Text of the provision
Art. 286. Grave coercions. - The penalty of prisión correccional and a fine not exceeding One hundred thousand pesos (₱100,000) shall be imposed upon any person who, without any authority of law, shall, by means of violence, threats, or intimidation, prevent another from doing something not prohibited by law, or compel him to do something against his will, whether it be right or wrong. If the coercion be committed in violation of the exercise of the right of suffrage, or for the purpose of compelling another to perform any religious act, or to prevent him from exercising such right or from so doing such act, the penalty next higher in degree shall be imposed.
Revised Penal Code of the Philippines, Act No. 3815, as amended. Reproduced in full from the official enactment and verified against the LawPhil and ChanRobles renderings.
What this article means
Using violence, threats or intimidation, without authority of law, to stop someone from doing what the law allows or to force him to do something against his will — right or wrong — is punished by prisión correccional and a fine not exceeding One hundred thousand pesos (₱100,000). The penalty rises one degree where the coercion strikes at the right of suffrage or at religious acts.
Questions about this provision
Related provisions
- Article 285 — Other Light Threats.
- Article 287 — Light Coercions And Unjust Vexation.
Penalty amounts. The text above is the article as amended by Republic Act No. 10951 (2017), which revised the property values and fines throughout this Code. Older reproductions of the Revised Penal Code still print the 1930 amounts — for theft and estafa they show 12,000 and 22,000 pesos where the current figures run to millions. Check which version any source you rely on is giving you.
Cases interpreting this article
- Authorities on this article will be added here as each is verified against primary sources.