Dear Atty. Shalie,

My parents were married for almost 20 years and had three children. Five years ago, their marriage was annulled; and a year later, my father married his second wife and had two more children.

After my parents' separation, their properties were not legally distributed, in accord with the court's decision. Hence, the house and other properties, real and personal, that belonged to and acquired by my parents during their marriage have not been properly accounted for and divided between them. My mother and we (her three children) left our home and went to live with our grandparents in the province. 

Unfortunately, my father passed on a year ago without a will, and without having settled the subject properties from the first marriage. My father's stepmother has begun processing the settlement of my father's estate. What can we, as heirs from the first marriage do? Further, does our mother still have any recourse to get her share of the properties left by my father?

Daniel

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Dear Daniel,

It appears from your narration that your parents never moved for the execution of the decision nullifying their marriage. Thus, the subject property remained under the state of co-ownership among your parents and you, as the children of the first marriage.  Upon your father's death, succession set in and thus, the application of the law governing succession and the procedural rules governing the settlement of deceased persons. Your rights as children to the delivery of your presumptive legitimes had been superseded by your successional rights as compulsory heirs.

You can protect your successional rights in the proceeding for the settlement of the estate of the deceased spouse filed in court, wherein the main purpose is to settle and liquidate the estates of the deceased, and the determination of the assets that form part of the decedent's estate, the heirs who shall participate in said estate, and the amount or proportion of these heirs' respective shares therein.