Legal Consequences of Legal Separation - ALBURO ALBURO AND ASSOCIATES LAW OFFICES

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The following post does not create a lawyer-client relationship between Alburo Alburo and Associates Law Offices (or any of its lawyers) and the reader. It is still best for you to engage the services of a lawyer or you may directly contact and consult Alburo Alburo and Associates Law Offices to address your specific legal concerns, if there is any.

Also, the matters contained in the following were written in accordance with the law, rules, and jurisprudence prevailing at the time of writing and posting, and do not include any future developments on the subject matter under discussion.

AT A GLANCE:

The Family Code protects the rights of spouses and children by providing a structured mechanism for legal separation This allows couples to address marital breakdowns caused by abuse, abandonment, or other serious grounds.

It allows spouses to live separately, regulates property and donations, ensures support and child custody, and safeguards inheritance and legal identity. While it does not dissolve the marriage, legal separation offers practical relief and legal remedies to the innocent spouse, emphasizing fairness, protection, and the welfare of children.

Grounds for Legal Separation

A Decree of Legal Separation may be sought by either spouse upon the existence of any of the grounds expressly provided under Article 55 of the Family Code, which states:

ARTICLE 55. A petition for legal separation may be filed on any of the following grounds:

Repeated physical violence or grossly abusive conduct directed against the petitioner, a common child, or a child of the petitioner;
Physical violence or moral pressure to compel the petitioner to change religious or political affiliation;
Attempt of respondent to corrupt or induce the petitioner, a common child, or a child of the petitioner, to engage in prostitution, or connivance in such corruption or inducement;
Final judgment sentencing the respondent to imprisonment of more than six years, even if pardoned;
Drug addiction or habitual alcoholism of the respondent;
Lesbianism or homosexuality of the respondent;
Contracting by the respondent of a subsequent bigamous marriage, whether in the Philippines or abroad;
Sexual infidelity or perversion;
Attempt by the respondent against the life of the petitioner; or
Abandonment of petitioner by respondent without justifiable cause for more than one year.

Procedure after filing for Legal Separation

Upon filing of an action for legal separation, the Court will observe a six (6)-month Cooling-off period as provided for under Article 58 of the Civil Code, which provides:

ARTICLE 58. An action for legal separation shall in no case be tried before six months shall have elapsed since the filing of the petition.

Exception to the Cooling-Off Period

This rule admits an exception. Under Section 19 of the Republic Act No. 9262 or the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act of 2004, in cases of legal separation, where violence as specified in this Act is alleged, Article 58 of the Family Code shall not apply. The court shall proceed on the main case and other incidents of the case as soon as possible. The hearing on any application for a protection order filed by the petitioner must be conducted within the mandatory period specified in this Act.

Legal Consequences of Legal Separation

Once the court grants a Decree of Legal Separation, several legal effects arise, binding the spouses:

1. Right to Live Separately

Under Article 61 of the Family Code, after the filing of the petition for legal separation, the spouses shall be entitled to live separately from each other.

The Court, in the absence of a written agreement between the spouses, shall designate either of them or a third person to administer the absolute community or conjugal partnership property. The administrator appointed by the court shall have the same powers and duties as those of a guardian under the Rules of Court.

It must be emphasized, however, that pursuant to Article 63(1) of the Family Code while legal separation entitles the spouses to live separately, the marital bonds are not severed and remain intact.

2. Dissolution of Property Regime

Article 63(2) of the Family Code states:

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(2) The absolute community or the conjugal partnership shall be dissolved and liquidated but the offending spouse shall have no right to any share of the net profits earned by the absolute community or the conjugal partnership, which shall be forfeited in accordance with the provisions of Article 43(2).

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Moreover, Article 43(2) of the Family Code provides that:

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(2) The absolute community of property or the conjugal partnership, as the case may be, shall be dissolved and liquidated, but if either spouse contracted said marriage in bad faith, his or her share of the net profits of the community property or conjugal partnership property shall be forfeited in favor of the common children or, if there are none, the children of the guilty spouse by a previous marriage or in default of children, the innocent spouse;

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3. Custody of Minor Children

Custody determinations are always subject to the best interests of the child, particularly with respect to children below seven (7) years of age.

Article 63(3) of the Family Code governs the custody of minor children:

(3) The custody of the minor children shall be awarded to the innocent spouse, subject to the provisions of Article 213.

4. Disqualification from Inheritance

Under Article 63(4) of the Family Code,

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(4) The offending spouse shall be disqualified from inheriting from the innocent spouse by intestate succession. Moreover, provisions in favor of the offending spouse made in the will of the innocent spouse shall be revoked by operation of law.

5. Revocation of Donations

Article 64 of the Family Code states that after the finality of the decree of legal separation, the innocent spouse may revoke the donations made by him or by her in favor of the offending spouse, as well as the designation of the latter as beneficiary in any insurance policy, even if such designation be stipulated as irrevocable. The revocation of the donations shall be recorded in the registries of property in the places where the properties are located.

Alienations, liens and encumbrances registered in good faith before the recording of the complaint for revocation in the registries of property shall be respected. The revocation of or change in the designation of the insurance beneficiary shall take effect upon written notification thereof to the insured.

The action to revoke the donation under this Article must be brought within five years from the time the decree of legal separation becomes final.

Petition for Revocation of Donations under Procedural Rules

Additionally, Section 22 of A.M. No. 02-11-11-SC, otherwise known as the Rule on Legal Separation, provides:

Within five (5) years from the date the decision granting the petition for legal separation has become final, the innocent spouse may file a petition under oath in the same proceeding for legal separation to revoke the donations in favor of the offending spouse.
The revocation of the donations shall be recorded in the Register of Deeds in the places where the properties are located.
Alienations, liens, and encumbrances registered in good faith before the recording of the petition for revocation in the registries of property shall be respected.
After the issuance of the Decree of Legal Separation, the innocent spouse may revoke the designation of the offending spouse as a beneficiary in any insurance policy even if such designation be stipulated as irrevocable. The revocation or change shall take effect upon written notification thereof to the insurer.

6. Support During and After Legal Separation

Article 198 of the Family Code provides that during the pendency of proceedings, spouses and their children shall be supported from the properties of the absolute community or the conjugal partnership.

After the final judgment granting the petition, the obligation of mutual support between the spouses ceases. However, in case of legal separation, the court may order that the guilty spouse shall give support to the innocent one, specifying the terms of such order.

This ensures that the innocent spouse is not left destitute despite the termination of cohabitation under the decree.

7. Use of Surname

Article 372 of the Family Code provides that when legal separation has been granted, the wife shall continue using her name and surname employed before the legal separation.

This reflects the principle that legal separation does not dissolve the marital bond, and therefore, the wife’s use of her surname remains unchanged.

Conclusion

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Alburo Alburo and Associates Law Offices specializes in business law and labor law consulting. For inquiries regarding legal services, you may reach us at info@alburolaw.com, or dial us at (02)7745-4391/ 09175772207/ 09778050020.

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