RABUYA NOTES
The Family Code of the Philippines
Title 1: Marriage
Chapter 1: Requisites of Marriage
Article 1. Marriage is a special contract of
permanent union between a man and a
woman entered into in accordance with law
for the establishment of conjugal and family
life. It is the foundation of the family and an
inviolable social institution whose nature,
consequences, and incidents are governed by
law and not subject to stipulation, except that
marriage settlements may fix the property
relations during the marriage within the limits
provided by this Code. (52a)
Marriage is a civil contract, but it is something
more than a mere contract. Once formed, the law
steps in and holds the parties to various obligations
and liabilities.
Distinguished from ordinary contract, marriage:
1. Cannot be revoked, dissolved or
terminated by parties, but only by the
sovereign power of the state.
 Status of marriage continues until
it is dissolved by the courts in
accordance with law or by death
of a spouse.
2. Nature, consequences, and incidents of
marriage are governed by law and not
subject to agreement;
 The State is a party at interest to
the marriage, together with the
husband and wife.
3. Only two persons of opposite sex may
enter into a contract of marriage;
4. Is not just a contract, but also a social
institution.
 The State recognizes the sanctity
of family life and of affording
protection to the family as a basic
autonomous social institution,
and therefore, the security and
stability of the State are largely
dependent upon it. Without
which, there would neither be
civilization nor progress.
 The State has surrounded it with
safeguards to maintain its purity,
continuity, and permanence.
 The breakup of families weakens
the community’s social and moral
fabric.
Presumption of Marriage: A man and woman
deporting themselves as husband and wife are
deemed to have entered into a lawful contract of
marriage. [Section 3(aa), Rule 131, New Rules on
Evidence]
 May be rebutted only by cogent proof to
the contrary or by evidence of a higher
than ordinary quality
 The presumption in favor of matrimony is
one of the strongest known in law.
 Rationale: Such is the common order of
society, and if the parties were not what
they thus hold themselves out being, they
would be living in the constant violation of
decency and of law.
o Semper praesumitur pro
matrimonio – “Always presume
marriage”
o The law presumes morality, and
not immorality; marriage, and not
concubinage; legitimacy, and not
bastardy.
Proof of Marriage
 Best documentary evidence: Marriage
contract
o Although, failure to present it is
not proof that no marriage took
place.
 Testimony by one of the parties, or by one
of the witnesses to the marriage has been
held to be admissible to prove the fact of
marriage.
 The person who officiated the
solemnization is also competent to testify.
 The couple’s public and open
cohabitation as husband and wife after the
alleged wedlock;
 The birth and baptismal certificate of
children born during such union; and
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 The mention of such nuptial in
subsequent documents.
Article 2. No marriage shall be valid, unless
these essential requisites are present:
(1) Legal capacity of the contracting parties who
must be a male and a female; and
(2) Consent freely given in the presence of the
solemnizing officer. (53a)
A. Legal Capacity (Art. 5, FC)
1. Age requirement
a. 18 years old (minimum)
i. If less than 18, marriage
is void ab initio, even
with parents’ consent.
b. If less than 21 years old (but still
minimum of 18y.o.), parental
consent is needed. If no parental
consent, marriage is voidable.
c. Attainment of the required
minimum age should be
reckoned on the date of the
marriage.
i. Meaning, on the date of
marriage, parties must be
at least 18 y.o.
2. Parties must be of opposite sex
a. “special contract of permanent
union between a man and a
woman”
3. Absence of impediments under Arts. 37
& 38 of Family Code
The following are void ab initio:
Art. 37, 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.
Art. 38, for reasons of 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 the 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
adopting parent and the adopted
child;
7. Between an 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;
Marriage between rapist and raped victim:
 A subsequent valid marriage between the
two extinguishes the criminal action or the
penalty imposed for rape;
 If already married, the subsequent
forgiveness by the wife shall extinguish
criminal action.
