HEIRS OF MARCELINO CABAL V. SPOUSES CABAL (CIVIL)

It has been said that good faith is always presumed, and upon him who alleges bad faith on the part of the possessor rests the burden of proof. The essence of good faith lies in an honest belief in the validity of one's right, ignorance of a superior claim, and absence of intention to overreach another. Applied to possession, one is considered in good faith if he is not aware that there exists in his title or mode of acquisition any flaw which invalidates it.

When a person builds in good faith on the land of another, the applicable provision is Article 448. Thus, the owner of the land on which anything has been built, sown, or planted in good faith shall have the right to appropriate as his own the building, planting, or sowing, after payment to the builder, planter or sower of the necessary and useful expenses, and in the proper case, for pure luxury or mere pleasure.

The owner of the land may also oblige the builder, planter, sower to purchase and pay the price of the land. If the owner chooses to sell his land, the builder, planter, and sower must purchase the land, otherwise, the owner may remove the improvements thereon.

The builder, planter, or sower, however, is not obliged to purchase the land if its value is considerably more than the building, planting, or sowing. In such case, the builder, planter, or sower must pay rent to the owner of the land.

If the parties cannot come into terms over the conditions of the lease, the court must fix the terms thereof. The right to choose between appropriating the improvement or selling the land on which the improvement stands to the builder, planter, sower, is given to the owner of the land.