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G.R. No.

L-48321 August 31, 1946

OH CHO, applicant-appellee,
vs.
THE DIRECTOR OF LANDS, oppositor-appellant.

FACTS: Oh Cho, a citizen of the Republic of China, purchased in 1938 from Antonio, Luis and Rafael
Lagdameo a parcel of land located in the residential district of Guinayangan, Tayabas, which has
been in the continuous, public, and adverse possession of their predecessors in interest as far back
as 1880. on June 17, 1940, Oh Cho applied for the registration of said parcel of land. The Court of
First Instance rendered a decision decreeing the registration. The Director of Lands appealed to the
Supreme The opposition of the Director of Lands is based on the applicant's lack of title to the lot,
and on his disqualification, as alien, from acquiring lands of the public domain.

ISSUE: WON the applicant and its predecessors in interest has title over the subject land.

RULING: The judgment of the lower cost is reversed and the application for registration dismissed.

The applicant failed to show that he has title to the lot that may be confirmed under the Land
Registration Act. He failed to show that he or any of his predecessors in interest had acquired the lot
from the Government, either by purchase or by grant, under the laws, orders and decrease
promulgated by the Spanish Government in the Philippines, or by possessory information under the
Mortgaged Law (section 19, Act 496). All lands that were not acquired from the Government, either
by purchase or by grant belong to the public domain. An exception to the rule would be any land that
should have been in the possession of an occupant and of his predecessors in interest since time
immemorial, for such possession would justify the presumption that the land had never been part of
the public domain or that it had been a private property even before the Spanish conquest.) The
applicant does not come under the exception for the applicant and his predecessors in interest have
been in open, continuous, exclusive and notorious possession of the lot from 1880.

REGALIAN DOCTRINE

Generally, under this concept, private title to land must be traced to some grant, express or implied,
from the Spanish Crown or its successors, the American Colonial Government, and thereafter, the
Philippine Republic
> In a broad sense, the term refers to royal rights, or those rights to which the King has by virtue of
his prerogatives
> The theory of jure regalia was therefore nothing more than a natural fruit of conquest

Section 2. All lands of the public domain, waters, minerals, coal, petroleum, and other mineral oils,
all forces of potential energy, fisheries, forests or timber, wildlife, flora and fauna, and other natural
resources are owned by the State. With the exception of agricultural lands, all other natural
resources shall not be alienated. The exploration, development, and utilization of natural resources
shall be under the full control and supervision of the State. The State may directly undertake such
activities, or it may enter into co-production, joint venture, or production-sharing agreements with
Filipino citizens, or corporations or associations at least sixty per centum of whose capital is owned
by such citizens. Such agreements may be for a period not exceeding twenty-five years, renewable
for not more than twenty-five years, and under such terms and conditions as may be provided by
law. In cases of water rights for irrigation, water supply fisheries, or industrial uses other than the
development of water power, beneficial use may be the measure and limit of the grant.”

> The abovementioned provision provides that except for agricultural lands for public domain which
alone may be alienated, forest or timber, and mineral lands, as well as all other natural resources
must remain with the State, the exploration, development and utilization of which shall be subject to
its full control and supervision albeit allowing it to enter into coproduction, joint venture or production-
sharing agreements, or into agreements with foreign-owned corporations involving technical or
financial assistance for large-scale exploration, development, and utilization

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