Spouses Elegio Cañezo v. Spouses Apolinario

Summary

This case involves a property boundary dispute between adjacent landowners in Mandaluyong City. The Cañezos discovered that their neighbors, the Bautistas, had built structures encroaching on their property. Despite demands and failed barangay mediation, the Bautistas refused to remove the encroaching structures. The RTC ordered demolition and damages, but the CA reversed, dismissing the complaint for procedural reasons. The Supreme Court ultimately reversed the CA, clarifying that despite being captioned as a writ of demolition case, it was actually an accion reivindicatoria under the Civil Code. The Court found the Bautistas were builders in bad faith, having knowledge of the encroachment situation, and affirmed the demolition order with damages totaling P110,000 plus 12% annual interest. The decision reinforces property owners' rights to exclude encroachers and the consequences for bad faith construction on another's land.