I.

Preliminary Provision
A. Human Relations

Art. 19. Every person must, in the exercise of his rights and in the performance of his duties, act with
justice, give everyone his due, and observe honesty and good faith.

Art. 20. Every person who, contrary to law, willfully or negligently causes damage to another, shall
indemnify the latter for the same.

Art. 21. Any person who willfully causes loss or injury to another in a manner that is contrary to morals,
good customs or public policy shall compensate the latter for the damage.

Art. 22. Every person who through an act of performance by another, or any other means, acquires or
comes into possession of something at the expense of the latter without just or legal ground, shall
return the same to him.

Art. 23. Even when an act or event causing damage to another's property was not due to the fault or
negligence of the defendant, the latter shall be liable for indemnity if through the act or event he was
benefited.

Art. 24. In all contractual, property or other relations, when one of the parties is at a disadvantage on
account of his moral dependence, ignorance, indigence, mental weakness, tender age or other
handicap, the courts must be vigilant for his protection.

Art. 25. Thoughtless extravagance in expenses for pleasure or display during a period of acute public
want or emergency may be stopped by order of the courts at the instance of any government or private
charitable institution.

Art. 26. Every person shall respect the dignity, personality, privacy and peace of mind of his neighbors
and other persons. The following and similar acts, though they may not constitute a criminal offense,
shall produce a cause of action for damages, prevention and other relief:

(1) Prying into the privacy of another's residence:

(2) Meddling with or disturbing the private life or family relations of another;

(3) Intriguing to cause another to be alienated from his friends;

(4) Vexing or humiliating another on account of his religious beliefs, lowly station in life, place of birth,
physical defect, or other personal condition.

Art. 27. Any person suffering material or moral loss because a public servant or employee refuses or
neglects, without just cause, to perform his official duty may file an action for damages and other relief
against he latter, without prejudice to any disciplinary administrative action that may be taken.

Art. 28. Unfair competition in agricultural, commercial or industrial enterprises or in labor through the
use of force, intimidation, deceit, machination or any other unjust, oppressive or highhanded method
shall give rise to a right of action by the person who thereby suffers damage.

Article 32. Any public officer or employee, or any private individual, who directly or indirectly obstructs,
defeats, violates or in any manner impedes or impairs any of the following rights and liberties of another
person shall be liable to the latter for damages:
(1) Freedom of religion;

(2) Freedom of speech;

(3) Freedom to write for the press or to maintain a periodical publication;

(4) Freedom from arbitrary or illegal detention;

(5) Freedom of suffrage;

(6) The right against deprivation of property without due process of law;

(7) The right to a just compensation when private property is taken for public use;

(8) The right to the equal protection of the laws;

(9) The right to be secure in one's person, house, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and
seizures;

(10) The liberty of abode and of changing the same;

(11) The privacy of communication and correspondence;

(12) The right to become a member of associations or societies for purposes not contrary to law;

(13) The right to take part in a peaceable assembly to petition the Government for redress of grievances;

(14) The right to be a free from involuntary servitude in any form;

(15) The right of the accused against excessive bail;

(16) The right of the accused to be heard by himself and counsel, to be informed of the nature and cause
of the accusation against him, to have a speedy and public trial, to meet the witnesses face to face, and
to have compulsory process to secure the attendance of witness in his behalf;

(17) Freedom from being compelled to be a witness against one's self, or from being forced to confess
guilt, or from being induced by a promise of immunity or reward to make such confession, except when
the person confessing becomes a State witness;

(18) Freedom from excessive fines, or cruel and unusual punishment, unless the same is imposed or
inflicted in accordance with a statute which has not been judicially declared unconstitutional; and

(19) Freedom of access to the courts.

In any of the cases referred to in this article, whether or not the defendant's act or omission constitutes
a criminal offense, the aggrieved party has a right to commence an entirely separate and distinct civil
action for damages, and for other relief. Such civil action shall proceed independently of any criminal
prosecution (if the latter be instituted), and may be proved by a preponderance of evidence.

The indemnity shall include moral damages. Exemplary damages may also be adjudicated.

