Short answer. The marriage can still proceed validly. Article 6 provides that in a marriage in articulo mortis, when the party at the point of death is unable to sign, it is sufficient for one of the witnesses to write that party's name, with the fact attested by the solemnizing officer.
What the law says
In case of a marriage in articulo mortis, when the party at the point of death is unable to sign the marriage certificate, it shall be sufficient for one of the witnesses to the marriage to write the name of said party, which fact shall be attested by the solemnizing officer.
Family Code, Article 6 — Marriage Ceremony; Personal Declaration. Read the full provision →
The ordinary signing requirement, and its exception
Article 6 generally requires that the marriage certificate "be signed by the contracting parties and their witnesses and attested by the solemnizing officer." That signature is normally how each party formally records their personal declaration that they take each other as husband and wife. A marriage in articulo mortis, one entered into at the point of death, creates an obvious practical problem: the dying party may be physically unable to hold a pen or write their own name, even though they are otherwise willing and able to marry.
The witness-signing solution for a dying party
Article 6 addresses this directly: in case of a marriage in articulo mortis, when the party at the point of death is unable to sign the marriage certificate, it shall be sufficient for one of the witnesses to the marriage to write the name of said party. Rather than requiring the impossible, the law allows a witness to physically write the dying party's name on the certificate in their stead. The inability to sign does not, by itself, prevent the marriage from being properly documented.
Why the solemnizing officer's attestation matters here
This substitute signing is not left unverified. The article requires that this specific fact, that a witness wrote the dying party's name because that party could not sign, "shall be attested by the solemnizing officer." The officer's attestation is what gives this unusual manner of signing its legitimacy on the record. Without that attestation, a name written by someone other than the party themselves could otherwise raise doubts about whether the marriage certificate genuinely reflects what happened.
What this means for the validity of the marriage
A dying party's physical inability to sign is not, on its own, a defect that undermines the marriage. Article 6 anticipates this exact scenario and provides a specific, lawful way to complete the certificate despite it. What still matters is that the other requirements of Article 6 are met: the parties appearing personally before the solemnizing officer, the personal declaration before at least two witnesses of legal age, and the witness writing the dying party's name with the officer's attestation of that fact, rather than the dying party's own signature.
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.
- Rene Ronulo vs. People of the philippines, G.R. No. 182438, July 2, 2014 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Rommel Genio y Santos vs. People of the Philippines, G.R. No. 261666, January 24, 2024 — read the decision on LawPhil →