Bar exam essentials, simplified. These digests cut straight to the key doctrines and requisites, perfect for working law students and future lawyers on the go.
Not everyone who gives Bar advice understands the weight of the journey.
The sleepless nights, the pressure, the doubts, and the discipline required to survive the Bar are experiences that cannot be fully understood from the outside.
Listen to wisdom, not noise. Your journey is yours to finish. ⚖️
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CIVIL LAW: Contract of Sale vs. Contract for a Piece of Work ⚖️💫
To distinguish a contract of sale from a contract for a piece of work, the first test is the intention of the parties.
If the parties intend the object to be delivered in the future without regard to the work or skill of the person who will produce it, the contract is sale.
If the undertaking is accepted based on a plan or the particular skills to be employed, the contract is piece of work.
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CIVIL LAW; Prohibited Contract of Sale ⚖️💫
Under Article XII, Section 7 of the 1987 Constitution, save in cases of hereditary succession, private lands cannot be transferred except to individuals, corporations, or associations qualified to acquire or hold lands of the public domain.
Thus, a foreigner cannot acquire Philippine land by sale, and a sale made in violation of the constitutional prohibition is void.
However, under jurisprudence, the defect may be cured by the subsequent acquisition of Philippine citizenship by the alien or by the transfer of the property to a Filipino citizen, subject to the applicable legal rules.
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CIVIL LAW: Attractive Nuisance 💫⚖️
Under Article 2176 of the Civil Code and the doctrine of attractive nuisance, a person who maintains an artificial condition, dangerous instrumentality, or appliance on his premises that is likely to attract children and fails to exercise ordinary care to prevent injury may be held liable for damages, even if the child is technically a trespasser.
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CIVIL LAW; Contract of Sale and the Application of the Nemo Dat Quod Non Habet Rule ⚖️💫
Under Articles 1458, 1475, and 1496 of the Civil Code, ownership of the thing sold by the seller is not an essential element for the perfection of a contract of sale because a sale is perfected by mere consent as to the object and price.
Thus, the seller’s non-ownership of the thing sold at the time of perfection does not render the contract void.
However, upon delivery or consummation of the sale, the seller must have the right to transfer ownership.
Otherwise, under the nemo dat quod non habet rule, the buyer acquires no better right than that possessed by the seller, unless the buyer is protected by an exception such as good faith acquisition recognized by law.
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CIVIL LAW: Effect on Free Patent ⚖️🥑
Under Section 44 of Commonwealth Act No. 141 (Public Land Act), a free patent may be issued only over lands of the public domain classified as alienable and disposable agricultural lands.
Thus, when a property has already become private property by operation of law upon compliance with Section 14(1) of P.D. No. 1529 (Property Registration Decree), as amended by R.A. No. 11573, it can no longer be the subject of a free patent because it is no longer part of the public domain.
Any free patent subsequently issued over such property is void for lack of authority on the part of the State to dispose of private land as public land.
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Illustration: A owns land adjoining a river.
Over several years, soil is gradually and imperceptibly deposited by the natural action of the river, causing additional land to attach to A’s property.
A acquires ownership of the accretion because the requisites of natural, gradual, and imperceptible deposit are present.
However, if A artificially fills the riverbank to create additional land, such area does not become private property by accretion and remains part of the public domain.
CIVIL LAW; Requisites of Accretion (Alluvion) ⚖️💫
Under Article 457 of the Civil Code, as applied in Republic v. Asuncion (2021), accretion or alluvion belongs to the owner of lands adjoining the banks of rivers only when the deposit of soil is gradual and imperceptible and is caused exclusively by the natural action of waters.
Thus, the additional land must result from natural forces along rivers, creeks, streams, or lakes.
Where the formation of land is due to human intervention or artificial means, it does not become private property by accretion but remains part of the public domain.
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CIVIL LAW ⚖️💫 Ejectment Involving Subterranean Portions and Structures Attached to Property 💛
Under Article 427 of the Civil Code, as applied in PLDT v. City Alliance (2019) and Barbers v. Cruz (2021), ownership of land extends not only to the surface but also to everything underneath and to the space above it up to a reasonable height, including structures attached to the property.
Accordingly, an action for ejectment may prosper even when the unlawful intrusion does not involve the surface of the land itself, but concerns the subterranean portion of the property or an encroachment upon structures forming part of the property, because such intrusion constitutes an impairment of the owner’s right to possess, use, and enjoy the property.
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Illustration: A owns a parcel of land. B occupies the property without A’s consent for six months.
A files an action to recover possession, alleging that he is the owner of the property and that B has no right to possess it.
The action is accion publiciana, not accion reivindicatoria, because A merely seeks recovery of the better right to possess, and the allegation of ownership is only incidental to determine possession.
However, if B disputes A’s ownership and the complaint seeks a definitive declaration of ownership and recovery of the property based on ownership, the action becomes accion reivindicatoria.
CIVIL LAW 💛⚖️ Accion Publiciana
Under Aguillo v. Spilda Espinosa (2025), En Banc, accion publiciana is the plenary action for recovery of the better right to possess and may be filed even when the dispossession has lasted for one year or less, provided that the case does not involve the elements of forcible entry or unlawful detainer under Rule 70 of the Rules of Court.
The nature of the action is determined not merely by the allegation of ownership or the fact that ownership is mentioned in the complaint, but by the relief sought and the actual issue raised.
Hence, a complaint becomes accion reivindicatoria only when it seeks recovery of ownership or when the defendant places the plaintiff’s ownership in dispute.
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3 essential skills for bar exam success:
1. issue spotting
2. legal knowledge
3. answer format using the ALAC/CLA method
Most students focus on the 2nd skill. Aral at memorize ng law at doctrines ang focus. Remember, the 1st and 3rd skills need practice also.
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To every barrister who is thinking of trying again:
The dream is still yours. A setback does not erase the years of sacrifice, sleepless nights, and the promise you made to yourself.
Fear is temporary. If your heart still chooses the law, perhaps your story is not finished yet. Gather your strength, return to the fight, and try again. ⚖️
Inspired by the words shared by @attykrystle.
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Isshare ko lang ung usapan namin ni Dady ngayong umaga pang boost ng morale nating mga #CaguiWarriors#CaguiWowBar2022#GetThatBar2022
“…kunin mo ulit. Paulit ulit kung kinakailangan. Ganon mo dapat ilaban ang mga pangarap na pinili mo para sa sarili mo.”