The Revised Penal Code penalizes adultery, committed by a married woman, and concubinage,
committed by a married man. Other than the elements of the offense and the applicable penalties,
both adultery and concubinage are covered by basically the same set of rules and, therefore,
would be discussed together.
What is concubinage?
Concubinage is committed by any husband who shall keep a mistress in the conjugal dwelling,
or, shall have sexual intercourse, under scandalous circumstances, with a woman who is not his
wife, or shall cohabit with her in any other place. Concubinage is defined and penalized under
Article 334 of the Revised Penal Code, which reads:
Art. 334. Concubinage. — Any husband who shall keep a mistress in the conjugal dwelling, or
shall have sexual intercourse, under scandalous circumstances, with a woman who is not his
wife, or shall cohabit with her in any other place, shall be punished by prision correccional in its
minimum and medium periods.
The concubine shall suffer the penalty of destierro.
What is adultery?
Adultery means the carnal relation between a married woman and a man who is not her husband,
the latter knowing her to be married, even if the marriage be subsequently declared void. Each
sexual intercourse constitutes a crime of adultery. Concubinage is defined and penalized under
Article 334 of the Revised Penal Code, which reads:
Art. 333. Who are guilty of adultery. — Adultery is committed by any married woman who shall
have sexual intercourse with a man not her husband and by the man who has carnal knowledge
of her knowing her to be married, even if the marriage be subsequently declared void.
Adultery shall be punished by prision correccional in its medium and maximum periods.
If the person guilty of adultery committed this offense while being abandoned without
justification by the offended spouse, the penalty next lower in degree than that provided in the
next preceding paragraph shall be imposed.
What are the differences between adultery and concubinage?
1. Adultery is committed by a wife (who must also be charged together with the other man),
while concubinage is committed by a husband (who must be charged together with the
concubine).
2. Proof of sexual intercourse is enough in adultery, but in concubinage, the prosecution
must prove that the sexual intercourse must be under scandalous circumstances, or that
the husband kept a mistress in the conjugal dwelling or cohabited with her in any other
place.
3. The penalty for concubinage is lower than that of adultery. The penalty for the concubine
is only destierro, while the penalty for the man other in adultery is the same as that of the
guilty wife.
What is destierro?
Destierro means banishment or only a prohibition from residing within the radius of 25
kilometers from the actual residence of the accused for a specified length of time. It is not
imprisonment.
Who can file the action for adultery or concubinage?
Only the offended spouse can legally file the complaint for adultery or concubinage. Adultery
and concubinage are considered private crimes. These crimes cannot not be prosecuted except
upon a complaint filed by the offended spouse — and nobody else.
Can parents and grandparents file the case?
No. Unlike the offenses of seduction, abduction, rape and acts of lasciviousness, there is no
provision for the prosecution of the crimes of adultery and concubinage by the parents,
grandparents or guardian of the offended party.
What if the case was filed after the spouses divorced or after the marriage was annulled?
The marital status must be present at the time of filing the criminal action. In other words, the
offended spouse must still be married to the accused spouse at the time of the filing of the
complaint. Considering that only the legal spouse can file the complaint, the grant of divorce or
annulment removes the right to file an action for adultery or concubinage that was committed
prior to the divorce or annulment.
Who must be prosecuted?
The offended party cannot institute the criminal charge without including both guilty parties (the
offending spouse and the paramour), if both are alive.
What is the effect of consent or pardon by the offended spouse?
The criminal charge cannot prosper if the offended spouse has consented to the offense or
pardoned the offenders. Pardon can be express or implied. An example of express pardon is
when the offended party in writing or in an affidavit asserts that he or she is pardoning his or her
erring spouse and paramour for their act. There is implied pardon when the offended party
continued to live with his spouse even after the commission of the offense. Pardon must come
before the institution of the criminal action and both offenders must be pardoned by the offended
party.
What is bigamy?
