Case Evaluation
We examine your marriage history, documents, and available witnesses to determine whether your facts support nullity, annulment, or another remedy — before you spend on the wrong petition.
Family Law
Ending a marriage in the Philippines is a court proceeding, not a form to file. We guide you through nullity and annulment with candor about your grounds, careful evidence, and steady hands at every hearing.
Overview
Philippine law distinguishes between marriages that are void from the beginning and marriages that are valid until annulled. A declaration of nullity applies to void marriages — those celebrated without a marriage license, bigamous or polygamous marriages, and marriages where a spouse was psychologically incapacitated to comply with the essential marital obligations under Article 36 of the Family Code. An annulment, strictly speaking, applies to voidable marriages under Article 45 — where a party married without parental consent between 18 and 21, or consented through fraud or intimidation, or was of unsound mind, physically incapable of consummating the marriage, or afflicted with a serious, incurable sexually transmissible disease at the time of marriage.
The distinction matters, because the grounds, the evidence, and the consequences differ. Most petitions today invoke psychological incapacity — and since Tan-Andal v. Andal (2021), the Supreme Court has recharacterized it as a legal concept rather than a medical diagnosis. Expert testimony remains helpful, but it is no longer indispensable; what wins these cases is clear and convincing proof, often from ordinary witnesses, that a spouse's personality structure made genuine compliance with marital obligations impossible.
As part of our family law practice, we handle these petitions from first consultation to PSA annotation. And because the wrong remedy wastes years, we begin by telling you honestly which path fits your facts — including whether legal separation or recognition of a foreign divorce is actually the better route for your situation.
How the Process Works
We examine your marriage history, documents, and available witnesses to determine whether your facts support nullity, annulment, or another remedy — before you spend on the wrong petition.
We draft and file a verified petition with the Regional Trial Court sitting as a Family Court, setting out the grounds with the factual detail the rules require.
The public prosecutor investigates whether the parties are colluding, and the Office of the Solicitor General participates to defend the marriage — we prepare you for both from day one.
Your testimony, corroborating witnesses, and where useful, expert evidence are presented in an orderly, credible sequence — the stage where these cases are truly won or lost.
After the court decides and the period to appeal lapses without challenge from the OSG, the judgment becomes final and a decree is issued.
We complete the liquidation of the property regime and see the decree annotated with the Local Civil Registrar and the Philippine Statistics Authority — the step that makes your records reflect your freedom.
Common Questions
For most Filipinos, no — the Philippines has no absolute divorce law, so a marriage cannot simply be dissolved by agreement or by a divorce decree obtained here. The remedies our law provides are a declaration of nullity for void marriages, annulment for voidable marriages, legal separation, and, where one spouse is or was a foreign national, judicial recognition of a divorce validly obtained abroad.
Under Article 36 of the Family Code, psychological incapacity is a ground to declare a marriage void when a spouse was truly incapable of understanding and complying with the essential obligations of marriage at the time of the wedding. In Tan-Andal v. Andal (2021), the Supreme Court clarified that it is a legal concept, not a medical illness — it must be proven by clear and convincing evidence of an enduring personality structure incompatible with marital obligations, and while expert testimony is helpful, it is not indispensable. Ordinary witnesses who knew the spouse before and during the marriage can supply the proof.
Children conceived or born before a judgment of nullity under Article 36 becomes final remain legitimate, and children of a voidable marriage conceived before the annulment judgment are likewise legitimate. The court resolves custody and support in the same proceeding, guided by the best interest of the child — a decree ending the marriage never erases a parent's obligation to support the children.
After the decree, the absolute community or conjugal partnership — or the co-ownership regime that governs void marriages — must be liquidated: assets are inventoried, obligations settled, and the net remainder divided in the proportions the law prescribes. The decree of nullity or annulment is registered and annotated with the Local Civil Registrar and the Philippine Statistics Authority, and the liquidation must generally be completed and recorded before either party may validly remarry.
There is no fixed timetable. Duration varies with the court's docket, the complexity of the evidence, the availability of witnesses, and whether the Office of the Solicitor General or the public prosecutor actively opposes the petition. What we can promise is diligent preparation and prompt compliance at every stage — not a guaranteed date, because no honest lawyer can guarantee one.
Work With Us
Reach us via Call, Viber, or WhatsApp at 0917-187-1951. Every consultation is private, and we will tell you honestly whether you have a case.
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