Cost of Annulment

The cost of annulment is a paramount consideration in deciding whether to file for annulment. The cost really depends on a lot of factors, such as the venue, the ground/grounds for annulment, properties owned by the spouses, and of course the professional fee for psychologist and/or psychiatrist.  The psychology and/or psychiatry report, which is a pre-requisite, in an annulment case, makes up a substantial portion of the whole professional fee. Fees for doctors of psychology/psychiatry range between Php 25,000.00 to Php 50,000.00. This is why there is a move or clamour to regulate these fees through Supreme Court accreditation of these professional doctors.

The high cost of annulment is also the reason behind House Bill No. 3952 by Congressman Colmenares. House Bill No. 3952 which seeks to recognize spousal violence, infidelity, and abandonment as presumptive psychological incapacity, as a ground for the annulment of a marriage. Author claims that adding the presumption of psychological incapacity under Article 36 would reduce the length of the proceedings, and cut expenses like professional fees for psychiatrists or psychologists. Some legal experts however believe that this bill will not solve the problem of cost of litigation since it does not change the legal standards set by the Supreme Court in annulment cases. Under this bill, although psychological incapacity is presumed in case of violence, infidelity, and abandonment, one still has to prove seriousness, incurability and that such psychological incapacity existed at the time of marriage. The bill may do away with proving psychological incapacity but all the other factors still has to be proven resulting in protracted court proceedings.

Well, let us wait and see where this bill may lead our Congressmen to. After all some of them have benefited from “psychological incapacity” fever or still intend to avail of it.