- Petitioner
- De Vera
- Respondent
- Manzanero
- Citation
- G.R. No. 232437
- Court
- Supreme Court
- Decided
- June 30, 2021
Summary
This case involves a property dispute where heirs of Bernardo De Vera sought to recover possession of property forcibly taken by respondents based on an allegedly invalid waiver by the deceased's widow. The Regional Trial Court and Court of Appeals dismissed the complaint, ruling that the proper remedy was judicial partition since co-ownership existed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that co-owners may file actions to recover possession against other co-owners who take exclusive possession, and that courts can determine co-ownership existence in such actions without requiring separate partition proceedings. The Court found petitioners established ownership through inheritance and ordered respondents to vacate the property, clarifying that recovery of possession and partition serve different purposes and one is not a prerequisite for the other.
Intellegal Wiki · Key Holding
A co-owner may sue to recover possession from another co-owner who has taken exclusive possession, and the court may rule on the existence of co-ownership in that action without requiring a separate partition proceeding.
An editorially maintained summary of the rule this Supreme Court decision is cited for — not legal advice.