Marriage not intended to be a prison

CA upholds right of wife to be free from 'extreme anguish' due to husband's abuse

- By REY G. PANALIGAN

A spouse, who married an individual with dysfunctionality and could not understand and comply with essential marital obligations due to psychological causes, “is not condemned to a life sentence of misery.”

After all, marriage - despite being an inviolable social institution - “was never intended to be a prison,” said the Court of Appeals (CA) which reiterated the Supreme Court (SC) decision issued in 2023.

With its ruling, the CA granted the petition of the wife, and reversed the order of the regional trial court (RTC) which denied her petition for nullity of marriage filed in 2014.

The names of the spouses were redacted by the Manila Bulletin to protect the privacy of the parties and their two children.

The CA decision in the case, docketed as CA-G.R. CV No. 122585, was promulgated on Oct. 15, 2025 and written by Associate Justice Ronaldo Roberto B. Martin.

The spouses were married in 2003.