C. Torrens System

Need for Registration (P.D. 1529. §113)

No deed, conveyance, mortgage, lease, or other voluntary instrument affecting land not registered under the Torrens system shall be valid, except as between the parties thereto, unless such instrument shall have been recorded in the manner herein prescribed in the office of the Register of Deeds for the province or city where the land lies.

The system of registration under the Spanish Mortgage Law is discontinued and all lands recorded under said system which are not yet covered by Torrens title shall be considered unregistered lands.

Torrens System

The Torrens System is a system of registration of transactions with interest in land the object of which is, under governmental authority, to establish and certify the ownership of an absolute and indefeasible title to realty, and to simplify its transfer. (Grey Alba v. De la Cruz, G.R. No. 5246, September 16, 1910 citing Hogg on Australian Torrens System.)

Torrens System

The Torrens System is a system of registration of transactions with interest in land the object of which is, under governmental authority, to establish and certify the ownership of an absolute and indefeasible title to realty, and to simplify its transfer. (Grey Alba v. De la Cruz, G.R. No. 5246, September 16, 1910 citing Hogg on Australian Torrens System.)

Land registration

Land registration is a judicial or administrative proceeding whereby a person’s claim over a particular land is determined and confirmed or recognized so that such land and the ownership thereof may be recorded in a public registry.

Purposes of land registration under the Torrens System

• Quiet title to the land. To quiet title to the land and to stop forever any question as to the legality of said title, except claims which were noted at the time of registration, in the certificate, or which may arise subsequent thereto- Relieves the land of unknown claims- Gives every registered owner complete peace of mind
• Guarantee the integrity of land titles. To guarantee the integrity of land titles and to protect their indefeasibility once the claim of ownership is established and recognized
• Avoid possible conflicts. To avoid possible conflicts of title to real property
• Facilitate transactions relative thereto. To facilitate transactions relative thereto by giving the public the right to rely upon the face of a Torrens certificate of title and to dispense with further inquiry, except when the party concerned has actual knowledge of facts and circumstances that should impel a reasonably cautious man to make such further inquiry. (Sps. Peralta v. Heirs of Abalon, G.R. No. 183448, June 30, 2014)
• Best evidence of ownership. To issue a certificate of title to the owner which shall be the best evidence of his ownership of the land

(3A) Private ownership

Ownership of land may be shown through the following:

• A Spanish title, subject to the limitation stated below.
• Tax declarations and proof of tax payments. These are not conclusive proof of ownership and must be accompanied by evidence of actual possession for the period required by law.
• Other forms of proof.
• Testimony.
• Photographs of improvements made on the land.
• Presidential issuances or legislative acts that vest fee simple or absolute title in a grantee, including a law transferring full ownership to a government institution.

Spanish titles: The law allowed six months from its effectivity, ending on August 14, 1976, to apply for registration of Spanish titles under the Torrens system. After that deadline, a Spanish title is inadmissible as proof of ownership in a land registration proceeding or an action to remove a cloud on or quiet title. It is no longer unquestionable evidence of ownership. Moreover, its holder may lose ownership to an occupant who actually possesses the property for the required prescriptive period. Santiago v. SBMA, G.R. No. 156888, November 20, 2006.