Land Titles Notes

CHAPTER 2
NATURE OF LAND REGISTRATION

PROCEEDINGS
HISTORY OF LAND DEALINGS
• Most early property recording systems based on deeds.
• However title registration in parts of German Europe from 7th century
• Title registration began in Australia (Torrens) and England in 1850’s
• Systems have gradually spread to other countries around the world.
INTRODUCTION OF TORRENS SYSTEM IN THE

PHILIPPINES
IN 1903- the torrens system was introduced in the Philippines by
Act 496, the Land registration Act.
What is a Torrens System
Torrens title is a system of land title in which a register of land holdings
maintained by the state guarantees and indefeasible title to those included
in the register.
Land ownership is transferred through registration of title instead of using

deeds. Its main purpose is to simplify land transactions and certify to the
ownership of an absolute title to realty.
Nature of Torrens System in the Philippines

The Torrens System in the Philippines is judicial in character and not
merely administrative in nature.
Legal Basis
Sec 2 P.D. 1529 ( Amending and Codifying the Laws relative to Registration of
Property and for other purposes)
“ Judicial proceedings for the registration of land throughout the Philippines
shall be in rem and shall be based on the generally accepted principles
underlying the Torrens system.
An action in rem is a proceeding that takes no notice of the power of the

property by determines rights in the property that are conclusive against all
the world.
What is land registration?
Land registration is a judicial or administrative
proceeding whereby a person’s claim of ownership
over a particular land is determined and confirmed
or recognized so that such land and the ownership
thereof may be recorded in a public registry.
Nature of Torrens System in the Philippines
1. It is judicial and in rem
2. It is voluntary in Character under Act 496 ( Land Registration Act) and
compulsory under Act 2259 (Cadastral Act) both amended by PD 1529
3. It is conclusive upon the whole world including the government.
4. Title issued is indefeasible and it cannot be lost by prescription.
National Government Authority vs AIC 157 SCRA 388, 1988
The real purpose of the Torrens System is to quiet title to land and to stop
forever any action as to its legality. Once a title is registered, the owner
may rest secure without the necessity of waiting in the portals of the court
or sitting on the “mirador su casa” (Mirror of his home)
Concept of Torrens System
1.The Torrens System does not create or vest title
2.It only confirms and records title already existing and
vested
3.It does not protect an usurper from the true owner
4.It cannot shield for the commission of fraud
5.It does not permit one to enrich himself at the
expense of another.
Principles of Torrens System
1. Curtain Principle- takes register at face value – no need to go
behind
2. Mirror Principle- register should reflect true state of title with

all facts.
3. Insurance Principle- compensation if loss suffered due to

system (not always adopted)
Original registration is the first registration
of the land whereby an Original Certificate
of Title is entered in the Registry of
Property and a duplicate owner’s copy is
issued to the owner by the Register of
Kinds of Registration
Deeds.
1. Original Registration
Subsequent Registration is a process where
2. Subsequent Registration
the Original Certificate of Title is cancelled
and subsequently registered under a
Transfer Certificate of Title in favor of the
new owner in the cases of land conveyance
such as sale, donation or assignment.
TITLE DEFINED
A comprehensive term referring to the legal basis of ownership of property
encompassing real and personal property and intangible and tangible
interests therein; also a documents serving as evidence of ownership of
property such as the certificate of title to a motor vehicle.
Use of Purpose of Titles

1. Ownership
2. Totality of Evidence
FEE SIMPLE TITLE
A fee simple represents absolute ownership of land, and therefore the
owner may do whatever he or she chooses with the land. If an owner of
a fee simple dies intestate, the land will descend to the heirs.
Kinds of Titles
1. Good Title
2. Doubtful Titles or Bad Titles
Sources and Effects of Good Titles
The purpose of adopting a Torrens System in our jurisdiction is to guarantee

the integrity of land titles and to protect their indefeasibility once the claim
of ownership is established and recognized.
This is to avoid any possible conflicts of title that may arise by giving the
public the right to rely upon the face of the Torrens Title and dispense with
the need of inquiring further as to the ownership of the property.
Hence, a Torrens certificate of title is indefeasible and binding upon the