Bigamy is basically the act of marrying again while the first marriage is still subsisting. It is
defined under Article 349 of the RPC as the contracting of a second or subsequent marriage
before the former marriage has been legally dissolved, or before the absent spouse has been
declared presumptively dead by means of a judgment rendered in the proper proceeding.
What are the elements that must be proved in a prosecution for bigamy?
In a case for bigamy, all the following matters or “elements” must be shown by the prosecution:
1. The offender has been legally married.
2. The marriage has not been legally dissolved or, in case his or her spouse is absent, the absent
spouse could not yet be presumed dead according to the Civil Code.
3. He/she contracts a second or subsequent marriage.
4. The second or subsequent marriage has all the essential requisites for validity.
A pending petition for annulment or a declaration of nullity of marriage does not have any effect
on a criminal case for bigamy. Refer to our previous discussion on this.
How is bigamy different from adultery/concubinage?
In adultery/concubinage, the law requires that both culprits, if both are alive, should he
prosecuted or included in the information. In bigamy, the second spouse could be charged only if
she/he had knowledge of the previous undissolved marriage of the accused. Bigamy is a public
offense and a crime against status, while adultery and concubinage are private offenses and are
crimes against chastity. In adultery/concubinage, pardon by the offended party will bar the
prosecution of the case, which is not so in bigamy.
What if I killed or injured my spouse when I caught him/her in the act of committing
sexual intercourse with another person?
The law provides that “any legally married person who, having surprised his spouse in the act of
committing sexual intercourse with another person, shall kill any of them or both of them in the
act or immediately thereafter, or shall inflict upon them any serious physical injury, shall suffer
the penalty of destierro” (RPC, Article 247). The accused spouse, which could be the husband or
the wife, must prove the following:
1. A legally married person (or a parent) surprises his spouse (or his daughter, under 18
years of age and living with him), in the act of committing sexual intercourse with
another person.
2. He or she kills any or both of them or inflicts upon any or both of them any serious
physical injury in the act or immediately thereafter.
3. He has not promoted or facilitated the prostitution of his wife (or daughter) or that he or
she has not consented to the infidelity of the other spouse.
The accused must proved that he/she actually surprised the other spouse in flagrante delicto (or
in the act of doing the deed), and that he/she killed the other spouse and/or the other party during
or immediately thereafter.
Sources: Revised Penal Code; People vs. Nepomuceno, G.R. No. L-40624, 27 June 1975; Pilapil
vs. Ibay-Somera, G.R. No. 80116, 30 June 1989; Ligtas vs. CA, G.R. No. L-47498, 7 May 1987;
People vs. Puedan, G.R. No. 139576, 2 September 2002; People vs. Bastasa, G.R. No. L-32792,
2 February 1979
Concubinage
1. What is concubinage?
Concubinage is committed by a married man who shall keep a mistress in the conjugal dwelling,
or shall have sexual intercourse with a woman not his wife under scandalous circumstances or
shall cohabit with her in any other place.
“Any husband who shall keep a mistress in the conjugal dwelling, or shall have sexual
intercourse, under scandalous circumstances, with a woman who is not his wife, or shall cohabit
with her in any other place, shall be punished by prision correccional in its minimum and
medium periods. The concubine shall suffer the penalty of destierro.” (Article 334 of the
Revised Penal Code)
2. What are the elements of concubinage?
The elements of the crime of concubinage are:
1. The man must be married;
2. That he committed any of the following acts:
1. Keeping a mistress in the conjugal dwelling
2. Having sexual intercourse under scandalous circumstances with a woman who is
not his wife
3. Cohabiting with her in any other place
4. As regards the woman, she must know him to be married.
3. What is a conjugal dwelling?
It is the home of the husband and wife even if the wife happens to be temporarily absent on any
account.
4. What do you mean by scandal as used in Article 334 of the Revised Penal Code of the
Philippines?
