Prescription, A56(6), A57 Family Code

1. Concept

Prescription – refers to a claim having prescribed, which means that the claim is “invalid or unenforceable” (Merriam-Webster, n.d. Available at: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prescribe [Accessed: 18 April 2025])

2. Prescription

Art. 56. The petition for legal separation shall be denied on any of the following grounds:

x x x

(6) Where the action is barred by prescription. (100a) (E.O. 209 [s. 1987], Family Code)

1) Prescription is a ground for denying legal separation.

2) If the ground has already prescribed, then it cannot anymore be enforced. Thus, the petition for legal separation will be denied.

3) A legal separation petition will be dismissed if it is filed too late, beyond the time limit allowed by law. This is known as being barred by prescription. The law gives a specific period—typically five years from the time the offense was discovered—within which the aggrieved spouse must take legal action. If a spouse waits too long and does not file the petition within that time frame, the right to seek legal separation expires, and the court can no longer act on it, even if the reason would have otherwise been valid. (OpenAI ChatGPT-4 [2025], reviewed by J. Del Puerto. Available at: https://chat.openai.com [Accessed: 18 April 2025])

a. Prescription: 5 years

Art. 57. An action for legal separation shall be filed within five years from the time of the occurrence of the cause. (102) (E.O. 209 [s. 1987], Family Code)

1) The petitioner-spouse has only five (5) years within which to file a Petition for Legal Separation counted from the occurrence thereof. Otherwise, the cause of action will prescribe.

2) Notwithstanding, if there is a new occurrence or a different ground occurs, then the petitioner-spouse may use these instead of a ground that has already prescribed.

3. Examples

Example 1 – Noel and Andrea:

Andrea discovered that Noel had been unfaithful in 2016, but she didn’t take any legal action. She continued to live with him for several years before finally filing for legal separation in 2023. Since more than five years had passed since Andrea became aware of the affair, her petition could be denied because it was filed beyond the allowed period. (OpenAI ChatGPT-4 [2025], reviewed by J. Del Puerto, supra.)

Example 2 – Ramon and Teresa:

In 2015, Ramon physically harmed Teresa during a serious altercation. Teresa immediately moved out and never reconciled with him. However, she only filed a petition for legal separation in 2022. Because she allowed seven years to pass before acting on the incident, the court may reject her petition on the ground that the legal deadline had already passed. (Ibid.)

Example 3 – Olivia and Greg:

Olivia found out in 2018 that Greg had been secretly living with another woman. She kept quiet about it, focusing instead on raising their children and managing the household. In 2024, she finally filed for legal separation. Since more than five years had lapsed from the time she discovered the offense, her case may be barred by prescription and thus dismissed. (Ibid.)