The responsibility herein set forth is not demandable from a judge unless his act or omission constitutes
a violation of the Penal Code or other penal statute.
 B. Independent Civil Action

Article 30. When a separate civil action is brought to demand civil liability arising from a criminal
offense, and no criminal proceedings are instituted during the pendency of the civil case, a
preponderance of evidence shall likewise be sufficient to prove the act complained of.

Article 31. When the civil action is based on an obligation not arising from the act or omission
complained of as a felony, such civil action may proceed independently of the criminal proceedings and
regardless of the result of the latter.

Art. 32

Article 33. In cases of defamation, fraud, and physical injuries a civil action for damages, entirely
separate and distinct from the criminal action, may be brought by the injured party. Such civil action
shall proceed independently of the criminal prosecution, and shall require only a preponderance of
evidence.

Article 34. When a member of a city or municipal police force refuses or fails to render aid or protection
to any person in case of danger to life or property, such peace officer shall be primarily liable for
damages, and the city or municipality shall be subsidiarily responsible therefor. The civil action herein
recognized shall be independent of any criminal proceedings, and a preponderance of evidence shall
suffice to support such action.

Article 2177. Responsibility for fault or negligence under the preceding article is entirely separate and
distinct from the civil liability arising from negligence under the Penal Code. But the plaintiff cannot
recover damages twice for the same act or omission of the defendant.(n)

II. Persons
A. Kinds of persons; personality

Art. II 1987 Consti

Section 12. The State recognizes the sanctity of family life and shall protect and strengthen the family as
a basic autonomous social institution. It shall equally protect the life of the mother and the life of the
unborn from conception. The natural and primary right and duty of parents in the rearing of the youth
for civic efficiency and the development of moral character shall receive the support of the Government

Article 40. Birth determines personality; but the conceived child shall be considered born for all
purposes that are favorable to it, provided it be born later with the conditions specified in the following
article. (29a)

Article 41. For civil purposes, the fetus is considered born if it is alive at the time it is completely
delivered from the mother's womb. However, if the fetus had an intra-uterine life of less than seven
months, it is not deemed born if it dies within twenty-four hours after its complete delivery from the
maternal womb. (30a)

Article 42. Civil personality is extinguished by death.

The effect of death upon the rights and obligations of the deceased is determined by law, by contract
and by will. (32a)

Article 43. If there is a doubt, as between two or more persons who are called to succeed each other, as
to which of them died first, whoever alleges the death of one prior to the other, shall prove the same; in
 the absence of proof, it is presumed that they died at the same time and there shall be no transmission
of rights from one to the other. (33)

Article 44. The following are juridical persons:

(1) The State and its political subdivisions;

(2) Other corporations, institutions and entities for public interest or purpose, created by law; their
personality begins as soon as they have been constituted according to law;

(3) Corporations, partnerships and associations for private interest or purpose to which the law grants a
juridical personality, separate and distinct from that of each shareholder, partner or member. (35a)

Article 45. Juridical persons mentioned in Nos. 1 and 2 of the preceding article are governed by the laws
creating or recognizing them.

Private corporations are regulated by laws of general application on the subject.

Partnerships and associations for private interest or purpose are governed by the provisions of this Code
concerning partnerships. (36 and 37a)

Article 46. Juridical persons may acquire and possess property of all kinds, as well as incur obligations
and bring civil or criminal actions, in conformity with the laws and regulations of their organization.
(38a)

Article 47. Upon the dissolution of corporations, institutions and other entities for public interest or
purpose mentioned in No. 2 of article 44, their property and other assets shall be disposed of in
pursuance of law or the charter creating them. If nothing has been specified on this point, the property
and other assets shall be applied to similar purposes for the benefit of the region, province, city or
municipality which during the existence of the institution derived the principal benefits from the same.
(39a)

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE 1083

Article 10. Personality, how acquired. Birth determines personality; but the conceived child shall be
considered born for all purposes that are favorable to it, provided it be born alive, however, briefly, at
the time it is completely delivered from the mother's womb.

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE 603

Art. 5. Commencement of Civil Personality. - The civil personality of the child shall commence from the
time of his conception, for all purposes favorable to him, subject to the requirements of Article 41 of the
Civil Code.