B. Consent
 Consent of the parties must be mutual,
where one party alone consents to the
contract, there is no marriage.
o Must be given freely, voluntarily
and intelligently, in the presence
of S.O.
o Marriage is voidable IF:
 Consent is obtained
through mistake, fraud,
force, intimidation, or
undue influence;
 The contracting party is
of unsound mind at the
time of celebration of the
marriage
o Marriage is void ab initio IF:
 There is no consent at
all.
 Both spouses acted in
bad faith (Art. 44, FC)
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 However, the mere fact that the marriage
is bogus and fraudulent on the part of one
party, and where the other party is
deceived and believed it to be a valid
marriage, will not render the marriage
invalid.
o Example: One party was aware
that the solemnizing officer (S.O.)
had no legal authority to
solemnize a marriage, but the
other party believed in good faith
that the solemnizer had the legal
authority to do so.
 Consent must be through physical assent—
appear personally before the S.O. declare
in the presence of not less than two
witnesses of legal age that they take each
other as husband and wife. (Art. 6, FC)
Article 3. The formal requisites of marriage are:
(1) Authority of the solemnizing officer;
(2) A valid marriage license except in the cases
provided for in Chapter 2 of this Title; and
(3) A marriage ceremony which takes place
with the appearance of the contracting parties
before the solemnizing officer and their
personal declaration that they take each other
as husband and wife in the presence of not less
than two witnesses of legal age. (53a, 55a)
A. Authority of the Solemnizing Officer (Art.
7, FC)
The following are authorized:
1. Incumbent members of the judiciary
within the court’s jurisdiction;
2. Priest, rabbi, imam or minister of any
church or religious sect duly authorized by
his church or religious sect;
3. Ship captain or airplane chief, in cases of
articulo mortis;
a. Marriage between passengers or
crew members may be done not
only while the ship is at sea or the
plane is in flight, but also during
stopovers at ports of call. (Art. 31,
FC)
4. Military commanders, in cases of articulo
mortis;
a. Marriage between persons within
the zone of military operation,
whether members of the armed
forces or civilians (Art. 32, FC)
5. Consul-general, consul or vice-consul, in
limited cases; (Art. 10, FC)
6. Mayors
* Articulo mortis – at the moment of death /
before death
 If the S.O. is not authorized, marriage is
void ab initio.
o However, if either or both parties
believed in good faith that the
S.O. had the legal authority to do
so, then the marriage shall remain
valid despite the S.O.’s lack of
authority. [Art. 35(2), FC]
 Exception to Art. 4, FC
B. Valid Marriage License (Art. 9, FC)
 Required in order to notify the public that
two persons are about to be united in
matrimony and that anyone who is aware
or has knowledge of any impediment to
the union of the two shall make it known
to the local civil registrar.
 The requirement and issuance of
marriage license is the State’s
demonstration of its involvement and
participation in every marriage.
 Shall be issued by the local civil registrar
of the city or municipality where either
contracting party habitually resides, except
in marriages where no license is required
in accordance with Chapter 2 of this Title;
(Art. 9, FC)
 If the marriage is celebrated without a
valid marriage license, the marriage is void
ab initio.
o Subsequent issuance of such
license cannot render the
marriage valid.
o If license is wrongfully or
fraudulently obtained, there is
only irregularity in this case,
hence, does not affect validity of
marriage but holds the party
responsible for the irregularity
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civilly, criminally, and
administratively liable.
o Parties only have 120 days from
the date of issue to use such
license, beyond that, marriage is
considered void ab initio because
in effect, there is already absence
of a valid marriage license.
 S.O. does not have the responsibility to
check w/n this has been properly
complied with or has been properly
issued to the parties.
