VDA. DE VILLANUEVA vs. JUICO

VDA. DE VILLANUEVA vs. JUICO

4 SCRA 550

FACTS:  

Don Nicolas Villaflor executed a will in Spanish in his own handwriting, devising and bequeathing in favor of his wife, Dona Faustina ½ of all his real and personal properties giving the other half to his brother Don Fausto.

Petitioner filed an action against the administrator contending that upon the widow’s death, she became vested with the ownership of the properties bequeathed under clause 7 pursuant to its 8^th clause of the will.

ISSUE:

WON the petitioner is entitled to the ownership of the properties upon the death of Dona Faustina.

HELD:

 The intention of the testator here was to merely give usufructuary right to his wife Doňa Fausta because in his will he provided that Doňa Fausta shall forfeit the properties if she fails to bear a child and because she died without having begotten any children with the deceased then it means that Doňa Fausta never acquired ownership over the property. Upon her death, because she never acquired ownership over the property, the said properties are not included in her estate.  Those properties actually belong to Villaflor. That was the intention of the testator.  Otherwise, if the testator wanted to give the properties to Doňa Fausta then he should have specifically stated in his will that ownership should belong to Doňa Fausta without mentioning any condition.