The scandal spoken of in Article 334 consists in any reprehensible word or deed that offends
public conscience, redounds to the detriment of the feelings of honest persons, and gives
occasion to the neighbor’s spiritual damage or ruin.
5. What do you mean by “cohabit”?
Cohabit means to dwell together, in the manner of husband and wife, for some period of time, as
distinguished from occasional transient interviews for unlawful intercourse.
To "cohabit," according to the sense in which the word is used in a penal statute, means
dwelling together as husband and wife, or in sexual intercourse, and comprises a continued
period of time. Hence the offense is not the single act of adultery; it is cohabiting in a state of
adultery; and it may be a week, a month, a year, or longer, but still it is one offense only.
(People v. Pitoc, G.R. No. 18513, 18 September, 1922)
6. Who are liable for the crime of concubinage?
The persons liable for the crime of concubinage are:
1. The married man;
2. The woman who knew that the man was married.
7. Who may file the case of concubinage against the unfaithful spouse?
Only the offended spouse can file a case of concubinage against the offending spouse.
The law specifically provides that in prosecutions for adultery and concubinage the person who
can legally file the complaint should be the offended spouse, and nobody else. Unlike the
offenses of seduction, abduction, rape and acts of lasciviousness, no provision is made for the
prosecution of the crimes of adultery and concubinage by the parents, grandparents or guardian
of the offended party. The so-called exclusive and successive rule in the prosecution of the first
four offenses above mentioned do not apply to adultery and concubinage.
It is significant that while the State, as parens patriae, was added and vested by the 1985 Rules
of Criminal Procedure with the power to initiate the criminal action for a deceased or
incapacitated victim in the aforesaid offenses of seduction, abduction, rape and acts of
lasciviousness, in default of her parents, grandparents or guardian, such amendment did not
include the crimes of adultery and concubinage. In other words, only the offended spouse, and
no other, is authorized by law to initiate the action therefor. (Pilapil v. Ibay-Somera, G.R. No.
80116, 30 June, 1989)
8. I discovered that my brother-in-law had been cheating on my sister who is currently
based in Spain. Can I file a crime of concubinage against him in her behalf?
No, only the offended spouse can legally file the action for concubinage. This is because adultery
and concubinage are considered as private crimes. Thus these crimes cannot be prosecuted
except upon the complaint filed by the offended spouse.
In your case, it is your sister who has to file a complaint for concubinage against her husband.
No one else can file the action of concubinage against the guilty spouse in her behalf. Even
parents and grandparents of the offended spouse are barred from filing charges against the guilty
spouse.
9. What is the penalty of concubinage?
A man convicted for the crime of concubinage may face imprisonment of 2 years, 4 months and
1 day to 6 years. If the concubinage was committed because of the abandonment by the offended
spouse, the guilty spouse faces imprisonment of 6 months and 1 day to 2 years and 4 months.
“Any husband who shall keep a mistress in the conjugal dwelling, or shall have sexual
intercourse, under scandalous circumstances, with a woman who is not his wife, or shall cohabit
with her in any other place, shall be punished by prision correccional in its minimum and
medium periods. The concubine shall suffer the penalty of destierro.” (Article 334 of the
Revised Penal Code)
10. What is “Destierro”?
Those sentenced to destierro shall be precluded from entering the place or places designated in
the sentence, or within the radius therein designated, which shall include a distance of 25
kilometers at least, and 250 kilometers at most, from the place designated. (Legarda v. Valdez,
G.R. No. 513, 25 February, 1902)
11. Why is the crime of concubinage punished less severely than the crime of adultery?
This is so adultery makes it possible for the introduction of another man’s blood into the family
so that the offended husband may have another man’s son bearing his name and receiving
support from him.
12. If the wife waited 10 years to file a case of concubinage against her husband and his
paramour, despite her knowledge all through the years of his affairs, will he be charged?
No. The wife’s failure to file a charge of concubinage against her husband immediately upon her
knowledge of his affairs counts as an implied condonation of her husband’s acts of infidelity.