Other instances of irregularities:
1. The fact that the application for marriage
license was not under oath;
2. The fact that the marriage license was
issued in violation of the 3-month
suspension period under Arts. 15 & 16,
FC;
a. Art. 15, FC: Parental advice (for
21-25 y.o.’s) not obtained,
marriage license shall not be
issued ‘til after 3 months.
b. Art. 16, FC: Failure to present
certificate of marriage counselling
suspends the issuance of marriage
license for a period of 3 months.
3. The fact that the marriage license was
issued prior to the completion of the
period of publication; or that it was issued
in the absence of the required publication;
4. The fact that a marriage license was issued
without the submission of certificate of
legal capacity under Art. 21, FC;
a. Art. 21, FC: When either or both
of the contracting parties are
citizens of a foreign country, they
shall submit a certificate of legal
capacity issued by their respective
diplomatic or consular officials.
5. The fact that the license was obtained in
the locality where neither of the
contracting parties resides.
Exceptions, (Chapter 2 of Title 1):
1. In case either or both of the contracting
parties are at the point of death; (Art. 27,
FC)
2. If the residence of either party is so
located that there is no means of
transportation to enable such party to
appear personally before the local civil
registrar; (Art. 28, FC)
** In the first 2 cases, the S.O. shall state in an
affidavit executed before the LCR, or any other
person authorized to administer oath, that such
were the instances, and that the S.O. took the
necessary steps to ascertain the legal capacities
(age, sex, absence of legal impediment) of the
parties. (Art. 29, FC)
** The affidavit executed by the S.O. and a legible
copy of the marriage contract shall be sent by the
S.O. to the LCR of the municipality where the
marriage was performed within 30 days after the
performance of the marriage. (Art. 30, FC)
3. Ship captain or airplane chief, in cases of
articulo mortis; marriage between
passengers or crew members may be done
not only while the ship is at sea or the
plane is in flight, but also during stopovers
at ports of call. (Art. 31, FC)
4. Military commanders, in cases of articulo
mortis; marriage between persons within
the zone of military operation, whether
members of the armed forces or civilians
(Art. 32, FC)
5. Marriages among Muslims or among
members of the ethnic communities,
provided these are solemnized in
accordance with their customs, rites, or
practices; (Art. 33, FC)
6. Ratification of marital cohabitation
between a man and a woman who have
lived together as husband and wife for at
least 5 years and without any legal
impediment to marry each other. (Art. 34,
FC)
** The contracting parties shall
execute an affidavit, before any
person authorized by law to
administer oaths, stating the
foregoing facts. The S.O. shall
also state under oath that he
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ascertained the legal capacities of
the parties.
C. Marriage Ceremony (Art. 6, FC)
 Solemnization of a marriage
comprehends:
o A personal appearance together
of the contracting parties before
an S.O.;
o Personal declaration that they
take each other as husband and
wife;
o Presence of at least 2 witnesses of
legal age; **
 Failure of the parties to sign the marriage
certificate will not affect the validity of
marriage. Absence of such is not proof
that no marriage took place.
o Thus, mere fact that no record of
the marriage exists in the registry
of marriage does not invalidate
marriage. The forwarding copy of
the marriage certificate to the
registry is not a requisite.
 Common-law marriage is not recognized
in the Philippines because marriage
ceremony is a requisite of validity.
 Marriage by proxy is not allowed, because
personal appearance of the contracting
parties is required.
 The requirement of at least 2 witnesses of
legal age is merely directory, so that a
** See discussions of Legal Capacity under Art. 2(A).
failure to comply therewith does not
invalidate the marriage.
Article 4. The absence of any of the essential or
formal requisites shall render the marriage void
ab initio, except as stated in Article 35 (2).
A defect in any of the essential requisites shall
render the voidable as provided in Article 45.
