Neri v.

Heirs of Uy

Facts:

A had 7 children, 2 by her first husband and 5 by her second husband. When A died, her
second husband and his 5 children executed an extrajudicial settlement (of the estate) with
deed of absolute sale. They sold a certain property from the estate in favor of Sps. B. When the
2 children by A’s first husband found out about the sale, they filed a complaint for its annulment.

Issue: Was the sale of the property belonging to the estate is valid?

Held: Sale was partially valid.

According to Sec. 1, Rule 74 of the Rules of Court, an extrajudicial settlement shall not be
binding upon any person who didn’t participate therein or had no notice thereof. In this case, the
extrajudicial settlement could not bind the heirs who didn’t participate in its execution. Hence,
they could also not be bound by the sale.

However, the sale was still valid with respect to the shares of the heirs who participated in the
extrajudicial settlement with deed of absolute sale. The participating heirs could sell their
individual shares because they became owners thereof upon the decedent’s death.

Heirs of Ypon

Facts:

A et al. and B were relatives of C. A et al. were collateral relatives while B was his lawful son. B,
as C’s sole heir, executed an affidavit of self-adjudication and transferred parcels of land owned
by C in his name. A et al. filed a complaint for cancellation of title and reconveyance with
damages against B. They also contested B’s filiation and heirship in the said complaint.

Issue: Could filiation be attacked in a regular court proceeding?

Held: No.

Jurisprudence says that determination of who are the legal heirs of the deceased must be made
in the proper special proceedings in court, and not in an ordinary suit for recovery of ownership
and possession of property. The exception is when separate special proceedings can be
dispensed with for the sake of practicality. The Supreme Court said this case did not fall into the
exception. Hence, B’s heirship could not be contested in the ordinary civil case filed by A et al.