The long period of time of over ten years that elapsed during which her husband Juan Rivera
was separated from her after 1902 and living in marital relations with Rafaela Vitug, without its
having occurred to her denounce such unlawful conduct, although they lived in the town of
Lubao, where the immoral life her husband was leading with the defendant Vitug was public and
notorious, is proof of her consent thereto. If only in June, 1912, it occurred to her to accuse him
of adultery, although a few days later she desisted from her complaint and on the next day by
common accord they executed the agreement of separation set forth in the document at page 44,
ratified before a notary, the injured party has by such conduct demonstrated in an indubitable
manner that if before 1912 she had given her consent to the illegal conduct of her husband.
(United States v. Rivera, G.R. No. 9540, 10 September, 1914)
13. I am a wife who knows that my husband has a lover. Will the fact that I know he’s
having an affair and flaunting it in front of our community be enough to charge him for the
crime of concubinage?
Yes, your husband can be charged for the crime of concubinage. The fact that he had been
flaunting his affair in the community may count as scandalous circumstances.
The unlawful union of a married man with a woman not his wife, when the two live within a town
and in the same house as lawful husband and wife, go together through the streets of the town,
frequent places where large crowds gather, and commit acts in plain sight of the community
without caution and with effrontery, is a procedure that gives rises to criticism and general
protest among the neighbors and by its bad example offends the conscience and feelings of every
moral person; and when these conditions attend the conduct of a married persons it is
indubitable that his concubinage with another woman, even though she does not live in his
home, carries with it the circumstance of scandal required by the law to make his action
criminal. (United States v. Casipong, G.R. No. 6608, 05 September, 1911)
14. I am a wife who discovered that my husband has a second family. He even
established his lover and their child in a house where they had been together for 3 years.
Can I file a charge of concubinage against them notwithstanding the fact that I plan to file
a petition for nullity of marriage in the future?
Yes, you can file a charge for the crime of concubinage against your husband and his lover. The
fact that he had cohabited with a woman not his wife is an element of concubinage.
However, the legal status of the offended spouse must be present at the time of the filing of the
criminal act. This means that you must still be married to your husband at the time of the filing
of the complaint. Annulment of your marriage prior to the filing of the complaint of concubinage
would remove the right to file an action for concubinage.
15. I am a wife who had discovered that my husband had been having an affair for years.
Every single time that I was abroad, it seems that my husband was bringing his paramour
to our house and letting her act as the wife. She had been staying for months at a time. Can
I file a charge of concubinage against him?
Yes. You can file a charge of adultery against him. According to Art. 334 of the Revised Penal
Code, one of the elements of adultery is that a married man has been keeping a mistress in the
conjugal dwelling.
Thus, the act of your husband in letting his mistress stay in the conjugal dwelling for months is
the element necessary to establish the act of concubinage committed.
16. I had discovered that my husband had been visiting various vacation spots with his
mistress. Can I file a charge of concubinage against him?
Yes. The acts of your husband purporting that the woman accompanying him in various vacation
spots is his wife, and staying with her for days at length, may be termed as cohabitation with a
woman who is not his wife.
Petitioner's conduct with his coaccused was not confined to isolated interviews for unlawful
intercourse. He and his coaccused dwelt together as husband and wife in the same house in
Naga, Camarines Sur, where they were seen attending shows and dances; again, in Tiwi, Albay,
they dwelt together as husband and wife in the same house for seven days and nights where they
slept together and alone in one room. We are of the opinion and so hold that such association is
sufficient to constitute a cohabitation within the meaning of the law even disregarding proofs of
actual sexual intercourse. (Ocampo v. People, G.R. No. L-44756, 10 June, 1941)
17. I am a wife that discovered that my husband had cheated on me several years ago.
Can I charge him with the crime of concubinage?
