legitimated by subsequent marriage shall enjoy the same rights as legitimate children. (122)

ARTICLE 273. Legitimation shall take effect from the time of the child’s birth. (123a)

ARTICLE 274. The legitimation of children who died before the celebration of the marriage shall benefit their descendants. (124)

ARTICLE 275. Legitimation may be impugned by those who are prejudiced in their rights, when it takes place in favor of those who do not have the legal condition of natural children or when the requisites laid down in this Chapter are not complied with. (128a)

CHAPTER 4

Illegitimate Children

SECTION 1

Recognition of Natural Children

ARTICLE 276. A natural child may be recognized by the father and mother jointly, or by only one of them. (129)

ARTICLE 277. In case the recognition is made by only one of the parents, it shall be presumed that the child is natural, if the parent recognizing it had legal capacity to contract marriage at the time of the conception. (130)

ARTICLE 278. Recognition shall be made in the record of birth, a will, a statement before a court of record, or in any authentic writing. (131a)

ARTICLE 279. A minor who may not contract marriage without parental consent cannot acknowledge a natural child, unless the parent or guardian approves the acknowledgment, or unless the recognition is made in a will. (n)

ARTICLE 280. When the father or the mother makes the recognition separately, he or she shall not reveal the name of the person with whom he or she had the child; neither shall he or she state any circumstance whereby the other parent may be identified. (132a)

ARTICLE 281. A child who is of age cannot be recognized without his consent.

When the recognition of a minor does not take place in a record of birth or in a will, judicial approval shall be necessary.

A minor can in any case impugn the recognition within four years following the attainment of his majority. (133a)

ARTICLE 282. A recognized natural child has the right:

(1) To bear the surname of the parent recognizing him;

(2) To receive support from such parent, in conformity with article 291;

(3) To receive, in a proper case, the hereditary portion which is determined in this Code. (134)

ARTICLE 283. In any of the following cases, the father is obliged to recognize the child as his natural child: meneen

(1) In cases of rape, abduction or seduction, when the period of the offense coincides more or less with that of the conception;

(2) When the child is in continuous possession of status of a child of the alleged father by the direct acts of the latter or of his family;

(3) When the child was conceived during the time when the mother cohabited with the supposed father;

(4) When the child has in his favor any evidence or proof that the defendant is his father. (n)

ARTICLE 284. The mother is obliged to recognize her natural child:

(1) In any of the cases referred to in the preceding article, as between the child and the mother;

(2) When the birth and the identity of the child are clearly proved. (136a)

ARTICLE 285. The action for the recognition of natural children may be brought only during the lifetime of the presumed parents, except in the following cases:

(1) If the father or mother died during the minority of the child, in which case the latter may file the action before the expiration of four years from the attainment of his majority;

(2) If after the death of the father or of the mother a document should appear of which nothing had been heard and in which either or both parents recognize the child.

In this case, the action must be commenced within four years from the finding of the document. (137a)

ARTICLE 286. The recognition made in favor of a child who does not possess all the conditions stated in article 269, or in which the requirements of the law have not been fulfilled, may be impugned by those who are prejudiced by such recognition. (137)

SECTION 2

Other Illegitimate Children

ARTICLE 287. Illegitimate children other than natural in accordance with article 269 and other than natural children by legal fiction are entitled to support and such successional rights as are granted in this Code. (n)

ARTICLE 288. Minor children mentioned in the preceding article are under the parental authority of the mother. (n)

ARTICLE 289. Investigation of the paternity or maternity of children mentioned in the two preceding articles is permitted under the circumstances specified in articles 283 and 284. (n)

TITLE IX

Support

ARTICLE 290. Support is everything that is indispensable for sustenance, dwelling, clothing and medical attendance, according to the social position of the family.

