Pietri v. Registrar
Pietri v. Registrar
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
This is an administrative appeal from a decision of the Registrar of Property of San Germán refusing to admit to record certain dominion title proceedings approved by the District Court of Mayagiiez.
“Admission to record of the foregoing document is' denied as to the property described under letter B because of the defect that notice by publication was not given for the period prescribed by subdivisions 2 and 3 of article 395 of the present Mortgage Law. Instead, a marginal note is entered on folio 1 of volume 14 of the Municipality of Sabana Grande, property No. 731, record letter A.
“San Germán, January 12, 1914.”
In view of the adverse decision of the registrar, the petitioner again applied to the District Court of Mayagüez and obtained a declaration of said court, dated January 19, 1914, to the effect that although the edict published stated that persons wishing to oppose the petition should do so within s period of 60 days, more than 180 days had elapsed since the date of publication and no person had opposed the same nor had any objection been made thereto.
Thereupon the petitioner again presented in the registry the approved dominion title proceedings accompanied by a certified copy of the court’s declaration of January 19, 1914, and the registrar refused to record the same for the reason set forth in the following decision, from which the present appeal was taken:
“After examining the accompanying documents, the admission to record of the foregoing document is denied as to properties A and C because, of the defect that notice by publication was not given for the period prescribed by subdivisions 2 and 3 of article 395 of the*207 present Mortgage Lato. In lieu thereof a marginal note is entered for 120 days on folios 6 and 10 of volume 14 of the Municipality of Sabana G-rande, properties Nos. 732 and 733 respectively, record letter A. The conversion requested by virtue of said documents of the marginal note entered as to the property described under letter B is likewise denied because the defect which caused the'original entry still exists. No marginal note is entered because it was entered on January 12 last, on folio 1 of volume 14 of the Municipality of Sabana Grande, property No. 731, entry letter A. San German, February 3, 1914.”
In his brief to this court the registrar sustains his refusal to record on the single ground that the' provisions of subdivisions 2 and 3 of article 395 of the Mortgage Law were not complied with in prosecuting the dominion title proceedings, in that persons who might be affected by the record sought were given notice for a period of 60 days instead of' 180 days.
Section 6 of the Judicial Order of April 4, 1899, reads as follows:
“The period of 180 days fixed in article 394 (395) of the Mortgage Law for the admission of proofs in the proceedings instituted to substantiate the acquisition of real estate so as to record the ownership thereof shall be understood as of sixty days.”
The said section 6 has been construed always by the courts to mean that notice to unknown persons who may be affected by the recording of a dominion title should be given for a period of 60 days and not for 180 days, otherwise its application would result in an absurdity. The period of 60 days is sufficient and cannot be considered inconsistent with the constitutional provision concerning due process of law. Section 95 of the Code of Civil Procedure fixes one month as the minimum period for summoning by publication a defendant residing out of the Island or absent therefrom.
Since the promulgation of the Judicial Order of April 4, 1899, hundreds of cases of dominion title' proceedings have been prosecuted in the Porto Bican courts in the manner in
The appeal should be sustained and the decision appealed from reversed.
Reversed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.