No. For the crime of concubinage to be established, there must be several elements that should
be present:
1. The guilty husband must have kept the mistress in the conjugal dwelling;
2. The guilty husband must have had sexual intercourse with a woman not his wife, under
scandalous circumstances;
3. The guilty husband must cohabit with his lover in any other place.
Thus, for the crime of concubinage to be charged against your husband, you must prove one of
the elements stated above. Mere knowledge of your husband’s transgressions is not enough to
charge him with the crime of concubinage.
18. I recently discovered that my husband was cohabiting also with our neighbor. I
already forgave him but I wish to teach her a lesson. Can I file a charge of concubinage
against the lover only?
No. You just cannot file a charge against the lover without including the guilty spouse. For the
criminal charge of concubinage to prosper, the offended spouse must institute the crime against
both the guilty parties (the guilty spouse and the lover).
Furthermore, pardon by the offended spouse renders the filing of the charge against the guilty
parties void. The criminal charge cannot prosper if the offended party has consented to the
offense or pardoned the offenders.
We previously noted that infidelity is not, by itself, a ground for annulment, although it could be
a basis for legal separation or filing a case for adultery/concubinage. As to custody, the Supreme
Court already ruled that sexual infidelity, by itself, is not sufficient to grant custody over a child.
Let’s continue the discussion on these concepts:
What is concubinage?
Concubinage is committed by any husband who shall keep a mistress in the conjugal dwelling,
or, shall have sexual intercourse, under scandalous circumstances, with a woman who is not his
wife, or shall cohabit with her in any other place (Article 334 of the Revised Penal Code or
RPC).
What is adultery?
Adultery means the carnal relation between a married woman and a man who is not her husband,
the latter knowing her to be married, even if the marriage be subsequently declared void (RPC,
Article 333). Each sexual intercourse constitutes a crime of adultery.
What are the differences between adultery and concubinage?
1. Adultery is committed by a wife (who must also be charged together with the other man),
while concubinage is committed by a husband (who must be charged together with the
concubine).
2. Proof of sexual intercourse is enough in adultery, but in concubinage, the prosecution
must prove that the sexual intercourse must be under scandalous circumstances, or that
the husband kept a mistress in the conjugal dwelling or cohabited with her in any other
place.
3. The penalty for concubinage is lower than that of adultery. The penalty for the concubine
is only destierro, while the penalty for the man other in adultery is the same as that of the
guilty wife.
What is destierro?
Destierro means banishment or only a prohibition from residing within the radius of 25
kilometers from the actual residence of the accused for a specified length of time. It is not
imprisonment.
Who can file the action for adultery or concubinage?
Only the offended spouse can legally file the complaint for adultery or concubinage. The marital
status must be present at the time of filing the criminal action. In other words, the offended
spouse must still be married to the accused spouse at the time of the filing of the complaint.
Who must be prosecuted?
The offended party cannot institute the criminal charge without including both guilty parties (the
offending spouse and the paramour), if both are alive.
What is the effect of consent or pardon by the offended spouse?
The criminal charge cannot prosper if the offended spouse has consented to the offense or
pardoned the offenders. Pardon can be express or implied. An example of express pardon is
when the offended party in writing or in an affidavit asserts that he or she is pardoning his or her
erring spouse and paramour for their act. There is implied pardon when the offended party
continued to live with his spouse even after the commission of the offense. Pardon must come
before the institution of the criminal action and both offenders must be pardoned by the offended
party.
What is bigamy?
Bigamy is basically the act of marrying again while the first marriage is still subsisting. It is
defined under Article 349 of the RPC as the contracting of a second or subsequent marriage
before the former marriage has been legally dissolved, or before the absent spouse has been
declared presumptively dead by means of a judgment rendered in the proper proceeding.
What are the elements that must be proved in a prosecution for bigamy?
In a case for bigamy, all the following matters or “elements” must be shown by the prosecution:
1. The offender has been legally married.
2. The marriage has not been legally dissolved or, in case his or her spouse is absent, the absent
spouse could not yet be presumed dead according to the Civil Code.
