No. L-19671. November 29, 1965. PASTOR B. TENCHAVEZ, plaintiff-appellant, vs. VICENTA F. ESCAÑO, ET AL., defendants-appellees.

 Husband and wife; Foreign divorce between Filipino citizens decreed after the effectivity of the new Civil Code; Remarriage of divorced consort.—A foreign divorce between Filipino citizens,, sought and decreed after the effectivity of the new Civil Code (Republic Act No. 386), is not entitled to recognition as valid in the Philippines; and neither is the marriage contracted with another party by the divorced consort, subsequently to the foreign decree of divorce, entitled to validity in this country. Same; Same; Same; Innocent consort entitled to legal separation.—The marriage of the divorced wife and her cohabitation with a person other than the lawful husband entitles the latter to a decree of legal separation conformably to Philippine law. Same; Same; Same; Invalid divorce entitles innocent consort to recover damages.—The desertion and securing of an invalid divorce decree by one consort entitles the other to recover damages.

Same; Action for alienation of affections against parents of one consort; Absence of proof of malice.—An action for alienation of affections against the parents of one consort does not lie in the absence of proof of malice or unworthy motives on their part

Direct appeal, on factual and legal questions, from the judgment of the Court of First Instance of Cebu, in its Civil Case No. R-4177, denying the claim of the plaintiffappellant, Pastor B. Tenchavez, for legal separation and one million pesos in damages his wife and parentsin-law, the defendants-appellees, Vicente, Mamerto and Mena, 1 all surnamed "Escaño," respectively. 2 The facts, supported by the evidence of record, are the following: Missing her late afternoon classes on 24 February 1948 in the University of San Carlos, Cebu City, where she was then enrolled as a second year student of commerce, Vicenta Escaño, 27 years of age (scion of a well-to-do and socially prominent Filipino family of Spanish ancestry and and a "sheltered colegiala"), exchanged marriage vows with. Pastor Tenchavez, 82 years of age, an engineer, exarmy officer and of undistinguished stock, without the knowledge of her parents, before a Catholic chaplain, Lt. Moises Lavares, in the house of one Juan Alburo in the said city. The marriage was the culmination of a pre

vious love affair and was duly registered with the local civil register. Vicenta's letters to Pastor, and his to her, bef ore the marriage, indicate that the couple were deeply in love. Together with a friend, Pacita Noel, their matchmaker and go-between, they had planned out their marital f uture whereby Pacita would be the governess of their first-born; they started saving money in a piggy bank. A few weeks before their secret marriage, their engagement was broken; Vicenta returned the engagement ring and accepted another suitor, Joseling Lao. Her love for Pastor beckoned; she pleaded for his return, and they reconciled, This time they planned to get married and then elope. To facilitate the elopement, Vicenta had brought some of her clothes to the room of 

Pacita Noel in St. Mary's Hall, which was their usual trysting place. Although planned for the midnight following their marriage, the elopement did not, however, materialize because when Vicenta went back to her classes af ter the marriage, her mothers who got wind of the intended nuptials, was already waiting for her at the college, Vicenta was taken home where she admitted that she had already married Pastor. Mamerto and Mena Escaño were surprised, because Pastor never asked for the hand of Vicenta, and were disgusted because of the great scandal that the clandestine marriage would provoke (t.s.n., vol. III, pp. 1105-6). The following morning, the Escaño spouses sought priestly advice. Father Reynes suggested a recelebration to validate what he believed to be an invalid marriage, from the standpoint of the Church, due to the lack of authority from the Archbishop or the parish priest for the officiating chaplain to celebrate the marriage. The recelebration did not take place, because on 26 February 1948 Mamerto Escaño was handed by a maid, whose name he claims he does not remember, a letter purportedly coming from San Carlos college students and disclosing an amorous relationship between Pastor Tenchavez and Pacita Noel; Vicenta translated the letter to her father, and thereafter would not agree to a new marriage. Vicenta and Pastor met that day in the house of Mrs. Pilar Mendezona. There

after, Vicenta continued living with her parents while Pastor returned to his job in Manila. Her letter of 22 March 1948 (Exh. "M"), while still solicitous of her husband's welfare, was not as endearing as her previous letters when their love was aflame. Vicenta was bred in Catholic ways but is of a changeable disposition, and Pastor knew it She fondly accepted her being called a "jellyfish." She was not prevented by her parents from communicating with Pastor (Exh. "1- Escaño"), but her letters became less frequent as the days passed. As of June, 1948 the newlyweds were already estranged (Exh. "2-Escaño"), Vicenta had gone to Jimenez, Misamis Occidental, to escape f rom the scandal that her marriage stirred in Cebu society. There, a lawyer filed for her a petition, drafted by then Senator Emmanuel Pelaez, to annul her marriage. She did not sign the petition (Exh

Summing up, the Court rules: That a foreign divorce between Filipino citizens, sought and decreed after the effectivity of the present Civil Code (Rep. Act 886), is not entitled to recognition as valid in this jurisdiction; and neither is the marriage contracted with another party by the divorced consort, subsequently to the foreign decree of divorce, entitled to validity in the country; That the remarriage of divorced wife and her cohabitation with a person other than the lawful husband entitle the latter to a decree of legal separation conformably to Philippine law; That the desertion and securing of an invalid divorce decree by one consort entitles the other to recover damages; That an action for alienation of affections against the parents of one consort does not lie in the absence of proof of malice or unworthy motives on their part. WHEREFORE, the decision under appeal is hereby modified as follows; Adjudging plaintiff-appellant Pastor Tenchavez entitled to a decree of legal separation from defendant Vicenta F. Escaño; Sentencing defendant-appellee Vicenta Escaño to pay plaintiff-appellant Tenchavez the amount of P25,000 for damages and attorneys" fees; Sentencing appellant Pastor Tenchavez to pay the appellee, Mamerto Escaño and the estate of his wife, the deceased Mena Escaño, P5,000 by way of damages and attorneys' fees. Neither party to recover costs.