while world unless it is nullified by a court of competent jurisdiction in a
direct proceeding for cancellation of title (Cagatao vs. Fernandez G.R. No. 174004,
October 9, 2013)
Sources and Effects of Bad Titles
Where issuance of the title was attended by fraud, the same cannot vest in
the titled owner any valid legal title to the land covered by it; and the
person in whose name the title was issued cannot transmit the same, for
he has no true title thereto.
The ruling is a mere affirmation of the recognized principle that a certificate

is not conclusive evidence of title if it is shown that the same land had
already been registered and an earlier certificate for the same and is in
existence ( Register of Deeds vs PNB G.R. No. L-17641, January 30. 1965, Ortigas &
Company Limited Partnership vs Molina, G.R. No. 109645 July 25, 1994)
CLASSIFICATION OF LANDS
Classification is an executive function
PERSONS
PRIVATE LANDS CHURCH
PUBLIC By Grant
(Patrimonial)
LANDS
ALIENABLE By Purchase
AGRICULTURAL
INALIENABLE By Prescription
PUBLIC LANDS FOREST and
other
classification
Other mode
CLASSIFICATION OF PROPERTIES ACCORDING TO WHOM IT
BELONGS
The new civil code expressly classifies property according to

ownership by this article;
Article 419. Property is either of public dominion or of private

ownership.
Kinds of property of public dominion
1. Property intended for public use or which can be used by everybody

and others of similar characters
2. Property which is not for public use but intended for public service
or those which can be used only by duly authorized persons, such as
government buildings and vehicles.
3. Property intended for the development of national wealth such as
minerals, coal, oil, forest and other natural resources.
Public Dominion or property owned by the State (or its political subdivisions)
in its public or sovereign capacity and intended for public use and not for the
use of the State as a juridical person (Article 420)
Article 425 Property of private ownership, besides the patrimonial property of

the State provinces, cities, and municipalities, consists of all property
belonging to private persons, either individually or collectively.
Art. 423. The property of provinces, cities, and municipalities is divided into
property for public use and patrimonial property.
Art. 422. Property of public dominion, when no longer intended for public use
or for public service, shall form part of the patrimonial property of the State.
1987 Constitution (Section 3 Article XII) Lands of Public Domain are Classified
into:
Section 3: Lands of the Public domain are classified into:

(a) Agricultural
(b) Forest or timber
(c) Mineral lands and
(d) National parks
Agricultural lands of he public domain may further classified by law according to

the uses to which they may be devoted. Alienable lands of the public domain
shall be limited to agricultural lands x x x x
1987 Constitution (Section 3 Article XIII) Lands of the public domain are
classified into:
Alienable Lands of the public domain shall be limited to agricultural lands
Private corporation or associations may not hold such alienable lands of the
public domain except by lease, for a period not exceeding twenty-five years,
renewable for not more than twenty-five years, and not to exceed one
thousand hectares in area.
Citizens of the Philippines may lease not more than five hundred hectares, or
acquire not more than twelve hectares thereof by purchase, homestead or
grant.
Characteristics of properties of public domain?

1. It is beyond the commerce of man
2. It cannot be acquired by prescription
3. It cannot be registered under the Land Registration Law and be the
subject of a Torrens Title
4. It cannot be levied upon by execution nor can be attached

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CHAPTER 2

NATURE OF LAND REGISTRATION

INTRODUCTION OF TORRENS SYSTEM IN THE

Land ownership is transferred through registration of title instead of using

Nature of Torrens System in the Philippines

An action in rem is a proceeding that takes no notice of the power of the

National Government Authority vs AIC 157 SCRA 388, 1988

2. Mirror Principle- register should reflect true state of title with

3. Insurance Principle- compensation if loss suffered due to

Use of Purpose of Titles

The purpose of adopting a Torrens System in our jurisdiction is to guarantee

Hence, a Torrens certificate of title is indefeasible and binding upon the

The ruling is a mere affirmation of the recognized principle that a certificate

PRIVATE LANDS CHURCH

The new civil code expressly classifies property according to

Article 419. Property is either of public dominion or of private

1. Property intended for public use or which can be used by everybody

Article 425 Property of private ownership, besides the patrimonial property of

Section 3: Lands of the Public domain are classified into:

Agricultural lands of he public domain may further classified by law according to

Alienable Lands of the public domain shall be limited to agricultural lands

Characteristics of properties of public domain?

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