3. He/she contracts a second or subsequent marriage.
4. The second or subsequent marriage has all the essential requisites for validity.
What is the effect of a pending petition for annulment or a declaration of nullity of
marriage on a criminal case for bigamy?
We already have a previous discussion on this. Please click here.
How is bigamy different from adultery/concubinage?
In adultery/concubinage, the law requires that both culprits, if both are alive, should he
prosecuted or included in the information. In bigamy, the second spouse could be charged only if
she/he had knowledge of the previous undissolved marriage of the accused. Bigamy is a public
offense and a crime against status, while adultery and concubinage are private offenses and are
crimes against chastity. In adultery/concubinage, pardon by the offended party will bar the
prosecution of the case, which is not so in bigamy.
What if I killed or injured my spouse when I caught him/her in the act of committing
sexual intercourse with another person?
The law provides that “any legally married person who, having surprised his spouse in the act of
committing sexual intercourse with another person, shall kill any of them or both of them in the
act or immediately thereafter, or shall inflict upon them any serious physical injury, shall suffer
the penalty of destierro” (RPC, Article 247). The accused spouse, which could be the husband or
the wife, must prove the following:
1. A legally married person (or a parent) surprises his spouse (or his daughter, under 18
years of age and living with him), in the act of committing sexual intercourse with
another person.
2. He or she kills any or both of them or inflicts upon any or both of them any serious
physical injury in the act or immediately thereafter.
3. He has not promoted or facilitated the prostitution of his wife (or daughter) or that he or
she has not consented to the infidelity of the other spouse.
The accused must proved that he/she actually surprised the other spouse in flagrante delicto (or
in the act of doing the deed), and that he/she killed the other spouse and/or the other party during
or immediately thereafter.
Sources: Revised Penal Code; People vs. Nepomuceno, G.R. No. L-40624, 27 June 1975; Pilapil
vs. Ibay-Somera, G.R. No. 80116, 30 June 1989; Ligtas vs. CA, G.R. No. L-47498, 7 May 1987;
People vs. Puedan, G.R. No. 139576, 2 September 2002; People vs. Bastasa, G.R. No. L-32792,
2 February 1979
Bigamy explained - G.R. No. 188775
G.R. No. 188775
(click link)
"x x x.
Article 349 of the Revised Penal Code states:
The penalty of prision mayor shall be imposed upon any person who shall contract a second
or subsequent marriage before the former marriage has been legally dissolved, or before
the absent spouse has been declared presumptively dead by means of a judgment rendered
in the proper proceedings.
The elements of this crime are as follows:
1. That the offender has been legally married;
2. That the marriage has not been legally dissolved or, in case his or her spouse is
absent, the absent spouse could not yet be presumed dead according to the Civil
Code;
3. That he contracts a second or subsequent marriage; and
4. That the second or subsequent marriage has all the essential requisites for validity.
[16]
The instant case has all the elements of the crime of bigamy. Thus, the CA was
correct in affirming the conviction of petitioner.
Petitioner was legally married to Thelma on 26 November 1992 at the
Metropolitan Trial Court of Muntinlupa City. He contracted a second or
subsequent marriage with Edita on 10 December 2001 in Meycauayan, Bulacan.
