When and how is the right to succeed a deceased person acquired?

ANS.: The right to the succession is transmitted from the moment of Essential Elements and Characteristics of a Will
the death of the decedent thru testamentary, intestate, or mixed 1. statutory right
succession. (Art. 777) 2. unilateral act.
3. solemn or formal act
4. animus testandi
TITLE IV SUCCESSION
5. testator must be capacitated to make a will
CHAPTER 1 General Provisions 6. strictly a personal act
Article 774. Succession is a mode of acquisition by virtue of which the
7. It is effective mortis causa
property, rights and obligations to the extent of the value of the 8. It is essentially revocable or ambulatory
inheritance, of a person are transmitted through his death to another 9. It is free from vitiated consent, - executed freely,
or others either by his will or by operation of law. (n) knowingly, and voluntarily
10. It is an individual act
Article 775. In this Title, "decedent" is the general term applied to the
person whose property is transmitted through succession, whether or
11. It disposes of the testator’s estate (whether totally or
not he left a will. If he left a will, he is also called the testator. (n) partially) in accordance with his wishes
- probate is needed only if property is to be
Article 776. The inheritance includes all the property, rights and conveyed by testamentary succession.
obligations of a person which are not extinguished by his death.
- it has been held that for the purpose of
Article 777. The rights to the succession are transmitted from the recognizing a natural child by virtue of a will, the
moment of the death of the decedent. will need not be probated though it must, of
Article 778. Succession may be: course, still be a valid will.

(1) Testamentary; a “testament” disposes of personal property;

