THE Supreme Court ruled that a husband and wife both wanting to end their marriage does not automatically mean they secretly worked together to deceive the court in a nullity or annulment case.
In a decision written by Associate Justice Maria Filomena Singh, the Supreme Court said collusion exists only if there is proof that the spouses agreed to invent or hide facts to make it appear that their marriage was void.
The case involved a wife who sought to have her marriage declared void, claiming her husband was psychologically incapacitated and had abused her physically, emotionally and financially even before they got married.
Although the husband did not oppose the petition or present evidence, the prosecutor found no signs of collusion.
The trial court dismissed the case, saying there was not enough proof of psychological incapacity and questioning why the husband’s relatives testified in favor of the wife.
However, the Court of Appeals reversed the ruling and declared the marriage void because of the husband’s psychological incapacity.
The Office of the Solicitor General then appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that the spouses had colluded because the husband did not contest the petition.
The Supreme Court rejected this argument, saying that simply agreeing to end a marriage or not opposing a petition is not proof of collusion. It stressed that collusion requires evidence that the spouses conspired to deceive the court by fabricating or hiding facts.
The Court also said that a spouse’s failure to file an answer or present evidence does not automatically prove collusion.
The Supreme Court upheld the Court of Appeals’ decision, finding enough evidence — including witness testimonies and a psychologist’s evaluation — to prove the husband’s psychological incapacity.
The Court emphasized that while marriage is protected by law, courts should also recognize when a marriage has become beyond repair and harmful, saying marriage should be a relationship built on respect, care and emotional safety, not one that traps a person in an abusive union.