Support also includes the education of the person entitled to be supported until he completes his education or training for some profession, trade or vocation, even beyond the age of majority. (142a)

ARTICLE 291. The following are obliged to support each other to the whole extent set forth in the preceding article:

(1) The spouses;

(2) Legitimate ascendants and descendants;

(3) Parents and acknowledged natural children and the legitimate or illegitimate descendants of the latter;

(4) Parents and natural children by legal fiction and the legitimate and illegitimate descendants of the latter;

(5) Parents and illegitimate children who are not natural.

Brothers and sisters owe their legitimate and natural brothers and sisters, although they are only of the half-blood, the necessaries for life, when by a physical or mental defect, or any other cause not imputable to the recipients, the latter cannot secure their subsistence. This assistance includes, in a proper case, expenses necessary for elementary education and for professional or vocational training. (143a)

ARTICLE 292. During the proceedings for legal separation, or for annulment of marriage, the spouses and children, shall be supported from the conjugal partnership property. After the final judgment of legal separation, or of annulment of marriage, the obligation of mutual support between the spouses ceases. However, in case of legal separation, the court may order that the guilty spouse shall give support to the innocent one, the judgment specifying the terms of such order. (n)

ARTICLE 293. In an action for legal separation or annulment of marriage, attorney’s fees and expenses for litigation shall be charged to the conjugal partnership property, unless the action fails. (n)

ARTICLE 294. The claim for support, when proper and two or more persons are obliged to give it, shall be made in the following order:

(1) From the spouse;

(2) From the descendants of the nearest degree;

(3) From the ascendants, also of the nearest degree;

(4) From the brothers and sisters.

Among descendants and ascendants, the order in which they are called to the intestate succession of the person who has a right to claim support shall be observed. (144)

ARTICLE 295. When the obligation to give support falls upon two or more persons, the payment of the same shall be divided between them in proportion to the resources of each.

However, in case of urgent need and by special circumstances, the judge may order only one of them to furnish the support provisionally, without prejudice to his right to claim from the other obligors the share due from them.

When two or more recipients at the same time claim support from one and the same person legally obliged to give it, and the latter should not have sufficient means to satisfy all, the order established in the preceding article shall be followed, unless the concurrent obligees should be the spouse and a child subject to parental authority, in which case the latter shall be preferred. (145)

ARTICLE 296. The amount of support, in the cases referred to in the five numbers of article 291, shall be in proportion to the resources or means of the giver and to the necessities of the recipient. (146a)

ARTICLE 297. Support in the cases referred to in the preceding article shall be reduced or increased proportionately, according to the reduction or increase of the needs of the recipient and the resources of the person obliged to furnish the same. (147)

ARTICLE 298. The obligation to give support shall be demandable from the time the person who has a right to receive the same needs it for maintenance, but it shall not be paid except from the date it is extrajudicially demanded.

Payment shall be made monthly in advance, and when the recipient dies, his heirs shall not be obliged to return what he has received in advance. (148a)

ARTICLE 299. The person obliged to give support may, at his option, fulfill his obligation either by paying the allowance fixed, or by receiving and maintaining in his house the person who has a right to receive support. The latter alternative cannot be availed of in case there is a moral or legal obstacle thereto. (149a)

ARTICLE 300. The obligation to furnish support ceases upon the death of the obligor, even if he may be bound to give it in compliance with a final judgment. (150)

ARTICLE 301. The right to receive support cannot be renounced; nor can it be transmitted to a third person. Neither can it be compensated with what the recipient owes the obligor.

However, support in arrears may be compensated and renounced, and the right to demand the same may be transmitted by onerous or gratuitous title. (151)

ARTICLE 302. Neither the right to receive legal support nor any money or property obtained as such support or any pension or gratuity from the government is subject to attachment or execution. (n) cdtai

ARTICLE 303. The obligation to give support shall also cease:

(1) Upon the death of the recipient;

(2) When the resources of the obligor have been reduced to the point where he cannot give the support without neglecting his own needs and those of his family;

(3) When the recipient may engage in a trade, profession, or industry, or has obtained work, or has improved his fortune in such a way that he no longer needs the allowance for his subsistence;

