"Regalian doctrine", Sec. 2, Article XII, 1987 Constitution

RAMON ARANDA vs. REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES, G.R. No. 172331, August 24, 2011

“x x x.

Under the Regalian doctrine which is embodied in Section 2, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution, all lands of the public domain belong to the State, which is the source of any asserted right to ownership of land. All lands not appearing to be clearly within private ownership are presumed to belong to the State. Unless public land is shown to have been reclassified or alienated to a private person by the State, it remains part of the inalienable public domain. To overcome this presumption, incontrovertible evidence must be established that the land subject of the application is alienable or disposable.^[15]

X x x.”

Footnotes:

^[14] SECTION 14. Who may apply. The following persons may file in the proper Court of First Instance an application for registration of title to land, whether personally or through their duly authorized representatives:

(1) Those who by themselves or through their predecessors-in-interest have been in open, continuous, exclusive and notorious possession and occupation of alienable and disposable lands of the public domain under a bona fide claim of ownership since June 12, 1945, or earlier.

x x x x

^[15] Republic v. Lao, G.R. No. 150413, July 1, 2003, 405 SCRA 291, 298, citing Seville v. National Development Company, G.R. No. 129401, February 2, 2001, 351 SCRA 112, 120; Bracewell v. Court of Appeals, 380 Phil. 156, 162 (2000); Menguito v. Republic, G.R. No. 134308, December 14, 2000, 348 SCRA 128, 139; and Pagkatipunan v. Court of Appeals, G.R. No. 129682, March 21, 2002, 379 SCRA 621, 628.

^[16] Republic v. Court of Appeals, G.R. No. 127060, November 19, 2002, 392 SCRA 190, 201.

^[17] Republic v. Tri-Plus Corporation, G.R. No. 150000, September 26, 2006, 503 SCRA 91, 102.

^[20] See Republic v. T.A.N. Properties, Inc., G.R. No. 154953, June 26, 2008, 555 SCRA 477, 492.

^[21] Buenaventura v. Republic, G.R. No. 166865, March 2, 2007, 517 SCRA 271, 289.

^[22] Wee v. Republic, G.R. No. 177384, December 8, 2009, 608 SCRA 72, 83, citing Director of Lands v. Judge Reyes, 160-A Phil. 832, 851 (1975) and Ramirez and Bayot de Ramirez v. Director of Lands, 60 Phil. 114 (1934).

^[23] Arbias v. Republic, G.R. No. 173808, September 17, 2008, 565 SCRA 582, 597, citing Republic v. Intermediate Appellate Court, No. L-66069, September 28, 1984, 132 SCRA 395, 397, cited in Edao v. Court of Appeals, G.R. No. 83995, September 4, 1992, 213 SCRA 585, 592.

^[24] Id., citing Maloles and Malvar v. Director of Lands, 25 Phil. 548, 553 (1913), cited in Edao v. Court of Appeals, id. at 593.