B. Juridical Capacity

Article 37. Juridical capacity, which is the fitness to be the subject of legal relations, is inherent in every
natural person and is lost only through death. Capacity to act, which is the power to do acts with legal
effect, is acquired and may be lost. (n)

C. Capacity to Act

Article 15. Laws relating to family rights and duties, or to the status, condition and legal capacity of
persons are binding upon citizens of the Philippines, even though living abroad. (9a)
Article 38. Minority, insanity or imbecility, the state of being a deaf-mute, prodigality and civil
interdiction are mere restrictions on capacity to act, and do not exempt the incapacitated person from
certain obligations, as when the latter arise from his acts or from property relations, such as easements.
(32a)

Article 39. The following circumstances, among others, modify or limit capacity to act: age, insanity,
imbecility, the state of being a deaf-mute, penalty, prodigality, family relations, alienage, absence,
insolvency and trusteeship. The consequences of these circumstances are governed in this Code, other
codes, the Rules of Court, and in special laws. Capacity to act is not limited on account of religious belief
or political opinion.

A married woman, twenty-one years of age or over, is qualified for all acts of civil life, except in cases
specified by law. (n)

Article 613. An easement or servitude is an encumbrance imposed upon an immovable for the benefit of
another immovable belonging to a different owner.

The immovable in favor of which the easement is established is called the dominant estate; that which is
subject thereto, the servient estate. (530)

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.

Republic Act No. 6809

AN ACT LOWERING THE AGE OF MAJORITY FROM TWENTY-ONE TO EIGHTEEN YEARS, AMENDING FOR
THE PURPOSE EXECUTIVE ORDER NUMBERED TWO HUNDRED NINE, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

Section 1. Article 234 of Executive Order No. 209, the Family Code of the Philippines, is hereby
amended to read as follows:

"Art. 234. Emancipation takes place by the attainment of majority. Unless otherwise provided,
majority commences at the age of eighteen years."
Section 2. Articles 235 and 237 of the same Code are hereby repealed.

Section 3. Article 236 of the same Code is also hereby amended to read as follows:

"Art. 236. Emancipation shall terminate parental authority over the person and property of the
child who shall then be qualified and responsible for all acts of civil life, save the exceptions established
by existing laws in special cases.

"Contracting marriage shall require parental consent until the age of twenty-one.

"Nothing in this Code shall be construed to derogate from the duty or responsibility of parents and
guardians for children and wards below twenty-one years of age mentioned in the second and third
paragraphs of Article 2180 of the Civil Code."

Section 4. Upon the effectivity of this Act, existing wills, bequests, donations, grants, insurance
policies and similar instruments containing references and provisions favorable to minors will not
retroact to their prejudice.

Section 5. This Act shall take effect upon completion of its publication in at least two (2)
newspapers of general circulation.

R.A 7192
Sec. 5. Equality in Capacity to Act. — Women of legal age, regardless of civil status, shall have the
capacity to act and enter into contracts which shall in every respect be equal to that of men under
similar circumstances.
In all contractual situations where married men have the capacity to act, married women shall have
equal rights.

To this end:

(1) Women shall have the capacity to borrow and obtain loans and execute security and credit
arrangement under the same conditions as men;
.
(2) Women shall have equal access to all government and private sector programs granting
agricultural credit, loans and non-material resources and shall enjoy equal treatment in agrarian reform
and land resettlement programs;

(3) Women shall have equal rights to act as incorporators and enter into insurance contracts; and

(4) Married women shall have rights equal to those of married men in applying for passport, secure
visas and other travel documents, without need to secure the consent of their spouses.

In all other similar contractual relations, women shall enjoy equal rights and shall have the capacity to
act which shall in every respect be equal to those of men under similar circumstances.

