The Roman Catholic Apostolic Administrator of Davao, Inc., petitioner vs.

The Land Registration Commission and The Register of Deeds of Davao City, respondents
December 20, 1957
Felix, J.
Nature: petition for mandamus filed by th Roman Catholic Apostolic Administrator of Davao seeking the
reversal of a resolution issued by the Land Registration Commissioner
Summary: A Deed of Sale was denied registration because of the 60% Filipino citizenship requirement in
owning agricultural lands.
Doctrine:

The corporation sole has the purpose of holding and transmitting church properties to his
successor in office

The 60% Filipino capital requirement in purchasing real estates is not intended to corporations sole

Also, the constitutional mandate is limited to ownership and not to control

It is the nationality of the constituents of the corporation sole which determines whether the
consitutional requirement is satisfied
Facts

Mateo Rodis, a Filipino citizen, executed a deed of sale of a parcel of land in favor of the Roman
Catholic Administrator of Davao Inc.
o Roman Catholic Inc is a corporation sole organized and existing in accordance with
Philippine Laws, with Msgr. Clovis Thibault who is a Canadian citizen, as actual
incumbent.

The Deed of Sale was presented to the Register of Deeds of Davao. However, the Register of
Deeds, recalling another instance with the Carmelite Nuns, required Roman Catholic to submit an
affidavit stating that, at the time they seek registration, 60% of the members of their corporation
were Filipino citizens.

Roman Catholic expressed their willingness to submit an affidavit, but stated that it cannot be in the
same tenor as the Carmelite Nuns.
o The Roman Catholic explained the following differences:
Carmelite Nuns
Roman Catholic Inc
Has 5 incorporators
One incorporator only, being a corporation
sole
That according to their articles of The totality of the Catholic population of
incorporation, the organization of the Davao would become the owner of the
Carmelite Nuns became the owner of property sought to be registered
properties donated to it

The Land Registration Commissioner then issued a resolution holding that

o according to Secs. 11 & 52 of Art. XIII of the Philippine Constitution, Roman Catholic was
not qualified to acquire private lands in the Philippines in the absence of proof that at least
60% of the capital, property, or assets of the Roman Catholic Administrator of Davao, Inc..
was actually owned or controlled by Filipino citizens, that there being no question that the
present incumbent of the corporation sole was a Canadian citizen
o that Sec. 159 of the Corporation Law relied upon by the Roman Catholic was rendered
inoperative by the said provisions of the 1987 Constitution
o that the registration shall be denied in the absence of proof of compliance with the
condition (60% rule)

Roman Catholic filed an action for mandamus alleging that:

o The deed of sale executed by Rodis in favor of the Roman Catholic is actually a deed of
sale in favor of the Catholic Church which is qualified to acquire private agricultural lands
for the establishment and maintenance of places of worship
Issue # 1: Who are considered qualified to acquire and hold agricultural lands in the Philippines?
(Ownership of church temporalities logically fall and devolve upon the church, diocese or congregation
acquiring the same)

1 Sec. 1. All agricultural, timber, and mineral lands of the public domain, waters.
Shall be limited to citizens of the Philippines, or to corporations or associations at
least 60% of the capital of which is owned by such citizens
2 Sec. 5. Save in cases of hereditary succession, no private agricultural land shall be
transferred or assigned except to individuals, corporations, or associations qualified
to acquire or hold lands of the public domain in the Philippines

Ratio # 1:

Roman Catholics arguments

o A corporation sole, irrespective of the citizenship of its incumbent, is not prohibited or
disqualified to acquire and hold real properties ecause according to the Corporation Law
and the Canon Law, a corporation sole or ordinary is not the owner of the properties that
he may acquire but merely the administrator thereof
o That the composition of the Catholic Church in the Philippines is made up of two elements
the clergy or religious members and the faithful or lay members. According to the
petitioner, in both elements, the 60% requirement is satisfied

Land Registration Commissions arguments

o Although the Roman Catholic is not the owner of the land purchased, it is still the one
which has control, full power to administer, take possession, alienate, etc.
o The theory of the petitioners that properties registered in the name of the corporation sole
are held in trust for the benefit of the Catholic population of a place cannot be sustained
because a conglomeration of persons cannot just be pointed out as the cestui que trust or
reipient of the benefits from the property allegedly administered in their behalf
o That there cannot be a trust in favor of the people because the members or faithful of the
church, by their oath of fidelity, promised to render to the Pontifical Father or his
successors an account of his pastoral office and of all things appertaining to the state of
the church

SC
o Definition of corporation sole

A special form of corporation usually associated with the clergy

Referred to as that unhappy freak of English law

Was designed to facilitate the exercise of the functions of ownership carried on

by the clerics for and on behalf of the church which was regarded as the property
owner

