REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

REGIONAL TRIAL COURT

Bucay, Abra
BRANCH 58

IN RE: PETITION FOR JUDICIAL SP NO. 16-944

RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN JUDGMENT
OF DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE

HERMIE PAGTALUNAN,
Petitioner,

-versus-

Office of the Civil Registrar General

Respondent.
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DECISION

Before this court is a petition for RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN

JUDGEMENT filed by petitioner, Hermie Pagtalunan.

The facts collated from the petitioners testimony as follows:

On 20 February 2003, Hermie Pagtalunan, a Filipino citizen, and, Vanessa

Doctora, formerly a Filipino citizen but now is an American citizen, got married to
each other.

The relationship was ideal and happy for years until Vanessa Doctora left for
the United States of America to work. In no time, Vanessa obtained American
citizenship. Unfortunately, it was not long too before Vanessa found a new love
and abandoned her spouse in the Philippines.

On 2 December 2013, Vanessa, now an American citizen, filed for a Petition

for Dissolution of Marriage before Superior Court of California County of Los
Angeles, docketed as YD063882. After due service of summons and hearing, she
obtained the Judgment of Dissolution capacitating her to remarry. The same was
entered on 26 January 2015 finally dissolving her marital relationship with herein
petitioner.

Petitioner provided, marked and identified as evidence the following:

Original Copy of Marriage Certificate as Exhibit A

Original Copy Divorce Decree dated 2 December 2013 as Exhibit
B
Certified True Copy of Family Code of California as Exhibit C
Naturalization Certificate of Vanessa Doctora as Exhibit D
Page 2 of 3
Decision
SP No. 16-944

On the basis of fore going facts and evidence petitioner prayed for the
recognition of the Divorce so granted to his spouse and subsequently prayed for an
authority to remarry pursuant to Article 26 of the Family Code.

As held in FUJIKI vs. MARINAY, G.R. No. 196049, June 26, 2013, For
Philippine courts to recognize a foreign judgment relating to the status of a
marriage where one of the parties is a citizen of a foreign country, the petitioner
only needs to prove the foreign judgment as a fact under the Rules of Court. To be
more specific, a copy of the foreign judgment may be admitted in evidence and
proven as a fact under Rule 132, Sections 24 and 25, in relation to Rule 39, Section
48(b) of the Rules of Court. Petitioner may prove the Japanese Family Court
judgment through (1) an official publication or (2) a certification or copy attested
by the officer who has custody of the judgment.

Also, such foreign law must also be proved as our courts cannot take
judicial notice of foreign laws. Like any other fact, such laws must be alleged and
proved, GARCIA VS. RECIO, G.R. No. 1388322, 13 JANUARY 2003.

This court is of view that petitioner had adequately complied with the above
requirements. Petitioner through his testimony and documentary evidence
established the foreign judgment as a fact and that it conforms to the foreign law
allowing it.

Which brings us to the second issue on whether or not to grant the authority
to remarry pursuant to Article 26 of the Family Code after the divorce was a
former Filipino.

In view of the foregoing, we state the twin elements for the application of
Paragraph 2 of Article 26 as follows:

1. T