Text of the provision
Art. 127. The separation in fact between husband and wife shall not affect the regime of conjugal partnership, except that:
(1) The spouse who leaves the conjugal home or refuses to live therein, without just cause, shall not have the right to be supported;
(2) When the consent of one spouse to any transaction of the other is required by law, judicial authorization shall be obtained in a summary proceeding;
(3) In the absence of sufficient conjugal partnership property, the separate property of both spouses shall be solidarily liable for the support of the family. The spouse present shall, upon petition in a summary proceeding, be given judicial authority to administer or encumber any specific separate property of the other spouse and use the fruits or proceeds thereof to satisfy the latter's share.
(178a)
Family Code of the Philippines, Executive Order No. 209, approved July 6, 1987. The Code took effect on August 3, 1988 (Republic v. Orbecido III, G.R. No. 154380, October 5, 2005). Reproduced in full.
What this article means
Simply living apart does not end the conjugal partnership. The regime continues — with three practical adjustments:
- A spouse who leaves or refuses to live in the family home without just cause loses the right to support.
- Where a transaction would normally need the other spouse's consent, the present spouse gets it through judicial authorization in a summary proceeding instead.
- If conjugal property is not enough, both spouses' separate property is solidarily liable for family support, and the present spouse may be authorized to administer or encumber specific separate property of the absent spouse.
Related provisions
- Article 100 — the parallel separation-in-fact rule for the absolute community.
- Article 128 — remedies where a spouse abandons the family or fails its obligations.
Cases interpreting this article
- Authorities on Article 127 will be added here as each is verified against primary sources.