(4) When the recipient, be he a forced heir or not, has committed some act which gives rise to disinheritance;

(5) When the recipient is a descendant, brother or sister of the obligor and the need for support is caused by his or her bad conduct or by the lack of application to work, so long as this cause subsists. (152a)

ARTICLE 304. The foregoing provisions shall be applicable to other cases where, in virtue of this Code or of any other law, by will, or by stipulation there is a right to receive support, save what is stipulated, ordered by the testator or provided by law for the special case. (153a)

TITLE X

Funerals (n)

ARTICLE 305. The duty and the right to make arrangements for the funeral of a relative shall be in accordance with the order established for support, under article 294. In case of descendants of the same degree, or of brothers and sisters, the oldest shall be preferred. In case of ascendants, the paternal shall have a better right.

ARTICLE 306. Every funeral shall be in keeping with the social position of the deceased.

ARTICLE 307. The funeral shall be in accordance with the expressed wishes of the deceased. In the absence of such expression, his religious beliefs or affiliation shall determine the funeral rites. In case of doubt, the form of the funeral shall be decided upon by the person obliged to make arrangements for the same, after consulting the other members of the family.

ARTICLE 308. No human remains shall be retained, interred, disposed of or exhumed without the consent of the persons mentioned in articles 294 and 305.

ARTICLE 309. Any person who shows disrespect to the dead, or wrongfully interferes with a funeral shall be liable to the family of the deceased for damages, material and moral.

ARTICLE 310. The construction of a tombstone or mausoleum shall be deemed a part of the funeral expenses, and shall be chargeable to the conjugal partnership property, if the deceased is one of the spouses.

TITLE XI

Parental Authority

CHAPTER 1

General Provisions

ARTICLE 311. The father and mother jointly exercise parental authority over their legitimate children who are not emancipated. In case of disagreement, the father’s decision shall prevail, unless there is a judicial order to the contrary.

Children are obliged to obey their parents so long as they are under parental power, and to observe respect and reverence toward them always.

Recognized natural and adopted children who are under the age of majority are under the parental authority of the father or mother recognizing or adopting them, and are under the same obligation stated in the preceding paragraph.

Natural children by legal fiction are under the joint authority of the father and mother, as provided in the first paragraph of this article. (154a)

ARTICLE 312. Grandparents shall be consulted by all members of the family on all important family questions. (n)

ARTICLE 313. Parental authority cannot be renounced or transferred, except in cases of guardianship or adoption approved by the courts, or emancipation by concession.

The courts may, in cases specified by law, deprive parents of their authority. (n)

ARTICLE 314. A foundling shall be under the parental authority of the person or institution that has reared the same. (n)

ARTICLE 315. No descendant can be compelled, in a criminal case, to testify against his parents and ascendants. (n)

CHAPTER 2

Effect of Parental Authority Upon the Persons of the Children

ARTICLE 316. The father and the mother have, with respect to their unemancipated children:

(1) The duty to support them, to have them in their company, educate and instruct them in keeping with their means, and to represent them in all actions which may redound to their benefit;

(2) The power to correct them and to punish them moderately. (155)

ARTICLE 317. The courts may appoint a guardian of the child’s property, or a guardian ad litem when the best interest of the child so requires. (n)

ARTICLE 318. Upon cause being shown by the parents, the local mayor may aid them in the exercise of their authority over the child. If the child is to be kept in a children’s home or similar institution for not more than one month, an order of the justice of the peace or municipal judge shall be necessary, after due hearing, where the child shall be heard. For this purpose, the court may appoint a guardian ad litem. (156a)

ARTICLE 319. The father and the mother shall satisfy the support for the detained child; but they shall not have any intervention in the regime of the institution where the child is detained. They may lift the detention when they deem it opportune, with the approval of the court. (158a)

CHAPTER 3

Effect of Parental Authority on the Property of the Children

ARTICLE 320. The father, or in his absence the mother, is the legal administrator of the property pertaining to the child under parental authority. If the property is worth more than two thousand pesos, the father or mother shall give a bond subject to the approval of the Court of First Instance. (159a)

