Pilapil Altares and Montalla Law

09/05/2026

Looking for paralegal who is willing to work in Pedro Gil, Manila. Send pm for details.

04/04/2026

Thank you for your invitation Brgy. Looc, Calamba City, Laguna!

10/03/2026

Early bird catches the early worm. Arrived here ahead of the person in charge and it gave me time to speak with the newly hired admin staff. Got few good information as to how they compute the sedans etc.

DARAB Nasugbu

14/11/2025

Ganito maghearing sa probinsya. Sa Lalawigan ng Batangas na kung saan kami ay madalas, ganito ang bubungad sa yo pagtapos mo magbista.

Salamat po Panginoon sa patuloy na gabay at sa mga kliyenteng nagtitiwala at naniniwala na habang may hininga, may pag asa 🙏❤️

05/11/2025

Belated happy happy birthday to our dearest paralegal, Ms. Yna! May God bless you more as you move closer to your dream of becoming an attorney. Thank you for your hardwork and immeasurable contributions to the firm. 🎉❤️

14/10/2025

A hearing in Lemery, Batangas is not complete if you will not cross the bridge going to Taal for their yummiest and tastiest tapa and longganisa. 🙂

The hearing? It is about the filing of Petition for Declaration of Nullity of Marriage where both the Petitioner and the Respondent are found to have been suffering from psychological incapacity (based on their psychological evaluation report). Case is still on trial.

14/10/2025

Alamin natin! 👀🧠

SUPREME COURT: MARRIAGE SOLEMNIZED BY UNAUTHORIZED OFFICER REMAINS VALID IF ONE SPOUSE ACTED IN GOOD FAITH

| The Supreme Court (SC) has affirmed the validity of a marriage of a couple even though the one who solemnized the ceremony was an unauthorized officer, saying they acted in good faith and believed the officer had the legal authority.

In a 10-page ruling penned by Associate Justice Mario Lopez (retired), the SC's Second Division upheld the validity of the marriage contracted by Eloisa Maliwat-Melad and Amancio Melad as it junked the petition filed by the former to declare their marriage void on the ground that the officiant was not a judge, as she had believed at the time of the ceremony.

In March 1993, Eloisa and Amancio got married at the Tarlac City Hall. Their marriage contract showed that the marriage was solemnized by Judge Condrado De Gracia. They were blessed with three children.

Throughout their union, Eloisa and Amancio encountered various marital problems. In 2017, Eloisa consulted a lawyer regarding the possibility of filing a legal separation case against her husband. Eloisa showed their marriage contract to her lawyer, who said he knew Judge De Gracia, the solemnizing officer of Eloisa and Amancio's marriage.

Eloisa also presented pictures of the marriage ceremony to her lawyer, who noticed that Judge De Gracia was not in the picture. The lawyer found out that it seemed Judge De Gracia was not the solemnizing officer, but Rosalio Florendo, whom he knew as a fellow member of the Tarlac City Rotary Club.

This prompted Eloisa to file a petition to nullify their marriage due to lack of authority of the solemnizing officer. The Regional Trial Court (RTC) denied the petition, citing insufficient evidence to establish the identities of Judge De Gracia and Florendo.

The Court of Appeals (CA) affirmed the RTC’s ruling, emphasizing that the marriage contract, being a public document, serves as prima facie, or initial, proof of the marriage and its details. Aggrieved, Eloisa elevated the case before the Supreme Court.

In affirming the lower court's ruling, the SC clarified that while a marriage officiated by someone without legal authority is generally void, it has an exemption: if one or both spouses genuinely believed that the person had the authority to solemnize the marriage.

The high court cited Articles 3 and 4 of the Family Code, which provide that one of the formal requirements of a valid marriage is the authority of the solemnizing officer. It likewise mentioned Article 35(2), which states that a marriage is void if the officiant lacks authority—unless one or both parties believe in good faith that the officiant is authorized.

The SC explained that Eloisa failed to prove that the officiant lacked authority, as it found that the marriage certificate showed that Judge De Gracia was then an incumbent judge within the jurisdiction of Tarlac City and had legal authority to officiate the marriage under the Family Code.

It stressed that the legal presumption in favor of the marriage contract stating the solemnizing officer’s authority must be respected in the absence of clear and convincing evidence to the contrary.

The highest bench stressed out that Eloisa and Amancio's marriage falls under the exception in Article 35(2) of the Family Code and remains valid.

Meanwhile, Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen dissented from the decision, saying even if the solemnizing officer’s lack of authority falls under the exception, the absence of a personal declaration by the spouses during the ceremony—where they publicly take each other as husband and wife—renders the marriage void.

Leonen added that irregularities in the ceremony and the officiant’s authority raise reasonable doubt about the marriage’s validity.

24/07/2025

Bill vs. Law: Bakit Hindi Pa Legal ang Divorce sa Pilipinas?

