Land Titles and Ownership in the Philippines

Ownership of Private Land and Evidence of Ownership (Land Titles and Deed)

• Land titles in the Philippines have a history dating back to pre-colonial times.
• Indigenous people had land tenure systems before Spanish colonization
• The Spanish introduced a feudal land system, granting titles to aristocrats and religious orders.
• The American colonization period introduced the Torrens system.

Land Title

• Evidence of the owner's right or interest in a property.
• Allows the owner to control and assert exclusive possession and enjoyment of the property.

Deed

• Written instrument establishing, transferring, mortgaging, or assigning real estate rights.
• Documents affecting real estate in law or equity.

Land Registration

• Judicial or administrative process determining and confirming ownership of land for public record.
• Records ownership and other related rights in a public registry.
• Land registration is a notice to the whole world regarding the ownership or transfer of land.
• The registration act is the operative act to convey or affect land.

System of Registration in the Philippines

• System under the Spanish Mortgage Law
• Torrens System
• System of Recording for Unregistered Land (P.D. 1529, Section 3)
• Lands granted under the Spanish Mortgage Law and not covered by a certificate of title under the Torrens system are considered unregistered lands.

Laws Implementing Land Registration

• Property Registration Decree (P.D. 1529)
• Cadastral Act (Act 2259)
• Public Land Act (C.A. 141)
• Emancipation Patent or CARP of 1972 (P.D. 27)
• Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law of 1988 (R.A. 6657)
• Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (IPRA) (R.A. 8371)

Purpose of Land Registration

• To declare ownership and stop future questions of legality.
• To serve as a notice regarding filed transactions that affect the registered land.
• To protect the interest of those unaware of a transaction involving the registered land.
• To ensure registered owners and purchasers can own property free of encumbrances.
• To prevent fraudulent claims and ensure legality in land transfers.
• To enable the Registrar of Deeds to maintain a reliable record of all instruments affecting registered land.
• To issue a certificate of title as evidence of land ownership.

Registration does not vest title

• Registration is a mode of acquiring ownership, but it is not a transfer of title in itself.
• A better right will be the right the person had before registration.
• If a registered document is defective, registration doesn't cure the defect.

Original Registration vs. Subsequent Registration

• Original registration is the first claim of ownership recorded.
• Subsequent registration involves recording transactions of already registered land.

Effects of Registration

• Registration is a notice to the entire world, meaning notice is given to anyone.
• Registration is the operative act regarding any land ownership/transfer/sale.
• Registration does not make an invalid land claim valid.

Burden of Proof

• The applicant must demonstrate clear, positive, and convincing evidence of possession to claim property.
• Supporting evidence, beyond mere allegations, is needed.

Regalian Doctrine (Jura Regalia)

• All natural resources belong to the state, except agricultural lands.
• Land presumed to be public lands unless proven otherwise.
• Exception—Land held before Spanish conquest.

Modes of Acquiring Land Titles

• Public Grant (Issuance of sales or special patents for land)

• Reclamation (Filing of submerged land)

• Acquisitive Prescription (Open, continuous, exclusive, and notorious possession)

• Ordinary Prescription (In good faith, just title, 10 years)

• Extraordinary Prescription (Adverse possession, no need for title or good faith, 30 years)

• Accretion (Receipt of land from river effects)

• Voluntary Transfer (Transfer through deed execution)

• Emancipation Patent or Grant (Land given to farmers)

• Descent or Devise (Transfer by hereditary succession or will)

• Involuntary Alienation (Loss of property due to foreclosure, eminent domain, forfeiture)

Different Types of Land Titles in the Philippines

• Original Certificate of Title (OCT) – issued by LRA, based on the Torrens system.
• Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) – derivative of OCT, issued when properties transfer.
• Condominium Certificate of Title (CCT) – applies to condo units. Contains unit info.

Other Legal Concepts Related to Ownership

• Co-ownership
• Usufruct
• Easement