8/11/2019 Vda. de Figuracio0n v. Gerilla

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Carolina VDA. De Figuracion v. Gerilla-Figuracion

FACTS:.Spouses Leandro and respondent Carolina Figuracion had 6 childrena.Leandroexecuted a deed of quitclaim over his real properties in favor of his six children.b.When

he died in 1958, he left behind two parcels of land: (1) Lot 2299 and (2)Lot 7052.Leand ro so ld a por t i on of Lot 1 t o Lazar o Advi ento 3.A dispute between 2of the children Emilia and Mary rose over the eastern half of Lot 707 a. Lo t 70 7 be lo ng edto Eu la li o Ad vi en to i.When he died his 2 daughters Agripina and Carolina succeeded

himii. Agripina executed a quitclaim in favor of Emilia over the one-half eastern portionof Lot707.i i i .A gri pi na die d s in gle and wit hou t any iss ue 1.Before her death Carol inaadjudicated unto herself, via affidavit under Rule 74 of the Rules of Court, the entire lot whichshe later sold to Felipa and Jilaria4.Emilia and her family stayed in the US for 10 yearsa.Uponreturn she built a house made of strong materials on the eastern half-portion of Lot707b.She continued paying her share of the realty taxes thereon5.Emilia sought the

extrajudicial partition of all properties held in common by her andrespondents6.Emilia filed a complaint in the RTC of Urdaneta City for partition,

annulment of documents, reconveyance, quieting of title and damages against respondents,praying, among others,for:a . t he p a r t i t i o n o f L o t s 22 99 a nd 70 5 ; b. the nu ll if icat ion of the

affidavit of self-adjudication executed by respondent Carolina over Lot 707,the deed ofabsolute sale in favor of respondents Felipa and Hilaria, and TCT No. 42244;c.a declaration that

pe ti ti oner was the ow ner of one-hal f of Lo t 707 andd . d a m a g e s 7. Respondent scontended that Leandros estate should fi rst undergo settlement proceedings beforepartitionamong the heirs could take place.a.Also claimed that an accounting of expenses chargeable to

the estate was necessary for suchsettlement.b.RTc nu ll if ied Caro li nas af fidavit of se lf-adjudication and deed of absolute sale of Lot 707i.Also declared Lots 2299 and 705 asexclusive properties of Leandro Figuracion andtherefore part of his estate.ii.Dismissed the

complaint for partition, reconveyance and damages1.REASON: it could not grant thereliefs prayed for by petitioner without any (prior)settlement proceedings wherein the transfer of

title of the properties should firstbe effected8.CA upheld the dismissal of petitioners action forpa rt iti on for be ing prematur e.a. Reversed de cision wi th respe ct to the nu ll if icati on of theself-adjudication and the deed of sale

ISSUE:

W/N there needs to be a pr io r set tlement of Leandr os in te st ate estate before the

pr oper ti es can bepartitioned or distributed.

HELD:

Partition is premature when ownership of the lot 705 is still in disputea.theres a pendingcase in the CA where issues cannot be deciphered.2.two ways by which partition can take

pl ac e under Rule 69 :a . b y a g r e e m e n t u n d e r S e c t i o n 2 b. th rough commissi oners

when such agreement cannot be reached, under Sections 3 to 6.

Ne ither method spec ifie s a pr ocedur e fo r de te rmining expe nses chargeable to thedecedentsestate.2.Section 8 of Rule 69 provides that there shall be an accounting of the

real propertys income (rentals andprofits) in the course of an action for partitionthere is noprovision for the accounting of expenses for which property belonging to the decedents estatemay be answerable, such as funeral expenses,inheritance taxes and similar expenses enumeratedunder Section 1, Rule 90 of the Rules of Court.