ARTICLE 321. The property which the unemancipated child has acquired or may acquire with his work or industry, or by any lucrative title, belongs to the child in ownership, and in usufruct to the father or mother under whom he is under parental authority and in whose company he lives; but if the child, with the parent’s consent, should live independently from them, he shall be considered as emancipated for all purposes relative to said property, and he shall have over it dominion, usufruct and administration. (160)

ARTICLE 322. A child who earns money or acquires property with his own work or industry shall be entitled to a reasonable allowance from his earnings, in addition to the expenses made by the parents for his support and education. (n)

ARTICLE 323. The fruits and interest of the child’s property referred to in article 321 shall be applied first to the expenses for the support and education of the child. After they have been fully met, the debts of the conjugal partnership which have redounded to the benefit of the family may be paid from said fruits and interest. (n)

ARTICLE 324. Whatever the child may acquire with the capital or property of the parents belongs to the latter in ownership and in usufruct. But if the parents should expressly grant him all or part of the profits that he may obtain, such profits shall not be charged against his legitime. (161)

ARTICLE 325. The property or income donated, bequeathed or devised to the unemancipated child for the expenses of his education and instruction shall pertain to him in ownership and usufruct; but the father or mother shall administer the same, if in the donation or testamentary provision the contrary has not been stated. (162)

ARTICLE 326. When the property of the child is worth more than two thousand pesos, the father or mother shall be considered a guardian of the child’s property, subject to the duties and obligations of guardians under the Rules of Court. (n)

CHAPTER 4

Extinguishment of Parental Authority

ARTICLE 327. Parental authority terminates:

(1) Upon the death of the parents or of the child;

(2) Upon emancipation;

(3) Upon adoption of the child;

(4) Upon the appointment of a general guardian. (167a)

ARTICLE 328. The mother who contracts a subsequent marriage loses the parental authority over her children, unless the deceased husband, father of the latter, has expressly provided in his will that his widow might marry again, and has ordered that in such case she should keep and exercise parental authority over their children.

The court may also appoint a guardian of the child’s property in case the father should contract a subsequent marriage. (168a)

ARTICLE 329. When the mother of an illegitimate child marries a man other than its father, the court may appoint a guardian for the child. (n)

ARTICLE 330. The father and in a proper case the mother, shall lose authority over their children:

(1) When by final judgment in a criminal case the penalty of deprivation of said authority is imposed upon him or her;

(2) When by a final judgment in legal separation proceedings such loss of authority is declared. (169a)

ARTICLE 331. Parental authority is suspended by the incapacity or absence of the father, or in a proper case of the mother, judicially declared, and also by civil interdiction. (170)

ARTICLE 332. The courts may deprive the parents of their authority or suspend the exercise of the same if they should treat their children with excessive harshness or should give them corrupting orders, counsels, or examples, or should make them beg or abandon them. In these cases, the courts may also deprive the parents, in whole or in part, of the usufruct over the child’s property, or adopt such measures as they may deem advisable in the interest of the child. (171a)

ARTICLE 333. If the widowed mother who has contracted a subsequent marriage should again become a widow, she shall recover from this moment her parental authority over all her unemancipated children. (172)

CHAPTER 5

Adoption

ARTICLE 334. Every person of age, who is in full possession of his civil rights, may adopt. (173a)

ARTICLE 335. The following cannot adopt:

(1) Those who have legitimate, legitimated, acknowledged natural children, or natural children by legal fiction;

(2) The guardian, with respect to the ward, before the final approval of his accounts;

(3) A married person, without the consent of the other spouse;

(4) Non-resident aliens; onEuIP

(5) Resident aliens with whose government the Republic of the Philippines has broken diplomatic relations;

(6) Any person who has been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude, when the penalty imposed was six months’ imprisonment or more. (174a)

