Should a Christmas gift be in writing?

By Atty. Eduardo T. Reyes III

A week and a fortnight more and Christmas will be upon us once more.

Christmas is a season of giving wherein tradition replicates the acts of the Magi of giving gifts to the baby Jesus who was born in a manger and whose location was pointed to by a star- that served as a GPS device, at the time.

Curiously, is the act of gift-giving imbued with legal implications?

The pertinent legal provision is envisaged in Article 748 of the New Civil Code which deals with donations as the act of giving gifts is a donation, in law.

Article 748. The donation of a movable may be made orally or in writing. –

An Oral donation requires the simultaneous delivery of the thing or of the document representing the right donated. 

If the value of the personal property donated exceeds five thousand pesos, the donation and the acceptance shall be made in writing, otherwise, the donation shall be void.

If the acceptance is made in a separate instrument, the donor shall be notified thereof in an authentic form, and this step shall be noted in both instruments. 

In the recent case of Doris Marie S. Lopez v. Aniceto G. Saludo, Jr., G.R. No. 233775, which came down only on September 15, 2021, the Supreme Court explained that when the donation consists of “purchase money” provided by the giver to the recipient and the amount exceeds P5,000.00, the donation as well as the acceptance must be in writing, otherwise, the donation is void.

And more interestingly, this rule also holds true when a boyfriend surprises his girlfriend with a gift which is in the fashion of, for instance, bringing her to a mall and paying for the expensive jewelry or lavish bag that she buys. Thus:

“In Carinan v. Spouses Cueto, where it was argued that the respondent therein had gratuitously paid the purchase money for property as a donation, this Court noted that donations of purchase money must follow the formal requirements mandated by law. 

                         “In order to sufficiently substantiate her claim that the money paid by the respondents was actually a donation, Esperanza should have also submitted in court a copy of their written contract evincing such agreement. As the Court ruled in Moreño-Lentfer v. Wolff, a donation must comply with the mandatory formal requirements set forth by law for its validity. ‘When the subject of donation is purchase money, Article 748 of the NCC is applicable. Accordingly, the donation of money as well as its acceptance should be in writing. Otherwise, the donation is invalid for non-compliance with the formal requisites prescribed by law. 

                         “Although petitioners repeatedly insisted that the purchase money for the properties was gratuitously given, it appears that they did not, at any stage, present evidence that this donation complied with the formal requirements under Article 748 of the Civil Code. Thus, this Court sees no reason to consider this argument any further.

                         “Similarly, since petitioner, in this case, insists that the purchase money for the properties was gratuitously furnished by respondent, the formalities of a valid donation under Article 748 of the Civil Code should have been complied with, failing which, there could be no donation to speak of. As in Carinan v. Spouses Cueto, petitioner never adduced evidence in support of said argument. Thus, her claim of an alleged donation should necessarily fail.”  

Of course, God loves a cheerful giver, and we only give when it comes from the heart. If there is no controversy, then well and good. But if ever we anticipate any complications from our act of generosity, it pays to know the law – and to follow its dictates- so that once we send our good tidings this Christmas, we can be sure that what we have given will not only suit the recipient and touch his or her heart but will also be snug-fit with the law.

(Atty. Eduardo T. Reyes, III is the senior partner of ET Reyes III & Associates- a law firm based in Iloilo City. He is a litigation attorney, a law professor and a law book author. His website is etriiilaw.com).