Consists of one person only, and his successors, who are incorporated by law in
order to give then some legal capacities and advantages, particularly that of
per[etuity, which in their natural persons they could not have had
o Both the Corporation Law and the Canon Law support Roman Catholics argument. The
SC held that the bishops or archbishops, as corporations sole are merely administrators of
the church properties that come to their possession, and which they hold in trust for the
church
o Aside from administration, a corporation sole shall also hold and transmit the temporalities
of the church to his successor in said office
o Also, since there is no provision conferring ownership of church properties on the Pope,
nor on the corporations sole or heads of dioceses, ownership of these temporalities
logically fall and devolve upon the church, diocese or congregation acquiring the same.
Issue # 2: What is the citizenship of Catholic corporations sole (depends on the country where it is located)
Ratio # 2

Every Roman Catholic Church in different countries, if it exercises its mission and is lawfully
incorporated in accordance with the laws of the country where it is located, is ocnsidered an entity
or person with all the rights and privileges granted to such artificial being under the laws of that
country

There is no merger of personalities between the Roman Pontiff and the Catholic congregation of
the faithful throughout the world. Neither can it be said that the political and civil rights of the faithful
inherent or acquired under the laws of their country, are affected by that relationship with the Pope

The citizenship of the Pope is not bestowed upon the Roman Catholic Church in every country
certainly they are separate and independent from one another in jurisdiction, governed by different
laws under which they are incorporated, and entirely independent of the others in the management
and ownership of their temporalities
o In short, the citizenship of the Pope is not the citizenship of every person who embrace
the Catholic faith
Issue # 3: W/N the Roman Catholic Apostolic Church in the Philippines, or the corporation so named the
Roman Catholic Apostolic Adminisstrator of Davao, Inc, is qualified to acquire private agricultural lands in the
Philippines (Yes)
Ratio # 3:

The SC held that the Roman Catholic may acquire based on the following grounds:

The Roman Catholic was incorporated in 1912 principally to administer its temporalities
and manage its properties.
o Sec. 159 Corporation Law expressly allowed the corporation sole to purchase and hold
real as well as personal properties necessary for the promotion of the objects for which
said corporation sole is created
o The Constitution demands that in the absence of capital stock, the controlling membership
should be composed of Filipino citizens. There is undeniable proof that the members of
the Roman Catholic Apostolic faith within the territory of Davao are predominantly Filipino
citizens
o Evidence was presented to establish that the clergy and lay members of the religion fully
covers the percentage of Filipino citizens required by the Constitution
o The fact that the law thus expressly authorizes the corporations sole to receive bequests
or gifts of real properties is a clear indication that the requisite that bequests or gifts of real
estate be for charitable, benevolent, or educational purposes, was, in the opinion of the
legislators, considered sufficient and adequate protection against the revitalization of
religious landholdings
o As in respect to the property which they hold for the corporation, they stand in position of
trustees and the courts may exercise the same supervision as in other cases of trust

Consequently, since corporations sole can purchase and sell real estate, they can also register the
same. As provided by law, lands held in trust for specific purposes may be subject of registration,
and the capacity of a corporation sole to register lands belonging to it is acknowledged, and title
thereto may be issued in its name.
Disposition: registration of the sale ordered
Concurring opinion (Labrador, J)

We are aware that some believe that ownership of ecclesiastical properties resided in the Roman
Catholic Pontiff, but the better opinion seems to be that they do belong to the parishes and
dioceses

The properties belong to the parish or diocese, but since they are not organized as a juridical
person, the Civil Code allowed the organization of parishes and dioceses as juridical persons as
corporation sole for the purchase and holding of real estate for the Church.

The citizenship of the priest forming the corporation sold should be no impediment if the parish or
diocese which owns the property is qualified to own and possess the property
Dissenting opinion (Reyes, JBL, J)

The decision will have the effect of being not able to limit the areas which corporations sole may
hold until the Legislature implements Sec. 3, Art. XII, 1987 Constitution, empowering it to set a limit
to the size of private agricultural land that may be held
o Meaning, even if a limitative law is adopted, it will not affect the landholdings acquired
before the law become effective, no matter how vastthe estate should be

In requiring corporations or associations to have 60% of their capital owned by Filipino citizens, the
constitution manifestly disregarded the corporate fiction.
o It went behind the corproate entity and looked at the natural persons that composed it and
demanded that a clear majority in iterest should be Filipino

The body of membership professing the Catholic faith in the diocese of Davao does not constitute
the controlling membership

Conclusions
o That the capacity of religious corporations sole to acquire agricultural land depends upon
60% Filipino membership of the group or body exercising control of the corporation
o That if control of any such corporations should be vested in a single person, then such
person must be a Filipino citizen
o