587 Phil. 466
CARPIO MORALES, J.:
A residential land located at Barrio Matain, Subic, Zambales now know as Lot 3, Block 5-K, Psd-8268 bounded on the NORTH by Road Lot 1, Block 5-1, PSD-8268; on the SOUTH by Road Lot 2, Block 5-1, Psd-8268; on the EAST by Road Lot 2, Block 5-1, Psd-8286; and, on the WEST by the property of Roque Demetrio Lot 2, Block 5-k, Psd 8268; containing an area of ONE THOSUAND THREE HUNDRED EIGHTY-ONE (1,381) SQUARE METERS, more or less. Declared for taxation purposes under Tax Declaration No. 1896 in the name of Spouses Bienvenido S. Faustino and Iluminada G. Faustino.[2] (Emphasis and underscoring supplied)Respondent spouses further alleged that they allowed petitioner and co-heirs to occupy and build a house on a 627 sq. m. portion of the land, particularly described as follows:
The northeastern portion of the land of the plaintiffs described in Paragraph 2 of this complaint; bounded on the NORTH by Road Lot 1, Block 5-1, Psd-8268; on the East by Road Lot 2, Block 5-1, Psd-8268; and on the SOUTH and WEST by the remaining portion of Lot 5, Block 5-1, PSD-8268 of herein plaintiffs which is the land described in Paragraph 2 of this complaint owned by the plaintiffs and that this portion in question has an area of SIX HUNDRED TWENTY-SEVEN (627) SQUARE METERS, more or less;[3] (Emphasis and underscoring supplied),on the condition that they would voluntarily and immediately remove the house and vacate that portion of the land should they (respondents) need the land; and that when they asked petitioner and her co-heir-occupants to remove the house and restore the possession of the immediately-described portion of the land, they refused, hence, the filing of the complaint.
A residential lot, together with the two (2) storey house thereon constructed, and all existing improvements thereon, situated at Matain, Subic, Zambales, containing an area of 628 square meters, more or less. Bounded on the North, by Lot 12313 [sic]; on the East, by Lot 12413 (Road Lot); on the South, by Lot 12005-Cecilia Salinas; and on the West, by Lot 12006, Loreto Febre. Declared under Tax No. 1017, in the name of Dolores Salinas Castillo. (Emphasis and underscoring supplied);that if respondents refer to the immediately described lot, then they have no right or interest thereon;[5] and that her signature in the June 27, 1962 Deed of Sale is forged.
. . . [I]n the . . . Deed of Sale [dated June 27, 1962] (Exhibit "B"), the area of the land sold was only 300.375 square meters while the plaintiffs[-herein respondents] in their complaint claim 1,381 square meters or the whole of the lot shown by exhibit "A" (Lot 3, Block 5-A, Psd-8268). Since the document is the best evidence, and the deed of sale indicates only 300.375 square meters, so then, only the area as stated in the Deed of Sale should be owned by the plaintiffs. The allegations [sic] that there might be a typographical error is again mere conjecture and not really supported by evidence.On respondents' appeal,[8] the Court of Appeals, by Decision of December 20, 2001,[9] modified the RTC decision. It held that since respondents are claiming the whole lot containing 1,381 sq. m. but that petitioner is claiming 628 sq. m. thereof, then respondents are "entitled to the remaining portion . . . of 753 square meters." The appellate court explained:
The boundaries of the land indicated in the Deed of Sale (Exhibit "B") [are] different from that of Exhibit "A" claimed by the plaintiff[s-herein respondents] to be the plan of the lot which they allegedly bought. The Deed of Sale states [that the boundary of the lot in the] North is the lot of Carmen Labitan while Exhibit "A" indicated that North of the land is Lot 3, Block 5-A, Psd-8268 (Exhibit "A") is a Road Lot (Lot 1, Block 5-1, Psd-8268). This Court believes that after examining the documents presented, that the land bought by the plaintiff is only a portion of the land appearing in Exhibit "A" and not the whole lot. The land bought being situated at the southern portion of Lot 3, Block 5-K, Psd-8268. This explains why the northern portion of the lot sold indicated in the Deed of Sale is owned by Carmen Labitan, the original owner of the whole Lot 3, Block 5-K, Psd-8268 (Exhibit "C-1").