ARTICLE 336. The husband and wife may jointly adopt. Parental authority shall, in such case, be exercised as if the child were their own by nature. (n)

ARTICLE 337. Any person, even if of age, may be adopted, provided the adopter is sixteen years older. (173a)

ARTICLE 338. The following may be adopted:

(1) The natural child, by the natural father or mother;

(2) Other illegitimate children, by the father or mother;

(3) A step-child, by the step-father or step-mother. (n)

ARTICLE 339. The following cannot be adopted:

(1) A married person, without the written consent of the other spouse;

(2) An alien with whose government the Republic of the Philippines has broken diplomatic relations;

(3) A person who has already been adopted. (n)

ARTICLE 340. The written consent of the following to the adoption shall be necessary:

(1) The person to be adopted, if fourteen years of age or over;

(2) The parents, guardian or person in charge of the person to be adopted. (n)

ARTICLE 341. The adoption shall:

(1) Give to the adopted person the same rights and duties as if he were a legitimate child of the adopter;

(2) Dissolve the authority vested in the parents by nature;

(3) Make the adopted person a legal heir of the adopter;

(4) Entitle the adopted person to use the adopter’s surname. (n)

ARTICLE 342. The adopter shall not be a legal heir of the adopted person, whose parents by nature shall inherit from him. (177a)

ARTICLE 343. If the adopter is survived by legitimate parents or ascendants and by an adopted person, the latter shall not have more successional rights than an acknowledged natural child. (n)

ARTICLE 344. The adopter may donate property, by an act inter vivos or by will, to the adopted person, who shall acquire ownership thereof. (n)

ARTICLE 345. The proceedings for adoption shall be governed by the Rules of Court insofar as they are not in conflict with this Code. (n)

ARTICLE 346. The adoption shall be recorded in the local civil register. (179a)

ARTICLE 347. A minor or other incapacitated person may, through a guardian ad litem, ask for the rescission of the adoption on the same grounds that cause the loss of parental authority. (n)

ARTICLE 348. The adopter may petition the court for revocation of the adoption in any of these cases:

(1) If the adopted person has attempted against the life of the adopter;

(2) When the adopted minor has abandoned the home of the adopter for more than three years;

(3) When by other acts the adopted person has definitely repudiated the adoption. (n)

CHAPTER 6

Substitute Parental Authority (n)

ARTICLE 349. The following persons shall exercise substitute parental authority:

(1) Guardians;

(2) Teachers and professors;

(3) Heads of children’s homes, orphanages, and similar institutions;

(4) Directors of trade establishments, with regard to apprentices;

(5) Grandparents;

(6) The oldest brother or sister.

ARTICLE 350. The persons named in the preceding article shall exercise reasonable supervision over the conduct of the child.

ARTICLE 351. A general guardian or a guardian over the person shall have the same authority over the ward’s person as the parents. With regard to the child’s property, the Rules of Court on guardianship shall govern.

ARTICLE 352. The relations between teacher and pupil, professor and student, are fixed by government regulations and those of each school or institution. In no case shall corporal punishment be countenanced. The teacher or professor shall cultivate the best potentialities of the heart and mind of the pupil or student.

ARTICLE 353. Apprentices shall be treated humanely. No corporal punishment against the apprentice shall be permitted.

ARTICLE 354. Grandparents and in their default the oldest brother or sister shall exercise parental authority in case of death or absence of the child’s parents. If the parents are living, or if the child is under guardianship, the grandparents may give advice and counsel to the child, to the parents or to the guardian.

ARTICLE 355. Substitute parental authority shall be exercised by the grandparents in the following order:

(1) Paternal grandparents;

(2) Maternal grandparents.

TITLE XII

Care and Education of Children

ARTICLE 356. Every child:

(1) Is entitled to parental care;

(2) Shall receive at least elementary education;

(3) Shall be given moral and civic training by the parents or guardian;

(4) Has a right to live in an atmosphere conducive to his physical, moral and intellectual development.