At the time of his second marriage with Edita, his marriage with Thelma was
legally subsisting. It is noted that the finality of the decision declaring the nullity
of his first marriage with Thelma was only on 27 June 2006 or about five (5) years
after his second marriage to Edita. Finally, the second or subsequent marriage of
petitioner with Edita has all the essential requisites for validity. Petitioner has in
fact not disputed the validity of such subsequent marriage. [17]
It is evident therefore that petitioner has committed the crime charged. His
contention that he cannot be charged with bigamy in view of the declaration of
nullity of his first marriage is bereft of merit. The Family Code has settled once
and for all the conflicting jurisprudence on the matter. A declaration of the
absolute nullity of a marriage is now explicitly required either as a cause of action
or a ground for defense. Where the absolute nullity of a previous marriage is
sought to be invoked for purposes of contracting a second marriage, the sole
basis acceptable in law for said projected marriage to be free from legal infirmity
is a final judgment declaring the previous marriage void.[18]
The Family Law Revision Committee and the Civil Code Revision Committee which
drafted what is now the Family Code of the Philippines took the position that
parties to a marriage should not be allowed to assume that their marriage is void
even if such be the fact but must first secure a judicial declaration of the nullity of
their marriage before they can be allowed to marry again.[19]
In fact, the requirement for a declaration of absolute nullity of a marriage is also
for the protection of the spouse who, believing that his or her marriage is illegal
and void, marries again. With the judicial declaration of the nullity of his or her
marriage, the person who marries again cannot be charged with bigamy. [20]
In numerous cases,[21] this Court has consistently held that a judicial declaration of
nullity is required before a valid subsequent marriage can be contracted; or else,
what transpires is a bigamous marriage, reprehensible and immoral.
If petitioner’s contention would be allowed, a person who commits bigamy can
simply evade prosecution by immediately filing a petition for the declaration of
nullity of his earlier marriage and hope that a favorable decision is rendered
therein before anyone institutes a complaint against him. We note that in
petitioner’s case the complaint was filed before the first marriage was declared a
nullity. It was only the filing of the Information that was overtaken by the
declaration of nullity of his first marriage. Following petitioner’s argument, even
assuming that a complaint has been instituted, such as in this case, the offender
can still escape liability provided that a decision nullifying his earlier marriage
precedes the filing of the Information in court. Such cannot be allowed. To do so
would make the crime of bigamy dependent upon the ability or inability of the
Office of the Public Prosecutor to immediately act on complaints and eventually
file Informations in court. Plainly, petitioner’s strained reading of the law is
against its simple letter.
Settled is the rule that criminal culpability attaches to the offender upon the
commission of the offense, and from that instant, liability appends to him until
extinguished as provided by law, and that the time of filing of the criminal
complaint (or Information, in proper cases) is material only for determining
prescription.[22] The crime of bigamy was committed by petitioner on 10
December 2001 when he contracted a second marriage with Edita. The finality on
27 June 2006 of the judicial declaration of the nullity of his previous marriage to
Thelma cannot be made to retroact to the date of the bigamous marriage.
x x x."
/---!e-library! 6.0 Philippines Copyright © 2000 by Sony Valdez---\
In Bitangcor v. Tan,[28] we held that the term “cohabitation” or “living together as husband and wife”
means not only residing under one roof, but also having repeated sexual intercourse. Cohabitation, of
course, means more than sexual intercourse, especially when one of the parties is already old and may
no longer be interested in sex. At the very least, cohabitation is the public assumption by a man and a
woman of the marital relation, and dwelling together as man and wife, thereby holding themselves out
to the public as such. Secret meetings or nights clandestinely spent together, even if often repeated, do
not constitute such kind of cohabitation; they are merely meretricious.[29] In this jurisdiction, this Court
has considered as sufficient proof of common-law relationship the stipulations between the parties,[30]
a conviction of concubinage,[31] or the existence of illegitimate children.[32]
\---!e-library! 6.0 Philippines Copyright © 2000 by Sony Valdez---/
([2001V1279] CIRILA ARCABA, petitioner, vs. ERLINDA TABANCURA VDA. DE BATOCAEL, SEIGFREDO C.
TABANCURA, DORIS C. TABANCURA, LUZELLI C. TABANCURA, BELEN C. TABANCURA, RAUL A. COMILLE,
BERNADETTE A. COMILLE, and ABNER A. COMILLE, respondents., G.R. No. 146683, 2001 Nov 22, 2nd
Division)
