Understanding and Proving Civil Status

Understanding Civil Status

Civil status is a quality people possess through which they contract rights and obligations.

Different Types of Status

• Single
• Married
• Widowed
• Divorced
• Child
• Legitimate child
• Recognized natural child
• Recognized cohabitation

Acquiring or Amending Status

Status can be acquired or amended through:

Legal Acts

Events where the will of the people participates, e.g., marriage, divorce.

Legal Facts

A fact which does not involve the will of the people and has legal impact, e.g., birth, death, majority.

Court of Law

A decision made by a judge after a process. Can modify status, e.g., an adoptive child becoming legitimate (adoptive legitimation), divorce.

Characteristics of Marital Status

1. Inherent: Inherent in the human person.
2. Imperative: Cannot be changed voluntarily, only through legal process.
3. Public Order: Society must respect legal mandates; cannot be changed by personal choice.
4. Inalienable: Cannot be renounced. Civil status affects all people.
5. Stable: Only changed by a legal act or judicial decision.
6. Single: Cannot hold more than one status simultaneously (e.g., single and married).

Evidence of Civil Status

Evidence is used to prove the status we hold.

1. Normal Evidence: Records

Official records or documents:

Birth Records

Birth certificates (official record within 10 days after birth, according to Law 15317 RC).

Death Records

Death records.

Divorce Records

Divorce records.

Marriage Records

Marriage certificates.

Death Record Details (Art. 1430)

Must include time and place of death, name, sex, marital status, profession, nationality, domicile, disease or cause of death.

Divorce Decree Details

Performed by a judge after trial; must include cause of divorce and date.

Marriage Record Details (Art. 98, Civil Code)

Must include name, age, profession, place of birth, and occupation of each spouse, including name, profession, and domicile of the parents of the spouses.

2. Secondary Evidence

Used in the absence of normal records.

Authentic Documents

E.g., a will made before a notary public, which certifies its truth. Used if normal records are missing.

Witnesses

Persons who were present at the event and can testify to it. A person involved in the event cannot be a witness. For example, a father cannot witness his own child's birth for this purpose.

Notorious Possession of Status

Requires three elements (Treatment, Fame, Time) to demonstrate that a person holds a particular status publicly.

Treatment

Being treated by others according to the status (e.g., a married couple treated as husband and wife).

Fame

Being known publicly among friends and relatives as having the status.

Time

The duration over which Treatment and Fame must be maintained (e.g., 10 continuous years to establish civil status by notorious possession).