ARTICLE 357. Every child shall:

(1) Obey and honor his parents or guardian;

(2) Respect his grandparents, old relatives, and persons holding substitute parental authority;

(3) Exert his utmost for his education and training;

(4) Cooperate with the family in all matters that make for the good of the same.

ARTICLE 358. Every parent and every person holding substitute parental authority shall see to it that the rights of the child are respected and his duties complied with, and shall particularly, by precept and example, imbue the child with highmindedness, love of country, veneration for the national heroes, fidelity to democracy as a way of life, and attachment to the ideal of permanent world peace.

ARTICLE 359. The government promotes the full growth of the faculties of every child. For this purpose, the government will establish, whenever possible:

(1) Schools in every barrio, municipality and city where optional religious instruction shall be taught as part of the curriculum at the option of the parent or guardian;

(2) Puericulture and similar centers;

(3) Councils for the Protection of Children; and

(4) Juvenile courts.

ARTICLE 360. The Council for the Protection of Children shall look after the welfare of children in the municipality. It shall, among other functions:

(1) Foster the education of every child in the municipality;

(2) Encourage the cultivation of the duties of parents;

(3) Protect and assist abandoned or mistreated children, and orphans;

(4) Take steps to prevent juvenile delinquency;

(5) Adopt measures for the health of children;

(6) Promote the opening and maintenance of playgrounds;

(7) Coordinate the activities of organizations devoted to the welfare of children, and secure their cooperation.

ARTICLE 361. Juvenile courts will be established, as far as practicable, in every chartered city or large municipality.

ARTICLE 362. Whenever a child is found delinquent by any court, the father, mother, or guardian may in a proper case be judicially admonished.

ARTICLE 363. In all questions on the care, custody, education and property of children, the latter’s welfare shall be paramount. No mother shall be separated from her child under seven years of age, unless the court finds compelling reasons for such measure.

TITLE XIII

Use of Surnames (n)

ARTICLE 364. Legitimate and legitimated children shall principally use the surname of the father.

ARTICLE 365. An adopted child shall bear the surname of the adopter.

ARTICLE 366. A natural child acknowledged by both parents shall principally use the surname of the father. If recognized by only one of the parents, a natural child shall employ the surname of the recognizing parent.

ARTICLE 367. Natural children by legal fiction shall principally employ the surname of the father.

ARTICLE 368. Illegitimate children referred to in article 287 shall bear the surname of the mother.

ARTICLE 369. Children conceived before the decree annulling a voidable marriage shall principally use the surname of the father.

ARTICLE 370. A married woman may use:

(1) Her maiden first name and surname and add her husband’s surname, or

(2) Her maiden first name and her husband’s surname, or

(3) Her husband’s full name, but prefixing a word indicating that she is his wife, such as “Mrs.”

ARTICLE 371. In case of annulment of marriage, and the wife is the guilty party, she shall resume her maiden name and surname. If she is the innocent spouse, she may resume her maiden name and surname. However, she may choose to continue employing her former husband’s surname, unless:

(1) The court decrees otherwise, or

(2) She or the former husband is married again to another person.

ARTICLE 372. When legal separation has been granted, the wife shall continue using her name and surname employed before the legal separation.

ARTICLE 373. A widow may use the deceased husband’s surname as though he were still living, in accordance with article 370.

ARTICLE 374. In case of identity of names and surnames, the younger person shall be obliged to use such additional name or surname as will avoid confusion.

ARTICLE 375. In case of identity of names and surnames between ascendants and descendants, the word “Junior” can be used only by a son. Grandsons and other direct male descendants shall either:

(1) Add a middle name or the mother’s surname, or

(2) Add the Roman numerals II, III, and so on.

ARTICLE 376. No person can change his name or surname without judicial authority.

ARTICLE 377. Usurpation of a name and surname may be the subject of an action for damages and other relief.

ARTICLE 378. The unauthorized or unlawful use of another person’s surname gives a right of action to the latter.

ARTICLE 379. The employment of pen names or stage names is perm