THE ESTATE OF HILARIO M. RUIZ, EDMOND RUIZ, Executor, petitioner, vs.

THE COURT OF APPEALS (Former Special Sixth Division), MARIA PILAR RUIZ-MONTES, MARIA CATHRYN RUIZ, CANDICE ALBERTINE RUIZ, MARIA ANGELINE RUIZ and THE PRESIDING JUDGE OF THE REGIONAL TRIAL COURT OF PASIG, respondents. [G.R. No. 118671, January 29, 1996, PUNO, J.:] FACTS: 1. Hilario Ruiz executed a holographic will where he named the following as his heirs a. Edmond Ruiz only son b. Maria Pilar Ruiz adopted daughter c. Maria Cathryn, Candice Albertine and Maria Angeline - 3 granddaughters, all daughters of Ruiz 2. Testator bequeathed to his heirs substantial cash, personal and real properties and named Edmond Ruiz executor of his estate. 3. Hilario Ruiz died and the cash component of his estate was immediately distributed among Ruiz and respondents. 4. Edmond, the named executor, did not take any action for the probate of his father's holographic will. 5. 4 years after Pilar filed before the RTC a petition for the probate and approval of the deceaseds will and for the issuance of letters testamentary to Edmond Ruiz a. Edmond opposed the petition on the ground that the will was executed under undue influence. 6. The house and lot in Valle Verde, Pasig which the testator bequeathed to the 3 granddaughters was leased out by Edmond to third persons. 7. Probate court ordered Edmond to deposit with the Branch Clerk of Court the rental deposit and payments totalling P540,000.00 representing the one-year lease of the Valle Verde property. 8. Edmond moved for the release of P50,000.00 to pay the real estate taxes on the real properties of the estate. a. The probate court approved the release of P7,722.00 9. Edmond withdrew his opposition to the probate of the will a. Probate court admitted the will to probate and ordered the issuance of letters testamentary to Edmond conditioned upon the filing of a bond in the amount of P50,000.00 10. Testate Estate of Hilario Ruiz, with Edmond Ruiz as executor, filed an "Ex-Parte Motion for Release of Funds a. Prayed for release of the rent payments deposited with the Branch Clerk of Court b. Montes opposed and praying that the release of rent payments be given to the 3 granddaughters c. Probate court denied the release of funds and granted the motion of Montes due to Edmonds lack of opposition d. Probate Court ordered the release of the funds to Edmond but only "such amount as may be necessary to cover the expenses of administration and allowances for support" of the testator's three granddaughters subject to collation and deductible from their share in the inheritance 11. CA sustained probate courts order. ISSUE: W/N the probate court, after admitting the will to probate but before payment of the estate's debts and obligations, has the authority: 1. to grant an allowance from the funds of the estate for the support of the testator's grandchildren - NO 2. to order the release of the titles to certain heirs 3. to grant possession of all properties of the estate to the executor of the will. HELD: 1. grandchildren are not entitled to provisional support from the funds of the decedent's estate. a. The law clearly limits the allowance to "widow and children" and does not extend it to the deceased's grandchildren, regardless of their minority or incapacity b. Section 3 of Rule 83 of the Revised Rules of Court provides: Sec. 3. Allowance to widow and family. The widow and minor or incapacitated children of a deceased person, during the settlement of the estate, shall receive therefrom under the direction of the court, such allowance as are provided by law. 2. In settlement of estate proceedings, the distribution of the estate properties can only be made: a. after all the debts, funeral charges, expenses of administration, allowance to the widow, and estate tax have been paid; or

b. before payment of said obligations only if the distributees or any of them gives a bond in a sum fixed by the court conditioned upon the payment of said obligations within such time as the court directs, or when provision is made to meet those obligations 3. In the case at bar, the probate court ordered the release of the titles to the Valle Verde property and the Blue Ridge apartments to the private respondents after the lapse of six months from the date of first publication of the notice to creditors a. Hilario Ruiz allegedly left no debts when he died but the taxes on his estate had not hitherto been paid, much less ascertained. b. The estate tax is one of those obligations that must be paid before distribution of the estate. i. If not yet paid, the rule requires that the distributees post a bond or make such provisions as to meet the said tax obligation in proportion to their respective shares in the inheritance. ii. at the time the order was issued the properties of the estate had not yet been inventoried and appraised. 4. The probate of a will is conclusive as to its due execution and extrinsic validity and settles only the question of whether the testator, being of sound mind, freely executed it in accordance with the formalities prescribed by law a. Questions as to the intrinsic validity and efficacy of the provisions of the will, the legality of any devise or legacy may be raised even after the will has been authenticated i. The intrinsic validity of Hilario's holographic will was controverted by petitioner before the probate court in his Reply to Montes' Opposition to his motion for release of funds and his motion for reconsideration of the August 26, 1993 order of the said court. ii. Therein, petitioner assailed the distributive shares of the devisees and legatees inasmuch as his father's will included the estate of his mother and allegedly impaired his legitime as an intestate heir of his mother. iii. The Rules provide that if there is a controversy as to who are the lawful heirs of the decedent and their distributive shares in his estate, the probate court shall proceed to hear and decide the same as in ordinary cases. 5. The right of an executor or administrator to the possession and management of the real and personal properties of the deceased is not absolute and can only be exercised "so long as it is necessary for the payment of the debts and expenses of administration Sec. 3. Executor or administrator to retain whole estate to pay debts, and to administer estate not willed . An executor or administrator shall have the right to the possession and management of the real as well as the personal estate of the deceased so long as it is necessary for the payment of the debts and expenses for administration. a. When petitioner moved for further release of the funds deposited with the clerk of court, he had been previously granted by the probate court certain amounts for repair and maintenance expenses on the properties of the estate, and payment of the real estate taxes thereon, but he moved again for the release of additional funds for the same reasons he previously cited i. It was correct for the probate court to require him to submit an accounting of the necessary expenses for administration before releasing any further money in his favour ii. petitioner had deposited with it only a portion of the one-year rental income from the Valle Verde property. iii. As executor, he is a mere trustee of his father's estate. The funds of the estate in his hands are trust funds and he is held to the duties and responsibilities of a trustee of the highest order.