Art. II 1897 Constitution

Section 14. The State recognizes the role of women in nation-building, and shall ensure the fundamental
equality before the law of women and men.
1. Age
R.A 6809

Family Code
Art. 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;

Art. 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)

Art. 14. In case either or both of the contracting parties, not having been emancipated by a previous marriage,
are between the ages of eighteen and twenty-one, they shall, in addition to the requirements of the preceding
articles, exhibit to the local civil registrar, the consent to their marriage of their father, mother, surviving parent
or guardian, or persons having legal charge of them, in the order mentioned. Such consent shall be manifested
in writing by the interested party, who personally appears before the proper local civil registrar, or in the form of
an affidavit made in the presence of two witnesses and attested before any official authorized by law to
administer oaths. The personal manifestation shall be recorded in both applications for marriage license, and
the affidavit, if one is executed instead, shall be attached to said applications. (61a)

Art. 45. A marriage may be annulled for any of the following causes, existing at the time of the marriage:
(1) That the party in whose behalf it is sought to have the marriage annulled was eighteen years of age or over
but below twenty-one, and the marriage was solemnized without the consent of the parents, guardian or
person having substitute parental authority over the party, in that order, unless after attaining the age of
twenty-one, such party freely cohabited with the other and both lived together as husband and wife;

R.A 9344
SEC. 6. Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility. - A child fifteen (15) years of age or under at the time of the
commission of the offense shall be exempt from criminal liability. However, the child shall be subjected to an
intervention program pursuant to Section 20 of this Act.

A child above fifteen (15) years but below eighteen (18) years of age shall likewise be exempt from criminal
liability and be subjected to an intervention program, unless he/she has acted with discernment, in which case,
such child shall be subjected to the appropriate proceedings in accordance with this Act.

The exemption from criminal liability herein established does not include exemption from civil liability, which
shall be enforced in accordance with existing laws.

Article 38. Minority, insanity or imbecility, the state of being a deaf-mute, prodigality and civil interdiction are
mere restrictions on capacity to act, and do not exempt the incapacitated person from certain obligations, as
when the latter arise from his acts or from property relations, such as easements. (32a

Article 1327. The following cannot give consent to a contract:

(1) Unemancipated minors;

(2) Insane or demented persons, and deaf-mutes who do not know how to write. (1263a)

Article 1390. The following contracts are voidable or annullable, even though there may have been no damage
to the contracting parties:

(1) Those where one of the parties is incapable of giving consent to a contract;

(2) Those where the consent is vitiated by mistake, violence, intimidation, undue influence or fraud.
 These contracts are binding, unless they are annulled by a proper action in court. They are susceptible of
ratification. (n)
Article 1489. All persons who are authorized in this Code to obligate themselves, may enter into a contract of
sale, saving the modifications contained in the following articles.

Where necessaries are those sold and delivered to a minor or other person without capacity to act, he must pay
a reasonable price therefor. Necessaries are those referred to in article 290. (1457a)

Article 797. Persons of either sex under eighteen years of age cannot make a will. (n)

2. Insanity or Imbecility

Art 45 (2) FAMILY CODE

(3) That either party was of unsound mind, unless such party after coming to reason, freely cohabited with the
other as husband and wife;

Article 1327. The following cannot give consent to a contract:

(1) Unemancipated minors;

(2) Insane or demented persons, and deaf-mutes who do not know how to write. (1263a)

Article 798. In order to make a will it is essential that the testator be of sound mind at the time of its execution.
(n)

Art. 12. Circumstances which exempt from criminal liability. — the following are exempt from criminal liability:
1. An imbecile or an insane person, unless the latter has acted during a lucid interval.
When the imbecile or an insane person has committed an act which the law defines as a felony (delito), the
court shall order his confinement in one of the hospitals or asylums established for persons thus afflicted, which
he shall not be permitted to leave without first obtaining the permission of the same court

3. Deaf-Mute

Article 1327. The following cannot give consent to a contract:

(1) Unemancipated minors;

(3) Insane or demented persons, and deaf-mutes who do not know how to write. (1263a)

Article 807. If the testator be deaf, or a deaf-mute, he must personally read the will, if able to do so; otherwise,
he shall designate two persons to read it and communicate to him, in some practicable manner, the contents
thereof. (n)

4. Prodigality

5. Family Relations

Art. 35. The following marriages shall be void from the beginning:

(1) Those contracted by any party below eighteen years of age even with the consent of parents or guardians;
 (2) Those solemnized by any person not legally authorized to perform marriages unless such marriages were
contracted with either or both parties believing in good faith that the solemnizing officer had the legal authority
to do so;
(3) Those solemnized without license, except those covered the preceding Chapter;
(4) Those bigamous or polygamous marriages not failing under Article 41;
(5) Those contracted through mistake of one contracting party as to the identity of the other; and
(6) Those subsequent marriages that are void under Article 53.