(2) Legal or intestate; or while a “will” disposes of real property.
(3) Mixed. (n) Article 784. The making of a will is a strictly personal act; it cannot be
Article 779. Testamentary succession is that which results from the left in whole or in part to the discretion of a third person, or
designation of an heir, made in a will executed in the form prescribed accomplished through the instrumentality of an agent or attorney.
by law. (n)
- The mechanical act of drafting may be entrusted to
Article 780. Mixed succession is that effected partly by will and partly another, as long as the disposition itself expresses the
by operation of law. (n) testator’s desires, and all the formalities of the law are
Article 781. The inheritance of a person includes not only the complied with, such as the signing by the testator and
property and the transmissible rights and obligations existing at the the witnesses (in the case of a notarial will), or the
time of his death, but also those which have accrued thereto since copying by the testator in his own handwriting (in the
the opening of the succession. (n) case of the holographic will).
What Inheritance Includes
(a) the property, transmissible rights, and obligations (to the extent of Article 785. The duration or efficacy of the designation of heirs,
the value of the inheritance) devisees or legatees, or the determination of the portions which they
(b) as well as those which have accrued thereto since the are to take, when referred to by name, cannot be left to the
opening of the succession (such as alluvium) discretion of a third person. (670a)
Article 786. The testator may entrust to a third person the
Article 782. An heir is a person called to the succession either by the distribution of specific property or sums of money that he may leave
provision of a will or by operation of law. Devisees and legatees are in general to specified classes or causes, and also the designation of
persons to whom gifts of real and personal property are respectively the persons, institutions or establishments to which such property or
given by virtue of a will. (n) sums are to be given or applied. (671a)
Testamentary Succession Article 787. The testator may not make a testamentary disposition in
SECTION 1 Wills such manner that another person has to determine whether or not it
is to be operative. (n)
SUBSECTION 1. Wills in General
Article 788. If a testamentary disposition admits of different
Article 783. A will is an act whereby a person is permitted, with the interpretations, in case of doubt, that interpretation by which the
formalities prescribed by law, to control to a certain degree the disposition is to be operative shall be preferred. (n)
disposition of this estate, to take effect after his death. (667a)
Article 789. When there is an imperfect description, or when no
A will has been defined as species of conveyance whereby a person or property exactly answers the description, mistakes and
person is permitted, with the formalities prescribed by law, to omissions must be corrected, if the error appears from the context of
control to a certain degree the disposition of his estate after the will or from extrinsic evidence, excluding the oral declarations of
his death. the testator as to his intention; and when an uncertainty arises upon
the face of the will, as to the application of any of its provisions, the
testator's intention is to be ascertained from the words of the will,
taking into consideration the circumstances under which it was made,
excluding such oral declarations. (n) Article 796. All persons who are not expressly prohibited by law may
Article 790. The words of a will are to be taken in their ordinary and make a will. (662)
grammatical sense, unless a clear intention to use them in another Article 797. Persons of either sex under eighteen years of age cannot
sense can be gathered, and that other can be ascertained. make a will. (n)
Technical words in a will are to be taken in their technical sense, Article 798. In order to make a will it is essential that the testator be
unless the context clearly indicates a contrary intention, or unless it of sound mind at the time of its execution. (n)
satisfactorily appears that the will was drawn solely by the testator,
and that he was unacquainted with such technical sense. (675a) Article 799. To be of sound mind, it is not necessary that the testator
be in full possession of all his reasoning faculties, or that his mind be
Article 791. The words of a will are to receive an interpretation which wholly unbroken, unimpaired, or unshattered by disease, injury or
will give to every expression some effect, rather than one which will other cause.
render any of the expressions inoperative; and of two modes of
interpreting a will, that is to be preferred which will prevent intestacy. It shall be sufficient if the testator was able at the time of making the
(n) will to know the nature of the estate to be disposed of, the proper
objects of his bounty, and the character of the testamentary act. (n)
Article 792. The invalidity of one of several dispositions contained in a
will does not result in the invalidity of the other dispositions, unless it
is to be presumed that the testator would not have made such other Article 800. The law presumes that every person is of sound mind, in
dispositions if the first invalid disposition had not been made. (n) the absence of proof to the contrary.
Article 793. Property acquired after the making of a will shall only The burden of proof that the testator was not of sound mind at the
pass thereby, as if the testator had possessed it at the time of making time of making his dispositions is on the person who opposes the
the will, should it expressly appear by the will that such was his probate of the will; but if the testator, one month, or less, before
intention. making his will was publicly known to be insane, the person who
maintains the validity of the will must prove that the testator made it
during a lucid interval. (n)
Article 801. Supervening incapacity does not invalidate an effective
Article 794. Every devise or legacy shall cover all the interest which
will, nor is the will of an incapable validated by the supervening of
the testator could device or bequeath in the property disposed of,
capacity. (n)
unless it clearly appears from the will that he intended to convey a
less interest. (n) Article 802. A married woman may make a will without the consent
of her husband, and without the authority of the court. (n)
Article 795. The validity of a will as to its form depends upon the
observance of the law in force at the time it is made. (n) Article 803. A married woman may dispose by will of all her separate
property as well as her share of the conjugal partnership or absolute
Kinds of Validity with Respect to Wills
community property. (n)
There are two kinds of validity:
(a) extrinsic validity SUBSECTION 3. Forms of Wills
- Extrinsic validity refers to the forms and Article 804. Every will must be in writing and executed in a language
solemnities needed. (Examples: the number of or dialect known to the testator. (n)
witnesses to a will; the kind of instrument —
whether public or private — that is needed). Article 805. Every will, other than a holographic will, must be
Extrinsic validity may be seen also from two subscribed at the end thereof by the testator himself or by the
viewpoints, the viewpoint of TIME and the testator's name written by some other person in his presence, and by
viewpoint of PLACE (country) his express direction, and attested and subscribed by three or more
credible witnesses in the presence of the testator and of one another.
(b) intrinsic validity
- refers to the legality of the provisions in an The testator or the person requested by him to write his name
instrument, contract or will. (Examples: whether and the instrumental witnesses of the will, shall also sign, as
or not the omission of a child in the will renders aforesaid, each and every page thereof, except the last, on the left
the whole will void; whether or not a [disposition margin, and all the pages shall be numbered correlatively in letters
in favor of a friend impairs the legitime; whether placed on the upper part of each page.
or not a compulsory heir has been given his
rightful share]. Intrinsic validity may also be The attestation shall state the number of pages used upon which the
will is written, and the fact that the testator signed the will and every
viewed from the viewpoint of TIME-the force of
page thereof, or caused some other person to write his name, under
law at the time the will was made; and the his express direction, in the presence of the instrumental witnesses,
viewpoint of PLACE.). and that the latter witnessed and signed the will and all the pages
thereof in the presence of the testator and of one another.

If the attestation clause is in a language not known to the witnesses, it

SUBSECTION 2. Testamentary Capacity and Intent
shall be interpreted to them. (n)
Distinguish between testamentary power and testamentary
capacity
Article 810. A person may execute a holographic will which must be
entirely written, dated, and signed by the hand of the testator
himself. It is subject to no other form, and may be made in or out of
the Philippines, and need not be witnessed. (678, 688a)
Requirements for a Notarial or Ordinary Will
(a) The will must be in WRITING Article 811. In the probate of a holographic will, it shall be necessary
(b) The will must be executed in a language or dialect that at least one witness who knows the handwriting and signature of
known to the testator the testator explicitly declare that the will and the signature are in the
(c) The will must be subscribed (signed) at the end handwriting of the testator. If the will is contested, at least three of
thereof by the testator himself or by the testator’s such witnesses shall be required.
name written by another person in his presence, and
by his express direction. In the absence of any competent witness referred to in the
(d) The will must be attested and subscribed by three or preceding paragraph, and if the court deem it necessary,
expert testimony may be resorted to. (619a)
more credible witnesses in the presence of the testator
and of one another. Article 812. In holographic wills, the dispositions of the testator
(e) The testator or the person requested by him to write written below his signature must be dated and signed by him in
his name, and the instrumental witnesses of the will order to make them valid as testamentary dispositions. (n)
shall sign each and every page thereof except the last,
on the left margin Article 813. When a number of dispositions appearing in a
(f) All the pages shall be numbered correlatively in letters holographic will are signed without being dated, and the last
placed on the upper part of each page. disposition has a signature and a date, such date validates the
(g) The attestation (attestation clause) shall provide: dispositions preceding it, whatever be the time of prior dispositions.
1) the number of pages used — upon which the (n)
will is written;
2) that the testator signed (or expressly caused Article 814. In case of any insertion, cancellation, erasure or
another person to sign) the will and every alteration in a holographic will, the testator must authenticate
page thereof in the presence of the the same by his full signature. (n)
instrumental witnesses;
Article 815. When a Filipino is in a foreign country, he is authorized
3) that the instrumental witnesses witnessed and to make a will in any of the forms established by the law of the
signed the will and all the pages thereof in the country in which he may be. Such will may be probated in the
presence of the testator and of one another. Philippines. (n)

