Short answer. Yes, generally. Article 1406 of the Civil Code lets you invoke the right under Article 1357 when a public document is needed to register the land, letting you compel the seller to execute the notarized deed once your contract has been perfected. This right can be exercised together with your action to enforce the contract itself.

What the law says

When a contract is enforceable under the Statute of Frauds, and a public document is necessary for its registration in the Registry of Deeds, the parties may avail themselves of the right under Article 1357.

Civil Code, Article 1406 — Right to Compel a Public Document. Read the full provision →

Where this right comes from

Article 1406 addresses situations where a contract is enforceable under the Statute of Frauds and a public document, meaning a notarized instrument, is necessary for its registration in the Registry of Deeds. In that situation, the article says the parties may avail themselves of the right under Article 1357. That article, in turn, provides that where the law requires a special form for a contract, the parties may compel each other to observe that form once the contract has been perfected.

What compelling the form actually means

Because Article 1357 gives you the right to compel the other party to observe the required form once the contract is perfected, this generally translates into being able to seek a court order requiring the seller to execute the notarized deed needed for registration, rather than simply waiting on his voluntary cooperation. The premise is that the underlying sale itself is already a valid, perfected agreement; what is missing is the particular form, a public document, needed to register it, and the law lets you compel that missing step.

This can be pursued alongside enforcing the contract itself

Article 1357 specifically allows this right to be exercised simultaneously with the action upon the contract. This means you are not required to first sue to enforce the sale and only later separately pursue getting the deed executed; both can be pursued together in the same proceeding, addressing both whether the contract is valid and enforceable and the practical problem of getting it into the notarized form the Registry of Deeds requires for registration of the land.

What this depends on

This right depends on the underlying contract actually being perfected and enforceable in the first place; Article 1406 and Article 1357 address compelling the form the agreement should take, not whether a valid agreement exists at all. If there is a genuine dispute about whether you and the seller actually reached a binding agreement over the land, that question would need to be resolved as part of the same proceeding before the right to compel execution of the notarized deed becomes relevant.

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.

Related provisions

Note. Statute text quoted on this page is reproduced from the official enactment and is linked to the full provision. The explanation around it is general legal information from Vivas & Nobles Law Office, not legal advice. Whether it applies to your situation depends on facts only a lawyer reviewing them can assess.