THE Supreme Court has ruled that land titles obtained through defective lot surveys are void.
The SC rendered this landmark decision when it stripped Ayala Land Inc. of ownership in a contested property in Las Piñas City.
In a 30-page decision released recently, the SC’s Second Division declared as nullified the registered Transfer of Certificate of Title of ALI covering a 135,000-square meter of land property situated in between residential developments Ayala Sonera and Ayala Primera.
The disputed property was converted into a golf course and materials depot of Ayala Corp’s Makati Development Corp.
The SC ruled in favor of spouses Yu Hwa Ping and Mary Gaw and heirs of spouses Andres and Josefa Mia Diaz, who held original titles of the land.
The high court resolved to reverse and set aside the June 2006 ruling of the Court of Appeals that favored ALI, which traced its TCT from purchase of the property from CPJ Corp. in 1992.
The SC cited numerous serious errors in land surveys that affected the validity of the original titles upon which Ayala’s TCTs were derived.
According to the tribunal, the defects were so blatant that the titles with CPJ should be voided even if these were duly registered.
“To allow these certificates of title in the registration books, even though these were sourced from invalid surveys, would tarnish and damage the Torrens system of registration, rather than uphold its integrity,” stated the decision penned by now retired Associate Justice Jose Catral Mendoza.
“Good faith must concur with registration because, otherwise, registration would be an exercise in futility,” it said.
The SC stressed that when a land registration decree is marred by severe irregularities that discredit the integrity of the Torrens system, it would not think twice in striking down such illegal title in order to protect the public against unscrupulous and illicit land ownership.
In favoring the petitioners, the SC disagreed with findings of the CA that the Diaz couple committed fraud when they registered their lots despite overlapping claims by CPJ.
Petitioners “had no obligation to inform CPJ of their application for registration and they could not be held guilty of fraud,” the SC ruled.
In January 1994, spouses Yu acquired ownership over Lot 1-B originating from OCT No. 8510 of spouses Diaz with an area of 135,000 square meters.
Pursuant to the transfers of land to spouses Yu, TCT Nos. 39408 and 64549 were issued in their names.
CPJ, on the other hand, transferred their interest in the subject properties to third persons in May 1980. In 1988, Ayala Corp. obtained the subject properties from Goldenrod Inc. and PESALA.
In 1992, following the merger of respondent ALI and Las Piñas Ventures Inc., ALI acquired all the subject properties.