8/11/2019 Disallowance of Wills - Baltazar v Laxa

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ANTONIO B. BALTAZAR VS. LORENZO LAXA

G.R. No. 174489 : April 07, 2012

DEL ASTILLO, J.

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Paciencia was a 78 year old spinster when she made her last will and

testament in the Pampango dialect on September 13, 1981. The Will,

exected in the hose o! retired "dge #rnestino $. %impin, was read to

Paciencia twice. &!ter which, Paciencia expressed in the presence o! the

instrmental witnesses that the docment is her last will and testament. She

therea!ter a!!ixed her signatre at the end o! the said docment on page 3

and then on the le!t margin o! pages 1, ' and ( thereo!. The witnesses to the

Will attested to the Will)s de exection by a!!ixing their signatres below

its attestation clase and on the le!t margin o! pages 1, ' and ( thereo!, in the

presence o! Paciencia and o! one another and o! "dge %impin who acted as

notary pblic.

Petitioners as*ed the +T to deny the probate o! Paciencia)s Will on

the !ollowing gronds- the Will was not exected and attested to in

accordance with the reirements o! the law/ that Paciencia was mentally

incapable to ma*e a Will at the time o! its exection/ that she was !orced to

execte the Will nder dress or in!lence o! !ear or threats/ that the

exection o! the Will had been procred by nde and improper pressre

and in!lence by %oren0o or by some other persons !or his bene!it/ that the

signatre o! Paciencia on the Will was !orged/ that assming the signatre to

be genine, it was obtained throgh !rad or tric*ery/ and, that Paciencia did

not intend the docment to be her Will.

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Whether the will shold be allowed !or probate.

8/11/2019 Disallowance of Wills - Baltazar v Laxa

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The burden to prove that Paciencia was of unsound mind at the time

of the execution of the will lies on the shoulders of the petitioners.

Petitioners, throgh their witness +osie, claim that Paciencia was !orget!l

so mch so that it e!!ectiely stripped her o! testamentary capacity. The state

o! being !orget!l does not necessarily ma*e a person mentally nsond so

as to render him n!it to execte a Will. 2orget!lness is not eialent to

being o! nsond mind. n this case, apart !rom the testimony o! +osie

pertaining to Paciencia)s !orget!lness, there is no sbstantial eidence,

medical or otherwise, that wold show that Paciencia was o! nsond mind

at the time o! the exection o! the Will. 4n the other hand, the ort !inds

more worthy o! credence 5ra. %impin)s testimony as to the sondness o!

mind o! Paciencia when the latter went to "dge %impin)s hose and

olntarily exected the Will.

Bare allegations of duress or influence of fear or threats, undue and

improper influence and pressure, fraud and trickery cannot be used as basis

to deny the probate of a will.