Lawyering's Ins and Outs

Facts: B , widow, was married by a Solemnizing Officer to S , a woman who was previously married to U but had been separated for many years.  S and U were married prior to 1988 and they have been separated for much longer than seven (7) years.  The wedding was performed in June 2012 but apparently the Solemnizing Officer was told it could not be recorded and was not  legal because S , had been married before with no annulment.  Issues : (1) Should the marriage be recorded?             (2) What are the Requirements for Late Registration of Marriage?            (3) Is the Marriage between B & S valid, considering that S was still married to U who abandoned her for more than seven (7) years? Legal Advice : (1) The marriage performed should be recorded . It shall be the duty of the solemnizing officer to report the marriage to the office of the Civil Registrar where the marriage was solemnized and the period of filing for registration depends on whether the

Client inquired about the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and how the provisions of the law could apply to a Philippine company like their company. FCPA prohibits U.S persons and, in some cases, foreign persons from corruptly offering, authorizing, or making payments, or giving anything of value, to any foreign official or political parties for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. FCPA has two main provisions - the anti-bribery provisions which are enforced by the US Department of Justice and Accounting and Internal Controls Provisions enforced by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. For the Anti-Bribery Offense , the covered persons are: (i) U.S. persons and companies, (ii) "Issuer" (i.e. any company with shares listed on U.S. Stock exchanges and (iii) any person - foreign companies, their officers, directors, employees, foreign national not resident in US that take an "act in furtherance" while in the U.S. A domestic corpor

Inquiry : Two LDS Sri Lankan nationals are planning to have their Temple Marriage at the Manila Philippines Temple and they would like to inquire the arrangement and the requirements they needed to complete prior to the said marriage. Reply: All parties to a marriage in the Philippines whether Filipinos or foreigners are required to secure a Marriage License unless exempt under Articles 27, 28, 33 & 34 of the Family Code of the Philippines (i.e. in the point of death, in five - year cohabitation without legal impediments, no means of transportation, muslim marriages, etc .) But in addition to the usual requirements for marriage license, the Philippine Government requires foreigners to obtain from his/her Embassy or Consulate in the Philippines, a “ Certificate of Legal Capacity to Contract Marriage ” before applying for a marriage license. This certification affirms that there are no legal impediments to the intended marriage of the parties pursuant to the first paragra

My client is a consignee of 500 family tents and 5 sets of water purification equipment from the United States for Typhoon Yolanda disaster relief. Since my client is an accredited Resource Agency of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and what are being shipped are relief goods, the importations can enjoy both import duties and import VAT exemptions (and even warehouse storage fees waiver). All exemptions are processed at the One - Stop - Shop created by the Bureau of Customs pursuant to Customs Memorandum Order (CMO) dated November 11, 2013. Pursuant to the CMO, the documentary requirements for the release of donated relief goods have been streamlined and simplified. To facilitate their immediate release, only a letter of intent to donate goods ( or Deed of Donation ), original copy of the bill of Lading or airway bill , and a packing list and/or a commercial invoice (among other documents as may be required), are needed provided that all donation