G.R. No. 160728 - CLT REALTY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, VS. PHIL-VILLE DEVELOPMENT AND HOUSING CORPORATION, REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES (THROUGH THE OFFICE OF THE SOLICITOR GENERAL), AND THE REGISTER OF DEEDS OF METRO MANILA DISTRICT III, CALOOCAN CITY.D E C I S I O N - Supreme Court E-Library

Ruling

WHEREFORE, in view of all the foregoing premises, judgment is hereby rendered: 1. Declaring plaintiff Phil-Ville Development and Housing Corporation the true, absolute and legitimate owner of the sixteen (16) parcels of land subject matter of this case located in Caloocan City registered in its name; 2. Declaring null and void defendant CLTs Transfer Certificate of Title No. T-177013 and ordering defendant to surrender said title to defendant Register of Deeds of Metro Manila District III; 3. Ordering the defendant Register of Deeds of Metro Manila District III to cancel the original title of TCT No. 177013 in the name of CLT in the records of his office as well as the corresponding owners duplicate certificate; 4. Ordering defendant to pay plaintiff the sum of P50,000.00 as for attorneys fees; 5. The Injunction issued by this Court in its Order dated August 28, 1992 is hereby dissolved permanently; 6. To pay the cost of this suit. [5] FACTS This case started with a Complaint [6] for Quieting of Title, Damages and Injunction filed by respondent Phil-Ville against petitioner and the Register of Deeds of Metro Manila District III on August 28, 1991 before the RTC of Caloocan City, Branch 122, docketed as Civil Case No. 15045 . Both corporations are domestic, duly organized and existing under and by virtue of the laws of the Republic of the Philippines. Respondent Phil-Ville claims that it is the registered owner and actual possessor of sixteen (16) parcels of land in Baesa, Caloocan City, as shown in the following table [7] : Title No. Lot Description Exhibit C-21568 Lot 25-A, (LRC) Psd-41914 B C-24966 Lot 25-B-1, (LRC) Psd-42341 C C-33124 Lot 25-B-2, (LRC) Psd-42341 D C-21569 Lot 25-C, (LRC) Psd-41914 E C-33418 Lot 25-D, (LRC) Psd-41914 F C-21570 Lot 25-E, (LRC) Psd-41914 G C-232569 Lot 26, (LRC) Pcs-1828 H C-28076 Lot 27, (LRC) Pcs-1828 I C-28077 Lot 28, (LRC) Pcs-1828 J C-29114 Lot 31-A, (LRC) Psd-42343 K C-27944 Lot 31-B, (LRC) Psd-42343 L C-156145 Lot 34-A-2, (LRC) Psd-306716 M C-28075 Lot 34-B, (LRC) Psd-1234001 N C-29113 Lot 57-A-1, (LRC) Psd-116549 O C-35359 Lot 57-A-2, (LRC) Psd-116549 P C-27943 Lot 57-B, Psd-75893 Q Respondent Phil-Ville claimed that it had been in actual, open, notorious, public, physical and continuous possession of the 16 parcels of land before 1980 up to [the] present. [8] It fenced said parcels of land in 1980 and 1991. [9] Respondent Phil-Ville presented a chart [10] showing that the 16 parcels of land were derived from and were part of Lot 26, Maysilo Estate originally covered by Original Certificate of Title (OCT) No. 994 issued on May 3, 1917. Respondent Phil-Ville alleged that based on official records of the office of respondent Register of Deeds and the Land Registration Authority, petitioner was issued Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) No. T-177013 , covering a parcel of land situated in Caloocan City, particularly described as follows: A parcel of land (Lot 26, Maysil