An irregularity in the formal requisites shall not
affect the validity of the marriage but the party or
parties responsible for the irregularity shall be
civilly, criminally and administratively liable. (n)
The following are void ab initio:
1. Marriages contracted by any party who is
not legally capacitated;
2. Marriages where consent is lacking;
3. S.O. is not authorized to perform
marriages, except under Art. 35(2), FC;
4. Marriages solemnized without a valid
marriage license, except under
circumstances enumerated under Chapter
2 of Title 1, FC;
5. Common-law marriages;
6. Marriages by proxy;
 Defect in essential requisites:
o (a) legal capacity
o (b) consent
voidable.
 Irregularity in formal requisites
o (a) authority of S.O,
o (b) valid marriage license,
o (c) marriage ceremony
 personal appearance
 performed by S.O
validity of marriage is unaffected, but
party/ies responsible for the irregularity
shall be civilly, criminally, or
administratively liable.
Article 5. Any male or female of the age of
eighteen years or upwards not under any of the
impediments mentioned in Articles 37 and 38,
may contract marriage. (54a)
Article 6. No prescribed form or religious rite
for the solemnization of the marriage is
required. It shall be necessary, however, for the
contracting parties to appear personally before
the solemnizing officer and declare in the
presence of not less than two witnesses of legal
age that they take each other as husband and
wife. This declaration shall be contained in the
marriage certificate which shall be signed by the
contracting parties and their witnesses and
attested by the solemnizing officer.
In case of a marriage in articulo mortis, when the
party at the point of death is unable to sign the
marriage certificate, it shall be sufficient for one
of the witnesses to the marriage to write the
name of said party, which fact shall be attested
by the solemnizing officer. (55a)
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No Form or Religious Rite Required
 Declaration or consent to marry may be
through word of mouth, through a written
form, nod of the head, etc.
 No particular form of words is required as
well--so long as the words employed are to
the effect that the groom and the bride are
taking each other as husband and wife.
 If what transpired was a mere signing of
marriage contract by the parties, without
the presence of S.O., there is no marriage
to speak of.
 ONLY required:
o Personal appearance of the
contracting parties and their
declaration;
o Presence of S.O. to solemnize the
marriage;
Article 7. Marriage may be solemnized by:
(1) Any incumbent member of the judiciary
within the court's jurisdiction;
(2) Any priest, rabbi, imam, or minister of any
church or religious sect duly authorized by his
church or religious sect and registered with the
civil registrar general, acting within the limits of
the written authority granted by his church or
religious sect and provided that at least one of
the contracting parties belongs to the
solemnizing officer's church or religious sect;
(3) Any ship captain or airplane chief only in the
case mentioned in Article 31;
(4) Any military commander of a unit to which
a chaplain is assigned, in the absence of the
latter, during a military operation, likewise only
in the cases mentioned in Article 32;
(5) Any consul-general, consul or vice-consul in
A. the case provided in Article 10. (56a)
Judiciary
The following are members of the Judiciary:
1. The Chief Justice and Associate Justices
of SC;
2. The Presiding Justice and the Justices of
the Court of Appeals;
3. The Presiding Justice and the Justices of
the Sandiganbayan;
4. Judges of RTC;
5. Judges of the Court of Tax Appeals;
6. Judges of Metropolitan, Municipal, or
Municipal Circuit Trial Courts
** Nos. 1, 2, and 3 have national jurisdiction; while
nos. 4 and 6 exercise jurisdiction within a limited
territory designated by law.
 If S.O. solemnized a marriage outside
their jurisdiction, it is deemed that there is
a total absence of a formal requisite, which
in effect, renders the marriage void ab
initio.
o If the parties, in good faith,
believe that the judge has
authority to solemnize marriage
outside of his court’s jurisdiction,
it is a case of ignorance of law, and
still renders the marriage void ab
initio because ignorance of the
law excuses no one.
o If the parties, in good faith,
believe that the solemnizer is a
judge of the locality where the
marriage is celebrated, but in
reality he is not, it is a case of
ignorance of fact and therefore
does not invalidate the marriage.
