Book III runs from Article 712 to Article 1155 and answers a single question in five different ways: how does ownership pass from one person to another? Article 712 lists the modes — occupation and intellectual creation, then law, donation, testate and intestate succession, certain contracts followed by delivery, and prescription. Two of those Titles carry most of the practical weight. The Title on succession, Articles 774 to 1105, is the longest in the Code and decides who inherits and how much. The Title on prescription, Articles 1106 to 1155, decides whether long possession has ripened into ownership and, just as often, whether it is already too late to sue at all. If you are asking either “who gets this” or “am I still in time”, the answer is in this Book.
Quick Answer
Book III (Arts. 712–1155) has five Titles: Occupation, Intellectual Creation, Donation, Succession, and Prescription. Succession covers wills and their formalities, compulsory heirs and legitimes, intestate shares, disinheritance and partition. Prescription covers both acquisitive prescription, by which possession can ripen into ownership, and extinctive prescription, which sets the period within which an action must be filed — ten years on a written contract, an obligation created by law or a judgment (Art. 1144), and thirty years for real actions over immovables (Art. 1141).
The five Titles
| Title | Articles | What it governs |
|---|---|---|
| I — Occupation | 713–720 | Acquiring things that have no owner: wild animals, hidden treasure, abandoned movables. Land cannot be acquired by occupation (Art. 714) |
| II — Intellectual Creation | 721–724 | The author’s or inventor’s right in a creation. Now governed in substance by the Intellectual Property Code — see the boundary note below |
| III — Donation | 725–773 | Requisites and form of donations, what may be donated, acceptance, revocation and reduction of inofficious donations |
| IV — Succession | 774–1105 | Testamentary succession, wills and their formalities, compulsory heirs and legitimes, intestate shares, disinheritance, collation, and provisions common to testate and intestate succession including partition |
| V — Prescription | 1106–1155 | Acquisitive prescription of ownership and real rights; extinctive prescription, including the periods within which actions must be brought (Arts. 1139–1155) |
Inside the Title on succession
Article 774 defines succession as the mode by which property, rights and obligations are transmitted on death. Three structural points shape almost every inheritance question:
- A will cannot dispose of everything. Compulsory heirs are entitled to a legitime fixed by law. What remains after the legitimes is the free portion, and only that part is genuinely at the testator’s disposal. A will that ignores a compulsory heir is not simply unfair; it is defective in a way the Code corrects.
- Without a will, the order and the shares are set by law. Intestate succession (Arts. 960–1014) provides who inherits and in what proportion, including the surviving spouse, legitimate and illegitimate children, parents and collateral relatives.
- Form matters absolutely for wills. The formalities for notarial and holographic wills are strict, and a will that fails them cannot be saved by clear proof of what the deceased wanted.
Two subjects that feel like succession are governed elsewhere. Whether a person qualifies as a spouse, or as a legitimate, illegitimate or adopted child, is a status question under the Family Code — covered on our sister site FamilyCode.ph — and the computation of the resulting shares is ours. And settling the estate is procedural: extrajudicial settlement is governed by Rule 74 of the Rules of Court, with estate tax and registration steps before the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Registry of Deeds.
Inside the Title on prescription
Prescription does two opposite jobs in the same Title, and confusing them is a common and expensive error.
- Acquisitive prescription can turn long possession into ownership, but only possession of a particular character and only for property that can be acquired that way. Registered land under the Torrens system is the significant exception in practice.
- Extinctive prescription bars the action. Article 1144 gives ten years for an action upon a written contract, upon an obligation created by law, or upon a judgment, counted from the time the right of action accrues. Article 1141 gives thirty years for real actions over immovables. Article 1143 lists rights that are not extinguished by prescription at all, including the right to demand a right of way and the right to bring an action to abate a nuisance.
The period is only half the analysis. When the clock started — the accrual of the cause of action — decides as many cases as the length of the period does, and it is fact-specific.
Boundary note on Title II
Articles 721 to 724 on intellectual creation are largely historical. Copyright, trademarks, patents and related rights are governed by the Intellectual Property Code and its amendments, and within this network those subjects belong to Cybercode.ph. CivilLaw.PH mentions these articles for completeness and does not publish guides on intellectual property.
Where Book III is explained on CivilLaw.PH
- Titles III and IV — donation and succession — Succession and Inheritance.
- Title V — acquisitive prescription — read with Book II’s Title on possession; see whether long possession makes you the owner of land.
- Title V — prescription of actions — Barangay, Courts and Civil Remedies, together with forum and filing thresholds.
Frequently asked questions
Why is inheritance in the Book about acquiring ownership?
Because the Code treats succession as one of the modes by which ownership is transmitted, alongside donation, prescription and delivery under a contract. Article 712 lists them together. It is a drafting choice rather than a doctrinal quirk, but it explains why readers looking for “inheritance law” find nothing under the property Book.
How long do I have to file a civil case?
It depends on the kind of action, and the period runs from when the right of action accrued. Ten years applies to an action on a written contract, on an obligation created by law, or on a judgment (Art. 1144); thirty years to real actions over immovables (Art. 1141); and some rights never prescribe (Art. 1143). Shorter periods apply elsewhere in the Code for specific actions, so identify the action first and the period second.
Can a will give everything to one child?
No, not where there are other compulsory heirs. Their legitimes are reserved by law, and a will can freely dispose only of the free portion that remains after those legitimes are satisfied. A will that leaves a compulsory heir out entirely raises questions of preterition and disinheritance, which have different consequences.
Can land be acquired just by occupying it?
Not by occupation — Article 714 says so expressly. Land can be acquired by acquisitive prescription in the circumstances the Code allows, which is a different mode with its own requirements as to the character and length of possession, and which does not run against registered land in the ordinary case.
Sources and Legal Citations
- Civil Code of the Philippines, Republic Act No. 386, Book III, Arts. 712–1155, full text at lawphil.net. Supports: the five Titles and their article ranges, and the substance of Arts. 712, 713, 714, 774, 1141, 1143 and 1144. Status: verified against the published text.
- Rules of Court, Rule 74. Supports: that extrajudicial settlement of an estate is governed by a procedural rule outside the Civil Code.
- Family Code of the Philippines, Executive Order No. 209 (1987), as amended. Supports: that the status of a spouse or child is determined under the Family Code.
- Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines, Republic Act No. 8293, as amended. Supports: that intellectual creation is now governed by special legislation.
Sources rechecked as of 11 September 2026. Article ranges within the Title on succession are stated by number from the published text; no codal provision is quoted on this page.
Disclaimer
This page is general legal information, not legal advice. Inheritance shares depend on who survives the deceased, the existence and validity of a will, and the character of the property; prescription depends on when the cause of action accrued. CivilLaw.PH is independent and is not a government website, a court, a registry or a law firm.