Orlando Villanueva V.

CA & Lilia Villanueva

Oct. 27, 2010
Topic: Effect of Force, Intimidation, and Undue Influence (FC 45(4), NCC 1335)
Facts: Orlando and Lilia got married on April 13, 1988 in Puerto Princesa, Palawan. Then on November 17,
1992 he filed an annulment of their marriage alleging that threats of violence and duress forced him into
marrying Lilia. He further detailed that, he received harassing phone calls from Lilia, strangers, and
unwanted visitors who would wait for him after his classes. Aside from this, there was a certain Ka Celso, a
member of the NPA, who was said to have been hired by Lilia to threaten him and who accompanied him to
her home province in Palawan to marry her. He also said that he was defrauded into believing that she was
pregnant prior to their marriage which caused him to marry her. He further alleged to the court that he didnt
get her pregnant prior to marriage or having cohabited with her after their marriage. The said child was said
to have died during delivery. All these allegations were denied by Lilia. She showed proof of Orlandos
affection, expression of love and concern towards her in 13 letters. He acknowledges having sent 7 of the
letters showed but denied the 6. Regarding the death of the fetus, Lilia was able to show proof that the child
indeed died due to premature delivery and there was a certification from the Civil Registry.
Issue: Whether or not there is duress and fraud in obtaining his consent for their marriage.
Held: No. The Court ruled that his allegations were untenable and that this annulment case was filed in
order for the pending bigamy case filed against him by Lilia to be dismissed. His allegation of fear was not
clearly established as well as the intimidation being done against him by Lilia and her party because he
being a security guard was taken into consideration by the Court for he knows self defense. The threats he
said he received were not sufficient to make him not freely marry Lilia. Fraud cannot be raised as a reason
for annulment as there was no proof. Furthermore, it took him four years to file an action which merits to
Lilias contention that they cohabited. The Court did not believe him when he stated that he never got an
erection during their tryst and his counsel conceded that Orlando and Lilia had a sexual relationship.
Absence of cohabitation is also not a ground to annul such marriage. The failure to cohabit becomes
relevant only if it arises as a result of the perpetration of any of the grounds for annulling the marriage, such
as lack of parental consent, insanity, fraud, intimidation, or undue influence x x x. Since Orlando failed to
justify his failure to cohabit with Lilia on any of those grounds, the validity of his marriage must be upheld.