Even the tax declaration submitted by the plaintiff indicates different boundaries with that of the land indicated in the Deed of Sale. The law states in Art. 434 of the Civil Code:"Art. 434. In an action to recover, the property must be identified, and the plaintiff must rely on the weakness of the defendant's claim."Herein plaintiffs[-respondents] only own the area of 300.375 square meters of the said lot and not the whole area of 1,381 square meters as claimed by them. There is no evidence to substantiate the plaintiffs' claim for the area of 1,381 square meters.
x x x x
x x x x[7] (Emphasis and underscoring supplied)
x x x [T]he Court agrees with the court a quo that only a portion of the whole lot was indeed sold to the plaintiffs-appellants by the heirs of deceased Isidro Salinas and Carmen Labitan. What remains to be determined is the particular portion of the area that was sold to the plaintiffs-appellants.The appellate court thus disposed:
x x x [W]hat really defines a piece of land is not the area calculated with more or less certainty mentioned in the description but the boundaries therein laid down as enclosing the land and indicating its limits. Where the land is sold for a lump sum and not so much per unit of measure or number, the boundaries of the land stated in the contract determine the effects and scope of the sale not the area thereof.
Based on these rules, plaintiffs-appellants are not strictly bound by the area stated in the Deed of Sale which is merely 300.375 square meters, but by the metes and bounds stated therein. As found by the court a quo, the land bought by the plaintiffs-appellants is a portion of the land appearing in Exhibit "A", situated at the southern portion of Lot 3, Block 5-K, Psd 8268 where the northern portion of the land sold as indicated in the Deed of Sale is owned by Carmen Labitan, the original owner of the whole Lot 3, Block 5-K, Psd-8268 (Exhibit "C-1".) None of the other heirs questioned the sale of the property as described in the Deed of Sale.
Considering the foregoing, this Court believes that plaintiffs-appellants[-herein respondents] own more than 300.375 square meters of the land in question. However, said ownership does not extend to the northern portion of the land being claimed by the defendants-appellees, consisting of 628 (erroneously stated in the decision of the court a quo as 268) square meters and covered by Tax Declaration No. 1017 in the name of defendant-appellee[-herein petitioner] Dolores Salinas. Plaintiffs-appellants are[,] however, entitled to the remaining portion of the property consisting of seven hundred fifty-three (753) square meters, more or less. (Emphasis and underscoring supplied)
WHEREFORE, based on the foregoing premises, the judgment appealed from is hereby MODIFIED, as follows:Petitioner's motion for reconsideration having been denied,[11] she filed the present petition[12] faulting the Court of Appealsx x x x[10] (Underscoring supplied)
- Plaintiffs-appellants Bienvenido S. Faustino and Iluminada G. Faustin[o] are declared owners of seven hundred fifty-three (753) square meters, more or less, of the parcel of land subject of this case.
- Plaintiffs-appellants and defendants-appellees are directed to cause the segregation of their respective shares in the property as determined by this Court, with costs equally shared between them.
The petition is meritorious.
- x x x IN MODIFYING THE DECISION OF THE COURT A QUO DISMISSING THE COMPLAINT FOR INSUFFICIENCY OF EVIDENCE;
- x x x IN DECLARING THE PRIVATE RESPONDENTS OWNERS OF 753 SQUARE METERS, MORE OR LESS, OF THE PARCEL OF LAND SUBJECT OF THE CASE[;]
- x x x IN NOT AFFIRMING THE DECISION OF THE COURT A QUO AND XXX IN NOT DECLARING THE PETITIONER AS OWNER OF HER PROPERTY WHICH, SINCE THEN UP TO THE PRESENT, SHE HAD BEEN OCCUPYING AND DESPITE PREPONDERANCE OF EVIDENCE OF HER OWNERSHIP THERETO.[13] (Underscoring in the original)
The northeastern portion of the land of the plaintiffs described in Paragraph 2 of this complaint; bounded on the NORTH by Road Lot 1, Block 5-1, Psd-8268; on the EAST by Road Lot 2, Block 5-1, Psd-8268; and on the SOUTH and WEST by the remaining portion of Lot 5, Block 5-1, PSD-8268 of herein plaintiffs which is the land described in Paragraph 2 of this complaint owned by the plaintiffs and that this portion in question has an area of SIX HUNDRED TWENTY-SEVEN (627) SQUARE METERS, more or less.[18] (Emphasis and underscoring supplied)The Court of Appeals thus doubly erred in concluding that 1) what was sold to respondents via the June 27, 1962 Deed of Sale was the 1,381 sq. m. parcel of land reflected in the Plan-Exh. "A" prepared in 1960 for Benjamin Salinas, and 2) petitioner occupied 628 sq. m. portion thereof, hence, respondents own the remaining 753 sq. m.