[Art. 35(2), FC]
B. Priest, Rabbi, Imam, or Minister
1. Priest, rabbi, imam or minister of any
church or religious sect--
a. Duly authorized by his church or
religious sect;
b. Duly registered with the Civil
Registrar General;
c. Must act within the limits of his
written authority
d. At least one of the contracting
parties must belong to the S.O.’s
church or sect;
** If the absence of authority of the S.O. comes
from the first 3 requisites, good faith defense may
be invoked because it is a case of ignorance of fact.
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** If none of the parties belong to the S.O.’s
church or sect, it is a case of ignorance of law.
C. Ship Captain or Airplane Chief
1. Ship captain or airplane chief:
a. in cases of articulo mortis;
b. Marriage between passengers or
crew members; (may be done not
only while the ship is at sea or the
plane is in flight, but also during
stopovers at ports of call.)
D. Military Commanders
1. Military commanders:
a. in cases of articulo mortis;
b. marriage between persons within
the zone of military operation,
whether members of the armed
forces or civilians
c. must be a commissioned officer,
or an office in the armed forces
holding rank by virtue of a
commission from the President;
d. assigned chaplain to his unit must
be absent;
e. marriage must be solemnized
within the zone of military
operations;
E. Consul-General, Consul and Vice-Consul
(Art. 10, FC)
1. Consul-general, consul or vice-consul, in
limited cases;
a. extends only to marriages
between Filipino citizens abroad;
 If marriage is to be celebrated in the
Philippines, marriage license may be
obtained from the LCR if the city or
municipality where either of the
contracting parties habitually resides.
 If marriage is to be celebrated abroad,
marriage license may be obtained from
consul-general, consul, or vice-consul of
the Philippines of the place where the
marriage is to be celebrated.
Article. 8. The marriage shall be solemnized
publicly in the chambers of the judge or in open
court, in the church, chapel or temple, or in the
office the consul-general, consul or vice-consul,
as the case may be, and not elsewhere, except
in cases of marriages contracted on the point of
death or in remote places in accordance with
Article 29 of this Code, or where both of the
parties request the solemnizing officer in writing
in which case the marriage may be solemnized
at a house or place designated by them in a
sworn statement to that effect. (57a)
 If the S.O. is a member of the judiciary,
marriage must be held in the chamber of
the judge or in his sala in open court;
 If the S.O. is a religious solemnizer, the
marriage must be held in the church,
chapel, or temple of the religious
solemnizer concerned;
 If the S.O. is a consul-general, consul, or
vice-consul, the marriage must be held in
his office.
Exceptions:
1. In cases of articulo mortis;
2. In cases of remote places (no means of
transportation) in accordance with Art. 29,
FC;
a. The S.O. shall state in an affidavit
executed before the LCR, or any
other person authorized to
administer oath, that such is the
instance, and that the S.O. took
the necessary steps to ascertain
the legal capacities (age, sex,
absence of legal impediment) of
the parties. (Art. 29, FC)
3. In cases where both of the parties to the
marriage requested the S.O. in writing and
under oath to solemnize the marriage
elsewhere;
 Art. 8, FC is merely directory. Non-
compliance therewith is only a mere
irregularity and therefore, will not affect
the validity of marriage.
o Except if the judge solemnized a
marriage outside his jurisdiction.
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Article 9. A marriage license shall be issued by

the local civil registrar of the city or municipality
where either contracting party habitually resides,
except in marriages where no license is required
in accordance with Chapter 2 of this Title. (58a)
** See discussions of Valid Marriage License under Art. 3(B).

Article 10. Marriages between Filipino citizens

abroad may be solemnized by a consul-general,
consul or vice-consul of the Republic of the
Philippines. The issuance of the marriage
license and the duties of the local civil registrar
and of the solemnizing officer with regard to the
celebration of marriage shall be performed by
said consular official. (75a)
** See discussions of Consul-General, Consul and Vice-
Consul under Art. 7(E).