Art. 38. The following marriages shall be void from the beginning 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 adopted child and the adopter;
(7) Between an adopted child and a legitimate child of the adopter;
(8) Between adopted children of the same adopter; and
(9) Between parties where one, with the intention to marry the other, killed that other person's spouse, or his or
her own spouse. (82)

6. Alienage

Art V 1897 Constitution

Section 1. Suffrage may be exercised by all citizens of the Philippines not otherwise disqualified by law, who are
at least eighteen years of age, and who shall have resided in the Philippines for at least one year, and in the
place wherein they propose to vote, for at least six months immediately preceding the election. No literacy,
property, or other substantive requirement shall be imposed on the exercise of suffrage.
Section 2. The Congress shall provide a system for securing the secrecy and sanctity of the ballot as well as a
system for absentee voting by qualified Filipinos abroad.
The Congress shall also design a procedure for the disabled and the illiterates to vote without the assistance of
other persons. Until then, they shall be allowed to vote under existing laws and such rules as the Commission on
Elections may promulgate to protect the secrecy of the ballot.

Article XII

Section 2. All lands of the public domain, waters, minerals, coal, petroleum, and other mineral oils, all forces of
potential energy, fisheries, forests or timber, wildlife, flora and fauna, and other natural resources are owned by
the State. With the exception of agricultural lands, all other natural resources shall not be alienated. The
exploration, development, and utilization of natural resources shall be under the full control and supervision of
the State. The State may directly undertake such activities, or it may enter into co-production, joint venture, or
production-sharing agreements with Filipino citizens, or corporations or associations at least sixty per centum of
whose capital is owned by such citizens. Such agreements may be for a period not exceeding twenty-five years,
renewable for not more than twenty-five years, and under such terms and conditions as may be provided by
law. In cases of water rights for irrigation, water supply fisheries, or industrial uses other than the development
of water power, beneficial use may be the measure and limit of the grant.
The State shall protect the nation's marine wealth in its archipelagic waters, territorial sea, and exclusive
economic zone, and reserve its use and enjoyment exclusively to Filipino citizens.
The Congress may, by law, allow small-scale utilization of natural resources by Filipino citizens, as well as
cooperative fish farming, with priority to subsistence fishermen and fish- workers in rivers, lakes, bays, and
lagoons.
The President may enter into agreements with foreign-owned corporations involving either technical or financial
assistance for large-scale exploration, development, and utilization of minerals, petroleum, and other mineral
 oils according to the general terms and conditions provided by law, based on real contributions to the economic
growth and general welfare of the country. In such agreements, the State shall promote the development and
use of local scientific and technical resources.
The President shall notify the Congress of every contract entered into in accordance with this provision, within
thirty days from its execution.

Section 7. Save in cases of hereditary succession, no private lands shall be transferred or conveyed except to
individuals, corporations, or associations qualified to acquire or hold lands of the public domain.

Section 11. No franchise, certificate, or any other form of authorization for the operation of a public utility shall
be granted except to citizens of the Philippines or to corporations or associations organized under the laws of
the Philippines, at least sixty per centum of whose capital is owned by such citizens; nor shall such franchise,
certificate, or authorization be exclusive in character or for a longer period than fifty years. Neither shall any
such franchise or right be granted except under the condition that it shall be subject to amendment, alteration,
or repeal by the Congress when the common good so requires. The State shall encourage equity participation in
public utilities by the general public. The participation of foreign investors in the governing body of any public
utility enterprise shall be limited to their proportionate share in its capital, and all the executive and managing
officers of such corporation or association must be citizens of the Philippines.

Section 14. The sustained development of a reservoir of national talents consisting of Filipino scientists,
entrepreneurs, professionals, managers, high-level technical manpower and skilled workers and craftsmen in all
fields shall be promoted by the State. The State shall encourage appropriate technology and regulate its transfer
for the national benefit.
The practice of all professions in the Philippines shall be limited to Filipino citizens, save in cases prescribed by
law.

