Incestuous Marriages, A37 Family Code

1. Concept

Incest – refers to “sexual intercourse between persons so closely related that they are forbidden by law to marry”. (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary)

2. Incestuous Marriages

Incestuous marriages	1) Between ascendants and descendants of any degree
	2) Between brothers and sisters, whether of the full or half blood

a. Between ascendants and descendants of any degree

Art. 37. Marriages between the following are incestuous and void from the beginning, whether relationship between the parties be legitimate or illegitimate:

(1) Between ascendants and descendants of any degree x x x

1) Between ascendants and descendants

1) Marriages between ascendants and descendants are considered incestuous marriages and thus void.

2) Ascendants are those who come before a person, such as:

(a) Parents, i.e. mother and father;

(b) Grandparents, i.e., maternal/paternal grandmother or maternal/paternal grandfather;

(c) Great-grandparents, i.e., maternal/paternal great-grandmother or maternal/paternal great-grandfather; and

(d) So on, going further up.

2) Ascendants are those who come after a person, such as:

(a) Children, i.e. daughters and sons;

(b) Grandchildren;

(c) Great-grandchildren; and

(d) So on, going further down.

2) Of any degree

1) The prohibition extends to any degree in the ascending or descending line. For example, a grandchild is not allowed to marry a great-grandparent, despite them being three degrees apart.

b. Between brothers and sisters, whether of the full or half blood

Art. 37. Marriages between the following are incestuous and void from the beginning, whether relationship between the parties be legitimate or illegitimate:

x x x

(2) Between brothers and sisters, whether of the full or half blood. (81a)

1) Between brothers and sisters

1) Marriages between brothers and sisters are considered incestuous marriages and thus void.

2) Whether full or half blood

1) Full blood brothers and sisters refer those who were born from both the mother and father.

2) Half-blood brothers and sisters refer to those who are born of one single parent only in a marriage. For example, a daughter is the child of the father and a woman who is not the mother, such as when the latter were both single, or the woman is from a previous marriage, or the woman is from an extramarital affair in relation to the present marriage.