FACTS:
Gregorio Nolasco is a seaman. He met Janet Parker, a British, in
bar in England. After that, Janet started living with Nolasco in his ship
for six months. It lasted until the contract of Nolasco expired then he
brought her to his hometown in Antique. They got married in January
1982. Due to another contract, Nolasco left the province. In 1983, Nolasco
received a letter from his mother informing him that his son had been born but
15 days after, Janet left. Nolasco went home and cut short his contract
to find Janet’s whereabouts. He did so by securing another seaman’s
contract going to London. He wrote several letters to the bar where they
first met but it was all returned. Gregorio petitioned in 1988 for a
declaration of presumptive death of Janet.
ISSUE: Whether or not Nolasco had a well-founded belief that his wife, Janet,
is already dead?
HELD:
The Supreme Court ruled that Nolasco’s efforts to locate Janet were not
persistent to show that he has a well-founded belief that his wife was already
dead because instead of seeking assistance of local authorities and the British
Embassy, he even secured another contract. More so, while he was in
London, he did not even try to solicit help of the authorities to find his
wife.
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