Supreme Court favors Aguirre clan in land row

MANILA, Philippines - The Supreme Court (SC) has upheld the Aguirre family’s ownership of several parcels of land being claimed by Banco Filipino in four provinces.

In a 19-page decision penned by Associate Justice Conchita Carpio Morales, the SC’s Second Division granted the consolidated petitions of Tala Realty Services and Add International Services Inc. of the Aguirre family seeking a reversal of the orders of regional trial courts in Cabanatuan City in Nueva Ecija, Davao City, Urdaneta in Pangasinan and Lucena City in Quezon that gave the Banco Filipino Savings and Mortgage Bank (Banco Filipino) the right over at least 17 parcels of land in these places.

The SC ruled that the 1979 trust agreement between Tala Realty and Banco Filipino was null and void and could not be used as a valid ground in the latter’s bid to reacquire the properties, reiterating its earlier ruling on Nov. 22, 2002.

“Once a court has laid down a principle of law as applicable to a certain state of facts, it will adhere to that principle and apply it to all future cases where the facts are substantially the same. This Court’s ruling… on the nullity of the trust agreement which Banco Filipino seeks to enforce thus applies to the present petitions,” the SC said.

Associate Justices Leonardo Quisumbing, Dante Tinga, Presbitero Velasco Jr. and Diosdado Peralta concurred with the ruling.