IN RE: PETITION FOR CORRECTION OF ENTRY OF CERTIFICATE OF BIRTH OF THE MINOR, CHUA TAN CHUAN, PETITIONER-APPELLEE, VS. REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES, OPPOSITOR-APPELLANT.

Chua Tan Chuan versus Republic of the Philippines

The Case

This is the case of Chua Tan Chuan versus the Republic of the Philippines. Chua Tan Chuan, a Chinese citizen residing in Davao City, filed a petition in the lower court asking that the nationality of his minor son, Jacob Chua, be changed from Chinese to Filipino in the child's certificate of birth. The Republic opposed the petition. The case matters because it is the Supreme Court's firm reminder that a petition for correction of an entry in the civil registry cannot be used as a backdoor to obtain a judicial declaration of Philippine citizenship.

Procedural History

Chua Tan Chuan filed a verified petition in the lower court on April 28, 1965, through counsel, seeking to change his son's nationality from Chinese to Filipino as reflected in the birth certificate. The lower court, presided over by Judge Vicente P. Bullecer, rendered a decision on September 24, 1965, granting the correction and ordering that the nationality be changed from Chinese to Filipino. The Republic, as oppositor, appealed to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court reversed the lower court's decision.

Facts

Chua Tan Chuan is a Chinese citizen residing in Santa Ana, Davao City. His minor son, Jacob Chua, was born at the Brokenshire Memorial Hospital. The attending physician prepared the child's certificate of birth, and the nationality of the child was indicated therein as Chinese.

In a separate case filed by Leoncia Manglangit against Chua Tan Chuan, the court found that Chua Tan Chuan and Leoncia Manglangit were not legally married but lived as common-law husband and wife, and that Jacob Chua is the illegitimate child of Leoncia Manglangit.

On April 28, 1965, Chua Tan Chuan filed a verified petition for correction of the entry of nationality in his son's certificate of birth, claiming that the entry of Chinese was a mistake. The lower court granted the petition on September 24, 1965, ordering the correction. The Republic appealed.

Issues

• Whether or not a petition for correction of an entry in the certificate of birth may be used to change the nationality of a minor from Chinese to Filipino.
• Whether or not the lower court erred in granting the petition for correction of entry, which in effect requests a judicial declaration of Philippine citizenship.

Applicable Provisions

The decision does not quote any specific statutory provision. It relies on the doctrine laid down in Reyes versus Republic, which the Court quotes:

While ostensibly, the action seeks a mere correction of an entry in the Civil Registry, in effect, it requests the judicial declaration of Philippine citizenship. Many such cases this Court has dismissed. We have clearly stated time and again, that declaratory relief is not available for the purpose of obtaining a judicial declaration of citizenship.

This doctrine bears directly on the case because it establishes that a correction of entry proceeding cannot be employed to obtain a judicial declaration of citizenship.

Ruling

On the first issue, the Court ruled that a petition for correction of an entry in the certificate of birth cannot be used to change the nationality of a minor from Chinese to Filipino. The Court held that while the action ostensibly seeks a mere correction of an entry in the civil registry, in effect it requests a judicial declaration of Philippine citizenship, which is not permissible through such a proceeding.

On the second issue, the Court ruled that the lower court erred in granting the petition. The Court noted that the lower court was apparently oblivious of the 1964 decision in Reyes versus Republic, penned by then Chief Justice Bengzon about ten months before, which reiterated the doctrine that a change of citizenship cannot be effected in this manner. The Court quoted from Reyes versus Republic:

The case before us is not of first impression. We have repeatedly declared that in this jurisdiction, the remedy sought in the instant petition cannot be granted in the manner desired. While ostensibly, the action seeks a mere correction of an entry in the Civil Registry, in effect, it requests the judicial declaration of Philippine citizenship. Many such cases this Court has dismissed. We have clearly stated time and again, that declaratory relief is not available for the purpose of obtaining a judicial declaration of citizenship.

The Court described the appealed decision as suffering from a congenital infirmity beyond the possibility of any cure, and reversed the lower court.

Doctrine

A petition for correction of an entry in the civil registry cannot be used to obtain a judicial declaration of Philippine citizenship. While such a petition may ostensibly seek a mere correction of an entry, if in effect it requests a judicial declaration of citizenship, it must be dismissed. Declaratory relief is not available for the purpose of obtaining a judicial declaration of citizenship. This doctrine, laid down in Reyes versus Republic and reiterated in subsequent cases, bars the use of correction of entry proceedings as a means to acquire Filipino citizenship.

Disposition

The Supreme Court reversed the lower court's decision of September 24, 1965, with costs against Chua Tan Chuan. The Republic won.

Remember This

The single line worth memorizing: a petition for correction of entry in the civil registry cannot be used to obtain a judicial declaration of Philippine citizenship. Examiners like to use this case to test whether a candidate recognizes that a change of nationality cannot be effected through a mere correction of entry proceeding.