Short answer. No. Article 67 requires the spouses to execute a sworn agreement of revival, specifying the properties contributed anew, those retained as separate property, and known creditors, then file it with the court for approval. Reconciliation alone does not automatically restore the former property regime.
What the law says
The agreement to revive the former property regime referred to in the preceding Article shall be executed under oath and shall specify: (1) The properties to be contributed anew to the restored regime; (2) Those to be retained as separated properties of each spouse; and (3) The names of all their known creditors, their addresses and the amounts owing to each.
Family Code, Article 67 — Reviving the Former Property Regime. Read the full provision →
Revival requires a formal, sworn agreement
Article 67 sets specific requirements for reviving the property regime after legal separation, none of which happen automatically upon reconciliation: the agreement to revive the former property regime referred to in the preceding Article shall be executed under oath and shall specify: (1) The properties to be contributed anew to the restored regime; (2) Those to be retained as separated properties of each spouse; and (3) The names of all their known creditors, their addresses and the amounts owing to each. Reconciling as a couple does not, by itself, satisfy any of these three requirements.
The agreement must go through the court
The revival is not just a private matter between spouses; Article 67 requires that the agreement of revival and the motion for its approval shall be filed with the court in the same proceeding for legal separation, with copies of both furnished to the creditors named therein. So even after you and your spouse prepare the sworn agreement listing the properties and creditors, you still need court approval within the same legal separation case, not a separate, informal understanding between yourselves.
Why the process protects creditors
The reason revival is not automatic is largely about protecting people who extended credit to either spouse while the property regime was dissolved. The article requires the court, after due hearing, to take measure to protect the interest of creditors, and the resulting order must be recorded in the proper property registries. Reviving the community or partnership property regime changes what property is available to satisfy debts, so creditors need notice and the court needs to weigh their interests before the prior regime can be restored.
What reconciled spouses need to do
If you and your spouse have reconciled after a legal separation decree and want your former property regime restored, you need to prepare the sworn agreement specifying the properties and creditors as Article 67 requires, then file it with the court in the same legal separation proceeding for approval. Simply resuming married life together, without completing this process, leaves the property regime in the dissolved and liquidated state the legal separation decree created, rather than automatically restoring the arrangement you had before the separation.
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.
- David A. Noveras vs. Leticia T. Noveras AM. No. P-06-2227 August 19, 2014 Office of the Court Administrator vs. Atty. Mario N. Melchor, Former Clerk of Court VI, RTC, Br. 16, Naval, Biliran (now Presiding Judge, MCTC, Calubian-San Isidro, Leyte), G.R. No. 188289, August 20, 2014 — read the decision on LawPhil →