Pastor JR VS Ca

PASTOR JR. V. CA declaration of ownership of specific properties.
On the
contrary, it is manifested therein that ownership was not
FACTS: resolved. For it confined itself to the question of extrinsic
validity of the will, and the need for and propriety of
Alvaro Pastor, Sr. died in Cebu City survived by his two appointing a special administrator. Thus it allowed and
legitimate children Alvaro Pastor, Jr. and Sofia Pastor de approved the holographic will “with respect to its extrinsic
Midgely and an illegitimate child, Lewellyn Barlito validity, the same having been duly authenticated
Quemada. pursuant to the requisites or solemnities prescribed by
law.” It declared that the intestate estate administration
QUEMADA filed a petition for the probate and allowance aspect must proceed subject to the outcome of the suit
of an alleged holographic will of PASTOR, SR. with the for reconveyance of ownership and possession of real
Court of First Instance of Cebu. The will contained only and personal properties.
one testamentary disposition: a legacy in favor of
QUEMADA consisting of 30% of PASTOR, SR.'s 42% In probate proceedings extrinsic validity only. As a
share in the operation by Atlas Consolidated Mining and general rule, no jurisdiction on the other matters beyond
Development Corporation (ATLAS) of some mining the due execution of the will and testamentary capacity
claims in Pina-Barot, Cebu. of the testator.
QUEMADA as special administrator, instituted against

When PASTOR, SR. died in 1966, he was survived by
PASTOR, JR. and his wife an action for reconveyance of
his wife, aside from his two legitimate children and one
alleged properties of the estate, which included the
illegitimate son. There is therefore a need to liquidate the
properties subject of the legacy and which were in the
conjugal partnership and set apart the share of
names of the spouses PASTOR, JR. and his wife, Maria
PASTOR, SR.'s wife in the conjugal partnership
Elena Achaval de Pastor, who claimed to be the owners
preparatory to the administration and liquidation of the
thereof in their own rights, and not by inheritance.
estate of PASTOR, SR. which will include, among
others, the determination of the extent of the statutory
PASTOR, JR. and his sister SOFIA filed their opposition usufructuary right of his wife until her death.
to the petition for probate and the order appointing
QUEMADA as special administrator.
So, also, as of the same date, there had been no prior
definitive determination of the assets of the estate of
the PROBATE COURT issued an order allowing the will PASTOR, SR. There was an inventory of his properties
to probate. CA affirmed the decision of the probate court presumably prepared by the special administrator, but it
and ruled that that the legacy to QUEMADA was not does not appear that it was ever the subject of a hearing
inofficious. or that it was judicially approved. The reconveyance or
recovery of properties allegedly owned but not in the
ISSUE: name of PASTOR, SR. was still being litigated in another
court.
Whether the probate order resolved the questions of
intrinsic validity and ownership There was no appropriate determination, much less
payment, of the debts of the decedent and his estate.
HELD: In a special proceeding for the probate of a will, Indeed, it was only in the Probate Order of December 5,
the issue by and large is restricted to the extrinsic validity 1972 where the Probate Court ordered that-
of the will, i.e., whether the testator, being of sound
mind, freely executed the will in accordance with the ... a notice be issued and published
formalities prescribed by law. (Rules of Court, Rule 75, pursuant to the provisions of Rule 86 of
Section 1; Rule 76, Section 9.) As a rule, the question of the Rules of Court, requiring all persons
ownership is an extraneous matter which the Probate having money claims against the
Court cannot resolve with finality. Thus, for the purpose decedent to file them in the office of the
of determining whether a certain property should or Branch Clerk of this Court."
should not be included in the inventory of estate
properties, the Probate Court may pass upon the title Nor had the estate tax been determined and paid, or at
thereto, but such determination is provisional, not least provided for, as of December 5, 1972.
conclusive, and is subject to the final decision in a
separate action to resolve title.
The net assets of the estate not having been
determined, the legitime of the forced heirs in concrete
The Order sought to be executed by the assailed Order figures could not be ascertained.
of execution is the Probate Order allegedly resolved the
question of ownership of the disputed mining properties. All the foregoing deficiencies considered; it was not
However, nowhere in the dispositive portion is there a possible to determine whether the legacy of QUEMADA -
a fixed share in a specific property rather than an aliquot enforced (PVTA vs. Honorable Gonzales, 92 SCRA
part of the entire net estate of the deceased - would 172), certiorari will lie to abate the order of
produce an impairment of the legitime of the compulsory execution.
heirs. e. Aside from the propriety of resorting to certiorari to
assail an order of execution which varies the terms
Finally, there actually was no determination of the of the judgment sought to be executed or does not
intrinsic validity of the will in other respects. It was find support in the dispositive part of the latter, there
obviously for this reason that as late as March 5, 1980 - are circumstances in the instant case which justify
more than 7 years after the Probate Order was issued the remedy applied for.
the Probate Court scheduled on March 25, 1980 a
hearing on the intrinsic validity of the will.
ISSUE:
Can probate courts issue writs of execution?
GENERAL RULE:
Probate court generally cannot issue a writ of
execution.
 It is not supposed to issue a writ of execution

because its orders usually refer to the
adjudication of claims against the estate which
the executor or administrator may satisfy
without the necessity of resorting to a writ of
execution.
 The probate court, as such, does not render any

judgment enforceable by execution.
EXCEPTIONS:
Probate court may issue execution
a. to satisfy (debts of the estate out of) the contributive

shares of devisees, legatees and heirs in possession
of the decedent's assets (Sec. 6. Rule 88),
b. to enforce payment of the expenses of partition
(Sec. 3, Rule 90), and
c. to satisfy the costs when a person is cited for
examination in probate proceedings (Sec. 13, Rule
142) may mean, under the rule of inclusion unius est
exclusion alterius, that those are the only instances
when it can issue a writ of execution. (Vda. de
Valera vs. Ofilada, 59 SCRA 96, 108.)
d. It is within a court's competence to order the
execution of a final judgment; but to order the
execution of a final order (which is not even meant to
be executed) by reading into it terms that are not
there and in utter disregard of existing rules and law,
is manifest grave abuse of discretion tantamount to
lack of jurisdiction. Consequently, the rule that
certiorari may not be invoked to defeat the right of a
prevailing party to the execution of a valid and final
judgment, is inapplicable. For when an order of
execution is issued with grave abuse of discretion or
is at variance with the judgment sought to be

Pastor JR VS Ca

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Pastor JR VS Ca

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Pastor JR VS Ca

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

PASTOR JR. V. CA declaration of ownership of specific properties.

QUEMADA as special administrator, instituted against

Can probate courts issue writs of execution?

 It is not supposed to issue a writ of execution

 The probate court, as such, does not render any

Probate court may issue execution

a. to satisfy (debts of the estate out of) the contributive

You might also like