Perez, Jr. v. Perez-Senerpida 

G.R. No. 233365, March 24, 2021 

Prohibited Donations; Donation between spouses; Requisites for a valid donation 

The prohibition against a spouse to donate any Absolute Community Property or Conjugal Partnership Property without the consent of the other Spouse Equally Applies to common-law relations. 

Spouses Eliodoro and Adelita were registered owners of a parcel of land. A sworn statement denominated as Renunciation and Waiver of Rights (RWR) was executed by Adelita in favor of Eliodoro. Said instrument was inscribed on TCT No. T-7396. Eliodoro donated the said land to Nicxon, his grandson, without the conformity of Adelita. Eliodoro filed against Adelita a petition for declaration of nullity of marriage under Article 36 of the Family Code. The RTC declared their marriage void ab initio. Eliodoro died and an Extrajudicial Settlement Among Heirs with Waiver was executed and signed by his heirs. Avegail, one of the children of the Spouses, brought an action for Annulment of Donation against Nicxon. She claimed that the RWR and DoD should be annulled because the same are prejudicial to her interest as it affected her legitime. 

Were the Renunciation and Waiver of Rights (RWR) and Deed of Donation (DoD) valid? 

No. Donations between spouses are prohibited under Art. 87 of the Family Code and the same applies to “persons living together as husband and wife without a valid marriage”. The Court equalized common-law relationships between a man and a woman, on the one hand, and validly married spouses on the other, in respect of the nullity of donations made between the parties. The prohibition against a spouse to donate any absolute community property or conjugal partnership property without the consent of the other spouse equally applies to common-law relations or cohabitations of a man and a woman without a valid marriage or under a void marriage.