7. Absence

Art. 381. When a person disappears from his domicile, his whereabouts being unknown, and without leaving an
agent to administer his property, the judge, at the instance of an interested party, a relative, or a friend, may
appoint a person to represent him in all that may be necessary.
This same rule shall be observed when under similar circumstances the power conferred by the absentee has
expired. (181a)

8. Insolvency

Art. 1323. An offer becomes ineffective upon the death, civil interdiction, insanity, or insolvency of either party
before acceptance is conveyed. (n)

RA 10142
Sec. 4
(p) Insolvent shall refer to the financial condition of a debtor that is generally unable to pay its or his liabilities as
they fall due in the ordinary course of business or has liabilities that are greater than its or his assets.

Sec. 16
(q) include s Stay or Suspension Order which shall:
(3) prohibit the debtor from selling, encumbering, transferring or disposing in any manner any of its properties
except in the ordinary course of business; and
9. Trusteeship

Art. 1440. A person who establishes a trust is called the trustor; one in whom confidence is reposed as regards
property for the benefit of another person is known as the trustee; and the person for whose benefit the trust
has been created is referred to as the beneficiary.

10. Others

Art. 36. Pre-judicial questions which must be decided before any criminal prosecution may be instituted or may
proceed, shall be governed by rules of court which the Supreme Court shall promulgate and which shall not be
in conflict with the provisions of this Code.

Art. 1328. Contracts entered into during a lucid interval are valid. Contracts agreed to in a state of drunkenness
or during a hypnotic spell are voidable. (n)

Art. 1390. The following contracts are voidable or annullable, even though there may have been no damage to
the contracting parties:
(1) Those where one of the parties is incapable of giving consent to a contract;

(2) Those where the consent is vitiated by mistake, violence, intimidation, undue influence or fraud.

These contracts are binding, unless they are annulled by a proper action in court. They are susceptible of
ratification. (n)

RA 9262

SECTION 3. Definition of Terms.- As used in this Act,

(a) "Violence against women and their children" refers to any act or a series of acts committed by any person
against a woman who is his wife, former wife, or against a woman with whom the person has or had a sexual or
dating relationship, or with whom he has a common child, or against her child whether legitimate or illegitimate,
within or without the family abode, which result in or is likely to result in physical, sexual, psychological harm or
suffering, or economic abuse including threats of such acts, battery, assault, coercion, harassment or arbitrary
deprivation of liberty. It includes, but is not limited to, the following acts:

A. "Physical Violence" refers to acts that include bodily or physical harm;

B. "Sexual violence" refers to an act which is sexual in nature, committed against a woman or her child. It
includes, but is not limited to:

a) rape, sexual harassment, acts of lasciviousness, treating a woman or her child as a sex object, making
demeaning and sexually suggestive remarks, physically attacking the sexual parts of the victim's body, forcing
her/him to watch obscene publications and indecent shows or forcing the woman or her child to do indecent
acts and/or make films thereof, forcing the wife and mistress/lover to live in the conjugal home or sleep
together in the same room with the abuser;

b) acts causing or attempting to cause the victim to engage in any sexual activity by force, threat of force,
physical or other harm or threat of physical or other harm or coercion;

c) Prostituting the woman or child.

C. "Psychological violence" refers to acts or omissions causing or likely to cause mental or emotional suffering of
the victim such as but not limited to intimidation, harassment, stalking, damage to property, public ridicule or
humiliation, repeated verbal abuse and mental infidelity. It includes causing or allowing the victim to witness the
physical, sexual or psychological abuse of a member of the family to which the victim belongs, or to witness
pornography in any form or to witness abusive injury to pets or to unlawful or unwanted deprivation of the right
to custody and/or visitation of common children.

D. "Economic abuse" refers to acts that make or attempt to make a woman financially dependent which
includes, but is not limited to the following:

1. withdrawal of financial support or preventing the victim from engaging in any legitimate profession,
occupation, business or activity, except in cases wherein the other spouse/partner objects on valid, serious and
moral grounds as defined in Article 73 of the Family Code;

2. deprivation or threat of deprivation of financial resources and the right to the use and enjoyment of the
conjugal, community or property owned in common;

3. destroying household property;

4. controlling the victims' own money or properties or solely controlling the conjugal money or properties.

(b) "Battery" refers to an act of inflicting physical harm upon the woman or her child resulting to the physical
and psychological or emotional distress.

