SC: Children with parents whose marriage was nullified are legitimate
The Supreme Court Building along Padre Faura Street in Manila (INQUIRER PHOTO / NIÑO JESUS ORBETA)
MANILA, Philippines — Children whose parents’ marriage was later declared null and void due to psychological incapacity—remain legitimate, according to the Supreme Court (SC).
This is the decision issued by the high tribunal through a resolution dated February 5 and released to the media on Wednesday.
The SC Second Division ruled that legitimate children retain their legitimacy status even after their parents’ marriage was nullified based on psychological incapacity, as stated in Article 36 of the Family Code.
“This Court resolves the Petition for Review on Certiorari filed by the petitioner Republic of the Philippines, through the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), seeking to partially reverse the Decision and Order of the Regional Trial Court (RTC), which declared the marriage between respondents […],” the decision reads.
Citing the case as an example, the SC explained that during the marriage, the wife was subjected to “physical, emotional and verbal abuse” by her husband.”
“At the same time, the latter struggled with ‘alcohol addiction, gambling and infidelity,’” it stated.
The high court revealed that the wife had lodged the petition seeking to nullify their marriage.
Included in the petition was evidence of abuse and a psychological report diagnosing her husband with narcissistic personality disorder.
The petition was granted.
However, this declared the respondent’s child “illegitimate” since she was born before their marriage.
But the OSG argued before the SC that the child “was legitimated by her parents’ marriage, even without a formal annotation on her birth certificate.”
In response, the high court “affirmed that the marriage was void but ruled that the child remains legitimate,” which was allowed by the Family Code since the marriage was nullified due to psychological incapacity.
“This applies whether the child was born before or during the marriage,” the SC said.
It added that “a missing annotation on the birth certificate does not affect the child’s legal status.”
SC explained that “the formal requirement of annotating the legitimation is a mere administrative procedure which cannot impair substantive rights.”/apl
