The Supreme Court, voting 10-3 with one abstention, has recognized the divorce decree secured by a Filipino against foreign spouse.

“The Court . . . ruled that a foreign divorce secured by a Filipino against a foreign spouse is also considered valid in the Philippines, even if it is the Filipino spouse who files for divorce abroad,” SC spokesperson Theodore Te said in a media briefing in Baguio City on Tuesday.

The ruling came after upholding the decision of the Court of Appeal recognizing the divorce decree granted by a Japanese court on December 6, 2011 to Marelyn Tanedo Manalo against her husband Minoru Yoshino.

Manalo petitioned a Dagupan court seeking to recognize the judgment in a foreign court in the Philippines. The lower court denied her plea, prompting her to go to the Court of Appeals.

The Court of Appeals in 2014 reversed the lower court’s decision. The SC sided with the ruling of the appellate court.

The SC remanded Manalo’s case back to the lower court for reception of evidence as part of a proceeding to legally recognize the divorce of marriage obtained abroad. DMS