(c) "Battered Woman Syndrome" refers to a scientifically defined pattern of psychological and behavioral
symptoms found in women living in battering relationships as a result of cumulative abuse.

(d) "Stalking" refers to an intentional act committed by a person who, knowingly and without lawful justification
follows the woman or her child or places the woman or her child under surveillance directly or indirectly or a
combination thereof.

(e) "Dating relationship" refers to a situation wherein the parties live as husband and wife without the benefit of
marriage or are romantically involved over time and on a continuing basis during the course of the relationship.
A casual acquaintance or ordinary socialization between two individuals in a business or social context is not a
dating relationship.

(f) "Sexual relations" refers to a single sexual act which may or may not result in the bearing of a common child.

(g) "Safe place or shelter" refers to any home or institution maintained or managed by the Department of Social
Welfare and Development (DSWD) or by any other agency or voluntary organization accredited by the DSWD for
the purposes of this Act or any other suitable place the resident of which is willing temporarily to receive the
victim.

(h) "Children" refers to those below eighteen (18) years of age or older but are incapable of taking care of
themselves as defined under Republic Act No. 7610. As used in this Act, it includes the biological children of the
victim and other children under her care.

SECTION 26. Battered Woman Syndrome as a Defense. – Victim-survivors who are found by the courts to be
suffering from battered woman syndrome do not incur any criminal and civil liability notwithstanding the
absence of any of the elements for justifying circumstances of self-defense under the Revised Penal Code.

In the determination of the state of mind of the woman who was suffering from battered woman syndrome at
the time of the commission of the crime, the courts shall be assisted by expert psychiatrists/ psychologists.
III. Pre-marital Controversy

Art. 1156. An obligation is a juridical necessity to give, to do or not to do. (n)

Art. 1157. Obligations arise from:

(1) Law;

(2) Contracts;

(3) Quasi-contracts;

(4) Acts or omissions punished by law; and

(5) Quasi-delicts. (1089a)

Art. 1409. The following contracts are inexistent and void from the beginning:
(1) Those whose cause, object or purpose is contrary to law, morals, good customs, public order or public
policy;

Art. 2176. Whoever by act or omission causes damage to another, there being fault or negligence, is obliged
to pay for the damage done. Such fault or negligence, if there is no pre-existing contractual relation between
the parties, is called a quasi-delict and is governed by the provisions of this Chapter. (1902a)

Art. 19. Every person must, in the exercise of his rights and in the performance of his duties, act with justice,
give everyone his due, and observe honesty and good faith.
Art. 20. Every person who, contrary to law, willfully or negligently causes damage to another, shall indemnify
the latter for the same.

Art. 21. Any person who willfully causes loss or injury to another in a manner that is contrary to morals,
good customs or public policy shall compensate the latter for the damage.

Art. 26. Every person shall respect the dignity, personality, privacy and peace of mind of his neighbors and
other persons. The following and similar acts, though they may not constitute a criminal offense, shall
produce a cause of action for damages, prevention and other relief:

(1) Prying into the privacy of another's residence:

(2) Meddling with or disturbing the private life or family relations of another;

(3) Intriguing to cause another to be alienated from his friends;

(4) Vexing or humiliating another on account of his religious beliefs, lowly station in life, place of birth,
physical defect, or other personal condition.

Art. 27. Any person suffering material or moral loss because a public servant or employee refuses or
neglects, without just cause, to perform his official duty may file an action for damages and other relief
against he latter, without prejudice to any disciplinary administrative action that may be taken.
Art. 28. Unfair competition in agricultural, commercial or industrial enterprises or in labor through the use of
force, intimidation, deceit, machination or any other unjust, oppressive or highhanded method shall give
rise to a right of action by the person who thereby suffers damage.
Art. 29. When the accused in a criminal prosecution is acquitted on the ground that his guilt has not been
proved beyond reasonable doubt, a civil action for damages for the same act or omission may be instituted.
Such action requires only a preponderance of evidence. Upon motion of the defendant, the court may
require the plaintiff to file a bond to answer for damages in case the complaint should be found to be
malicious.

If in a criminal case the judgment of acquittal is based upon reasonable doubt, the court shall so declare. In
the absence of any declaration to that effect, it may be inferred from the text of the decision whether or not
the acquittal is due to that ground.

