SC modifies requirements for psychological incapacity in annulment cases 

THE SUPREME Court (SC) has unanimously ruled that psychological incapacity need not be proven through a testimony of a psychologist or psychiatrist in annulment cases, and that the “totality of the evidence” must be clear and convincing enough to declare a marriage void.

“The Court pronounced that psychological incapacity is not a medical but a legal concept… It need not be a mental or personality disorder…(nor) a permanent and incurable condition,” the SC’s Public Information Office PIO said on Wednesday through a press briefer.

The SC added that psychological incapacity “refers to a personal condition that prevents a spouse to comply with fundamental marital obligations only in relation to a specific partner that may exist at the time of the marriage but may have revealed through behavior subsequent to the ceremonies.”

Psychological incapacity is a ground for declaring a marriage null and void as found in Article 36 of the Family Code which states that a “marriage contracted by any party who, at the time of the celebration, was psychologically incapacitated to comply with the essential marital obligations of marriage, shall likewise be void even if such incapacity becomes manifest only after its solemnization.”

Justice Marvic Mario Victor F. Leonen penned the decision and was deliberated in the Court’s En Banc session on Tuesday in the case of Rosanna L. Tan-Andal versus Mario Victor M. Andal.

The full opinion will be uploaded to the SC website once the official copy is released. — Bianca Angelica D. Añago