Admissibility of medico-legal findings as evidence in rape cases
Dear PAO, My brother was falsely accused of rape by his neighbor. The medico-legal examination conducted on the alleged victim yielded a negative spermatozoa result, which, from our understanding, is favorable to my brother’s defense. However, there was an annotation in the medical report stating that the test “cannot totally rule out sexual assault.” What […]
Homeowners’ association dues may be validly imposed on owners of vacant lots
Dear PAO, I recently bought a parcel of land inside an exclusive subdivision, which I intend to keep as an investment. Three weeks ago, I received an email from the subdivision’s homeowners’ association demanding the payment for three months’ worth of association dues on my vacant lot. This surprised me, considering that my lot remains […]
Damaging one’s property may constitute malicious mischief
Dear PAO, We live in a subdivision. I admit that I parked my car outside our gate. This caused several tensions and heated argument with my neighbor because they said that my car was obstructing the road. One day, I noticed that the passenger door of my car was damaged. There were also dents in […]
The concept of acceleration clause
Dear PAO, I obtained a loan from my friend. He agreed to lend me a total amount of P400,000. But, he insisted that we should execute a contract of loan. We agreed that the total amount of the loan would be payable for 20 months or P20,000 per month, plus P2,000 interest per month. He […]
Homosexuality per se is not a ground for annulment of marriage
Dear PAO, Jose seemed to be the ideal husband, or at least that was my impression when we were still sweethearts. I also knew that he was gay, but I still chose to marry him. Eventually, our marriage turned sour that we cannot really get along anymore. We are now separated-in-fact. My friend told me […]
Consent maybe a defense in rape but not relationship
Dear PAO, The family of my girlfriend has been against our relationship from the beginning. I heard that they are now preparing to file a criminal action for rape against me. My girlfriend and I are both adults, and everything that happened between us was consensual. I intend to prove that we were in a […]
Mother of an illegitimate child must sign birth certificate
Dear PAO, I have a question about the registration of my nephew’s birth certificate. My sister had a child with her partner from 2018 to 2022. They were not married because the man she was with was already married to someone else before they lived together. Without my sister’s knowledge and without her signature, her […]
Abuse of right principle | The Manila Times
Dear PAO, My two brothers and I prepared for our father’s 80th birthday celebration. He has compromised physical and cognitive abilities, and we planned the event over the course of nearly six months, inviting several guests. Throughout the planning process, we remained in regular contact with our stepmother to remind her of the upcoming celebration. […]
Can labor disputes be resolved through a barangay conciliation procedure?
Dear PAO, I have been working as a hairdresser for the past five years in a local salon near my house. However, last week, my employment was terminated by the owner of the salon without any reason. As such, I was not allowed to come into the salon. Frustrated, I sought the help of our […]
What does quorum in meetings mean?
Dear PAO, I am a single mother and a homeowner. I was away picking up my child from her therapist when our homeowners’ association held a meeting and made some decisions without my presence. I told the association that it could not make any decisions about our village without me, but they told me that […]