Prescription Period for Filing an Adultery Case Against a Spouse in the Philippines
(A comprehensive legal primer)
1. Adultery in Philippine Criminal Law
Statutory anchor | Key points |
---|---|
Article 333, Revised Penal Code (RPC) | • Defines adultery as sexual intercourse between a married woman and a man not her husband. • Punishable by prisión correccional in its medium and maximum periods ( 2 years 4 months 1 day – 6 years ). • Each act of intercourse is a separate and distinct crime. |
Under Article 344, RPC, adultery is a private offense: only the offended spouse may initiate prosecution, and the complaint must include both guilty parties (the wife and her paramour) if both are alive. Consent or express/implicit pardon bars prosecution.
2. Why “Prescription” Matters
Prescription of the crime limits the State’s power to prosecute after a lapse of a statutory period; prescription of the penalty limits enforcement of a sentence already imposed. The focus here is the prescriptive period of the crime of adultery—the deadline for filing a criminal complaint.
3. How Long Is the Prescriptive Period?
Penalty Classification | Governing Rule (Art. 90, RPC) | Result for Adultery |
---|---|---|
Prisión correccional (6 months 1 day – 6 years) | Crimes “punishable by correctional penalties” prescribe in 10 years. | 10‑year prescriptive period |
4. When Does the Ten‑Year Clock Start?
Article 91, RPC governs computation:
Date of discovery by the offended spouse Because adultery cannot be prosecuted without the spouse’s complaint, the period begins only when that spouse actually learns of a specific adulterous act.
- People v. Castro (CA, 55 O.G. 5096)
- People v. Amparado (CA‑G.R. No. 19138‑R, 1959)
Suspension & Interruption
- Filing the complaint with the Office of the Prosecutor interrupts prescription.
- Prescription does not run while the offender is outside Philippine territory.
- If proceedings end without conviction or acquittal (e.g., complaint withdrawn) and without the accused’s fault, the period resumes.
Practical takeaway: once the aggrieved spouse uncovers proof of a particular adulterous encounter, the safest course is to file promptly; waiting beyond 10 years from discovery forfeits the right to prosecute that act.
5. Multiple Acts, Multiple Clocks
Because each sexual episode constitutes an independent offense, each act has its own 10‑year timer. Older acts may have prescribed even while later acts remain actionable (U.S. v. Enríquez, 35 Phil. 139 [1916]).
6. Condonation, Consent, and Pardon—Not “Prescription,” but Equally Fatal
Even within the 10‑year window, prosecution fails if:
Scenario | Governing provision | Effect |
---|---|---|
Prior consent to the adulterous relationship | Art. 344, RPC | Complaint will not prosper. |
Express pardon after discovery | Art. 344, RPC | Bars prosecution. |
Implied pardon (resumption of conjugal cohabitation after discovery) | People v. Dizon, G.R. No. L‑2254 (Apr 29 1950) | Courts treat renewed marital relations as forgiveness. |
7. Relation to Civil Actions
While criminal adultery prescribes in 10 years, a separate civil suit for damages (e.g., mental anguish) must be filed within four (4) years from discovery under Article 1146 of the Civil Code.
8. Prescription of Penalty (Post‑Conviction) — A Different Clock
If convicted and later escaping service, the adulterous spouse’s sentence prescribes in 10 years (Art. 93 & 92, RPC) because the penalty imposed is correctional.
9. Illustrative Timeline
Example: Wife commits adulterous act on 1 March 2015. Husband discovers it on 1 May 2017 while reading chat logs. • Prescription starts → 1 May 2017 • Husband must file complaint on or before 1 May 2027. • If complaint filed on 30 April 2027, prescription is tolled; if later withdrawn and case dismissed without accused’s fault, the timer resumes from the point of interruption.
10. Key Take‑Home Rules for the Offended Spouse
- Mark the date of actual discovery, not the date of the affair.
- File swiftly—paperwork at the prosecutor’s office stops the clock.
- Include both offenders and avoid any act that could be construed as pardon.
- Preserve evidence: hotel receipts, text messages, admissions, witnesses.
- Civil damages are on a shorter, 4‑year fuse.
Conclusion
Under Philippine law, an adultery charge must be brought within ten (10) years from the offended spouse’s discovery of each adulterous act. Delay, condonation, or procedural missteps can irreversibly bar prosecution. Timely legal advice and decisive action are therefore critical for a wronged spouse seeking criminal redress.