Art. 30. When a separate civil action is brought to demand civil liability arising from a criminal offense, and
no criminal proceedings are instituted during the pendency of the civil case, a preponderance of evidence
shall likewise be sufficient to prove the act complained of.

Art. 31. When the civil action is based on an obligation not arising from the act or omission complained of as
a felony, such civil action may proceed independently of the criminal proceedings and regardless of the
result of the latter.

Art. 32. Any public officer or employee, or any private individual, who directly or indirectly obstructs,
defeats, violates or in any manner impedes or impairs any of the following rights and liberties of another
person shall be liable to the latter for damages:

(1) Freedom of religion;

(2) Freedom of speech;

(3) Freedom to write for the press or to maintain a periodical publication;

(4) Freedom from arbitrary or illegal detention;

(5) Freedom of suffrage;

(6) The right against deprivation of property without due process of law;

(7) The right to a just compensation when private property is taken for public use;

(8) The right to the equal protection of the laws;

(9) The right to be secure in one's person, house, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and
seizures;

(10) The liberty of abode and of changing the same;

(11) The privacy of communication and correspondence;

(12) The right to become a member of associations or societies for purposes not contrary to law;

(13) The right to take part in a peaceable assembly to petition the government for redress of grievances;

(14) The right to be free from involuntary servitude in any form;

(15) The right of the accused against excessive bail;

(16) The right of the accused to be heard by himself and counsel, to be informed of the nature and cause of
the accusation against him, to have a speedy and public trial, to meet the witnesses face to face, and to have
compulsory process to secure the attendance of witness in his behalf;

(17) Freedom from being compelled to be a witness against one's self, or from being forced to confess guilt,
or from being induced by a promise of immunity or reward to make such confession, except when the
person confessing becomes a State witness;

(18) Freedom from excessive fines, or cruel and unusual punishment, unless the same is imposed or
inflicted in accordance with a statute which has not been judicially declared unconstitutional; and

(19) Freedom of access to the courts.

In any of the cases referred to in this article, whether or not the defendant's act or omission constitutes a
criminal offense, the aggrieved party has a right to commence an entirely separate and distinct civil action
for damages, and for other relief. Such civil action shall proceed independently of any criminal prosecution
(if the latter be instituted), and mat be proved by a preponderance of evidence.
The indemnity shall include moral damages. Exemplary damages may also be adjudicated.

The responsibility herein set forth is not demandable from a judge unless his act or omission constitutes a
violation of the Penal Code or other penal statute.

Art. 33. In cases of defamation, fraud, and physical injuries a civil action for damages, entirely separate and
distinct from the criminal action, may be brought by the injured party. Such civil action shall proceed
independently of the criminal prosecution, and shall require only a preponderance of evidence.

Art. 34. When a member of a city or municipal police force refuses or fails to render aid or protection to any
person in case of danger to life or property, such peace officer shall be primarily liable for damages, and the
city or municipality shall be subsidiarily responsible therefor. The civil action herein recognized shall be
independent of any criminal proceedings, and a preponderance of evidence shall suffice to support such
action.

Art. 35. When a person, claiming to be injured by a criminal offense, charges another with the same, for
which no independent civil action is granted in this Code or any special law, but the justice of the peace finds
no reasonable grounds to believe that a crime has been committed, or the prosecuting attorney refuses or
fails to institute criminal proceedings, the complaint may bring a civil action for damages against the alleged
offender. Such civil action may be supported by a preponderance of evidence. Upon the defendant's
motion, the court may require the plaintiff to file a bond to indemnify the defendant in case the complaint
should be found to be malicious.

If during the pendency of the civil action, an information should be presented by the prosecuting attorney,
the civil action shall be suspended until the termination of the criminal proceedings.
Nuisance

Art. 694. A nuisance is any act, omission, establishment, business, condition of property, or anything else
which:
(1) Injures or endangers the health or safety of others; or

(2) Annoys or offends the senses; or

(3) Shocks, defies or disregards decency or morality; or

(4) Obstructs or interferes with the free passage of any public highway or street, or any body of water; or

(5) Hinders or impairs the use of property.