Short answer. Yes, this ground reaches beyond attacks on you personally. Article 919 lists an attempt against the life of the testator's spouse, not only the testator, as a sufficient cause for disinheriting a child or descendant, provided the child has been found guilty of it. An attack on your spouse can support disinheritance on this ground.
What the law says
When a child or descendant has been found guilty of an attempt against the life of the testator, his or her spouse, descendants, or ascendants
Civil Code, Article 919 — Grounds to Disinherit Children and Descendants. Read the full provision →
The ground covers your spouse, not just you
Article 919 lists several causes sufficient to disinherit a child or descendant, and the first one is not limited to attacks on the testator personally. It applies when a child or descendant has been found guilty of an attempt against the life of the testator, his or her spouse, descendants, or ascendants. The law recognizes that an attack on your spouse strikes at the same family relationship a testator is entitled to expect loyalty within, so an attempt against your spouse's life is treated as seriously as one against your own.
"Found guilty" is the standard, not a mere accusation
The ground requires that the child or descendant "has been found guilty" of the attempt, not merely that an attack or accusation occurred. This is a meaningful threshold: guilt has to be established, not simply alleged by the testator disinheriting the child. If your child has actually been found guilty of an attempt against your spouse's life, that finding is what satisfies this particular ground under Article 919, rather than your own belief or account of what happened, however well-founded it may be.
This ground sits alongside several others
Article 919 does not stand alone as the only path to disinheriting a child; it is one of several causes the article recognizes, ranging from an unfounded accusation of a serious crime against the testator to maltreatment or a refusal to support a parent without justification. An attempt on your spouse's life is simply the first of these listed causes, and it operates independently of the others. If the same conduct might also fit another listed ground, the causes are not mutually exclusive, but only one needs to be established to support a valid disinheritance.
What this means when you disinherit on this ground
Because this ground turns specifically on your child or descendant having been found guilty of the attempt on your spouse's life, keeping clear records of that finding matters if the disinheritance is ever questioned. The strength of a disinheritance built on this ground rests on how solidly that guilt has actually been established, since Article 919 conditions the cause on guilt having been found, not merely suspected or alleged.
Cases citing this provision
These Supreme Court decisions cite the provision above. We list them so you can read them yourself; the summaries of what each decided are not ours to give.
- Rosario Mata Castro and Joanne Benedicta Charissima M. Castro, a.k.a. "Maria Scorro M. Castro" and "Jayrose M. Castro" vs. Jose Maria Jed Lemuel Gregorio and Ana Maria Regina Gregorio, G.R. No. 188801, October 15, 2014 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Isabelita S. Lahom vs. Jose Melvin Sibulo, G.R. No. 143989, July 14, 2003 — read the decision on LawPhil →