Maraming Pilipino ngayon ang nalilito. May nagsasabing “pwede na raw ang divorce,” kasi raw “naipasa na sa Kongreso.” Pero ang totoo, hindi pa legal ang divorce sa Pilipinas. Kaya mahalagang linawin muna: ano ba talaga ang bill at ano ang batas?

Ang BILL o panukalang-batas ay isang proposal o mungkahi pa lamang na ginagawa ng Kongreso. Hindi pa ito batas at wala pa itong power ng isang batas. Para maging batas, kailangan muna itong aprubahan sa tatlong pagbasa sa House of Representatives, tatlong pagbasa sa Senado, at pagkatapos ay pirmahan ng Pangulo (Official Gazette, 2020; Philippine Congress Procedures). Kung hindi ito pipirmahan ng Pangulo at ni-reject, ang tawag doon ay veto. Kung magkaisa naman ang dalawang kapulungan ng Kongreso, puwede nila itong i-override, pero bihira lamang ito mangyari.
Samantala, ang BATAS ay isang panukala na naipasa na sa parehong Kapulungan at pinirmahan na ng Pangulo. Ibig sabihin, ito ay may legal na bisa, at pwedeng gamitin sa korte bilang basehan ng pagdedesisyon. Mag-kapares ang bill at batas sa isang aspeto, sila ay parehong bahagi ng legislative process at nagmumula sa Kongreso. Pero magkaiba ang bigat nila. Ang bill ay isang mungkahi pa lang; habang ang batas ay may legal na power. Ang bill ay hindi pwedeng gamitin sa legal proceedings, habang ang batas naman ay pwedeng ipatupad at sundin ng publiko.

Ngayon, paano ito konektado sa isyu ng Divorce? Noong Mayo 22, 2024, inaprubahan na sa ikatlong pagbasa sa House of Representatives ang panukalang Divorce Bill (House Bill 9349) na layuning magbigay ng legal na proseso sa paghihiwalay ng mag-asawa (ABS-CBN News, 2024). Pero hanggang doon lang muna ito. Hindi pa ito naipapasa sa Senado, at higit sa lahat, hindi pa ito pinipirmahan ng Pangulo. Ayon sa Philippine Star (2024), ilang senador ang nagpahayag ng agam-agam sa naturang panukala, kaya hindi pa ito umuusad sa upper chamber. Kaya malinaw na hindi pa ito batas.

Ang problema, maraming Pilipino ang akala nila ay legal na ang divorce. Marami ang nagpapakalat sa social media na “pwede nang makipaghiwalay” basta’t may divorce bill na. Pero ang totoo, hindi pa ito pwedeng gamitin na bill bilang isang basehan sa korte. Ayon kay Rep. Edcel Lagman, isa sa mga pangunahing may-akda ng panukala, ang layunin ng Divorce Bill ay bigyan ng “second chance at happiness” ang mga nasa abusive at irreparable marriages (ABS-CBN News, 2024). Ngunit kahit maganda ang layunin, hangga't hindi pa ito napipirmahan ng Pangulo, wala pa rin itong legal na bisa. Kaya, ang mga taong nagpapakalat ng mga maling impormasyon ay lalong nagpapalito sa publiko patungkol sa usapin.

Sa madaling salita: ang Divorce Bill ay hindi pa batas. Hindi pa ito sapat na dahilan para maging legal ang divorce sa bansa. Habang hindi pa ito lusot sa Senado at wala pang lagda ng Pangulo, walang sinuman sa Pilipinas ang pwedeng gumamit ng divorce bilang legal na basehan sa pakikipag-hiwalay.

Kaya’t paalala sa lahat: Maging maingat sa impormasyon. Alamin ang proseso at huwag agad maniwala sa post na walang basehan.

Inilathala ni: Kyle Antonio

References:
ABS-CBN News. (2024). Absolute divorce bill gets final House nod. https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/5/22/absolute-divorce-bill-gets-final-house-nod-1729
ABS-CBN News. (2024). House-approved Absolute Divorce Bill transmitted to Senate. https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/6/12/house-approved-absolute-divorce-bill-transmitted-to-senate-1256
Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. (n.d.). How a bill becomes a law. https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/about/gov/how-a-bill-becomes-a-law/
Philippine Star. (2024). Divorce bill narrowly hurdles House. https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2024/05/22/2357115/divorce-bill-narrowly-hurdles-house
Philippine Star. (2024). Absolute divorce will become law, Lagman vows. https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2024/05/28/2358445/absolute-divorce-will-become-law-lagman-vows
Philippine Star. (2025). Absolute divorce bills refiled at House. https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2025/07/03/2455069/absolute-divorce-bills-refiled-house

18/07/2025

𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃: Effective today, 18 July 2025, minimum wage earners in the National Capital Region (NCR) will receive a ₱50 daily wage increase under Wage Order No. NCR-26—raising the minimum wage to ₱695 for the non-agriculture sector and ₱658 for those in agriculture, retail/service, and small manufacturing establishments.

06/04/2025

We just had our 1st summer fun and we can’t thank you enough Oh Lord! 🎉🙏❤️