Purposes of the attestation clause Article 816. The will of an alien who is abroad produces effect in the
1) To preserve in permanent form a record of the facts Philippines if made with the formalities prescribed by the law of the
attending the execution of the will so that in case of place in which he resides, or according to the formalities observed in
failure of the memory of the subscribing witnesses, or his country, or in conformity with those which this Code prescribes.
any other casualty, they may still be proved. (n)
2) To render available proof that there has been a
compliance with the statutory requisites for the Article 817. A will made in the Philippines by a citizen or subject of
execution of the will. another country, which is executed in accordance with the law of
3) And, incidentally, to minimize the commission of the country of which he is a citizen or subject, and which might be
fraud or undue influence. proved and allowed by the law of his own country, shall have the
same effect as if executed according to the laws of the Philippines.
(n)
Article 806. Every will must be acknowledged before a notary public
by the testator and the witnesses. The notary public shall not be Article 818. Two or more persons cannot make a will jointly, or in
required to retain a copy of the will, or file another with the office the same instrument, either for their reciprocal benefit or for the
of the Clerk of Court.(n) benefit of a third person. (669)

Article 807. If the testator be deaf, or a deaf-mute, he must Article 819. Wills, prohibited by the preceding article, executed by
personally read the will, if able to do so; otherwise, he shall Filipinos in a foreign country shall not be valid in the Philippines, even
designate two persons to read it and communicate to him, in some though authorized by the laws of the country where they may have
practicable manner, the contents thereof. (n) been executed. (733a)

Article 808. If the testator is blind, the will shall be read to him SUBSECTION 4. -Witnesses to Wills
twice; once, by one of the subscribing witnesses, and again, by the
notary public before whom the will is acknowledged. (n) Article 820. Any person of sound mind and of the age of eighteen
years or more, and not blind, deaf or dumb, and able to read and
Article 809. In the absence of bad faith, forgery, or fraud, or undue write, may be a witness to the execution of a will mentioned in article
and improper pressure and influence, defects and imperfections in 805 of this Code. (n)
the form of attestation or in the language used therein shall not
render the will invalid if it is proved that the will was in fact executed Article 821. The following are disqualified from being witnesses to a
and attested in substantial compliance with all the requirements of will:
article 805. (n) (1) Any person not domiciled in the Philippines;
(2) Those who have been convicted of falsification of a document,
perjury or false testimony. (n)

Article 822. If the witnesses attesting the execution of a will are

competent at the time of attesting, their becoming subsequently
incompetent shall not prevent the allowance of the will. (n)

Article 823. If a person attests the execution of a will, to whom or to

whose spouse, or parent, or child, a devise or legacy is given by such
will, such devise or legacy shall, so far only as concerns such person,
or spouse, or parent, or child of such person, or any one claiming
under such person or spouse, or parent, or child, be void, unless
there are three other competent witnesses to such will. However,
such person so attesting shall be admitted as a witness as if such
devise or legacy had not been made or given. (n)

Article 824. A mere charge on the estate of the testator for the
payment of debts due at the time of the testator's death does not
prevent his creditors from being competent witnesses to his will.
(n)

SUBSECTION 5. Codicils and Incorporation by Reference

Article 825. A codicil is supplement or addition to a will, made

after the execution of a will and annexed to be taken as a part
thereof, by which disposition made in the original will is
explained, added to, or altered. (n)

Article 826. In order that a codicil may be effective, it shall be

executed as in the case of a will. (n)

Article 827. If a will, executed as required by this Code,

incorporates into itself by reference any document or paper,
such document or paper shall not be considered a part of the
will unless the following requisites are present:

(1) The document or paper referred to in the will must be in existence

at the time of the execution of the will;

(2) The will must clearly describe and identify the same, stating
among other things the number of pages thereof;

(3) It must be identified by clear and satisfactory proof as the

document or paper referred to therein; and

(4) It must be signed by the testator and the witnesses on each and
every page, except in case of voluminous books of account or
inventories. (n)