Short answer. Generally yes. Article 151 of the Family Code says no suit between members of the same family may proceed unless the complaint shows that earnest efforts toward a compromise were made and failed; if no such efforts were made, the case must be dismissed, unless the dispute is one the law does not allow parties to compromise.
What the law says
No suit between members of the same family shall prosper unless it should appear from the verified complaint or petition that earnest efforts toward a compromise have been made, but that the same have failed.
Family Code, Article 151 — Earnest Efforts to Compromise Before an Intra-Family Suit. Read the full provision →
What the law says
If it is shown that no such efforts were in fact made, the same case must be dismissed.
Family Code, Article 151 — Earnest Efforts to Compromise Before an Intra-Family Suit. Read the full provision →
The rule, and why it exists
Article 151 makes an attempted compromise a condition for a family lawsuit to go forward at all. The complaint or petition itself has to be verified and has to show, on its face, that the parties tried to settle and could not. The idea is that disputes inside a family carry a cost beyond the money or property at stake, and the law wants that effort at reconciliation made before the courtroom becomes the default, rather than treating litigation between relatives as just another lawsuit.
What happens if you skip it
The consequence is stated plainly: if it appears that no earnest effort toward compromise was actually made, the case must be dismissed. This is not a discretionary call left to the judge's sense of fairness — the article uses the word "must." A family member sued without that effort having been attempted, or shown in the pleading, has a straightforward basis to have the case thrown out on that ground alone, regardless of how strong the underlying claim might otherwise be.
The one built-in exception
Article 151 does not apply across the board. It carves out cases which by their nature are not the kind of dispute the law allows people to compromise away. Where a controversy cannot lawfully be settled by agreement in the first place, requiring an attempted compromise before suing would be pointless, so the article does not impose the requirement there. Whether a particular family dispute falls inside or outside that exception is not something the article itself spells out case by case.
What this means before you file
If you are considering legal action against a relative, treat the attempted settlement as a step you take and document, not as an afterthought to mention later. The complaint has to show the effort was made and failed, so a conversation with no record of it happening is a weak foundation for that part of your pleading. Talk to a lawyer early about how to document the attempt properly, since a case dismissed on this technical ground still costs time and money to refile.
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.
- Jose Z. Moreno vs. Rene M. Kahn, et al, G.R. No. 217744, July 30, 2018 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- April Martinez, et al. vs. Rodolfo G. Martinez, G.R. No. 162084, June 28, 2005 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Hiyas Savings and Loan Bank, Inc vs. Hon. Edmundo T. Acuña, et al, G.R. No. 154132, August 31, 2006 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Gaw Chin Ty, Vicente Gaw Chua, Robert Gaw Chua, Manuel Gaw Chua, Alejandro Gaw, G.R. No. 212598, September 29, 2021 — read the decision on LawPhil →