Daily Serving of Legal Matters

Here is another advice sought by my client one day.  He is named B and working as an OFW in Italy.  For more information, please read the post below: A and B, both Filipinos, were lawfully married on February 19, 1981 in General Santos City, Philippines.  Sometime in 1995, B worked in Italy as an Overseas Filipino Worker or OFW.  While working in Italy, B met another Filipino, C.  Unfortunately, B and C fell in love with each other and they decided to get married in Italy.  Could B liable for the crime of bigamy? To answer this question, we have to define what would constitute the crime of bigamy. According to the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines, a bigamy is committed when any person who shall contract a second or subsequent marriage before the former marriage has been legally dissolved, or before the absent spouse has been declared presumptively dead by means of a judgment rendered in the proper proceedings. A picture of bigamy take...

One day, a client asked me whether she could remarry again.  She has been separated from her husband for almost 15 years already.  Is it true that her marriage already expires considering of the number of years she has been separated with her husband? It is one of the many misconceptions people are getting from the circle of friends.  Accordingly, one could remarry again if he or she has been separated with his/her wife/husband for a number of years.  For example, in the situation mentioned in this post, considering that the spouses are separated for more than 15 years already, it would render their marriage null and void. The separation that is tackled here is one that is known as separation-in-fact.  Or the spouses have just agreed to separate without the benefit of any court order.  In short, their separation has not been sanctioned by any order of the court. Separation-in-Fact, no matter how long it may be, does not severe the marriage bon...