Elaborative Discussion of the Civil Code of the Philippines in the Area of Parental Authority and Funerals

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Art. 311. The father and mother jointly exercise parental authority over their legitimate children who are not emancipated. In case of disagreement, the father's decision shall prevail, unless there is a judicial order to the contrary. Children are obliged to obey their parents so long as they are under parental power, and to observe respect and reverence toward them always.

Recognized natural and adopted children who are under the age of majority are under the parental authority of the father or mother recognizing or adopting them, and are under the same obligation stated in the preceding paragraph.

Natural children by legal fiction are under the joint authority of the father and mother, as provided in the first paragraph of this article.

Parental Authority defined as the total sum of the rights of parents over the persons and property of their children. It refers to all the rights and duties that parents have towards their children once they are born. Parents have a legal duty to raise their children properly and to protect them physically as well as psychologically.

Specifically, parents have the rights and duties of custody supervision and education toward their children. They must feed them, maintain them and ensure their health and safety.


Joint parental authority as authorized above deviated from the original rule that it is the father who would exercise such authority. Now, both spouses exercis parental authority over their common children and in case of disagreement (for example, in the manner the authority is to be exercised), it is the father's decision that should be followed unless ordered otherwise by the court; in such a case, it is the mother who has recourse to the court questioning the father's decision.

Purpose of Parental Authority

 It has for its purpose not only the sound physical development of the children, but also the cultivation of their intellectual perceptions, and the nourishments of their appetitive and sensitive faculties.

The authority of the father and mother must be mutually exercised, each contributing what is most natural to their particular rule. The mutual exercise of parental authority means that neither one will abdicate authority, nor delegate to the other the making of all the decisions concerning the direction, correction and punishment of the children. By the design of nature a father leans towards justice and severity, the mother towards mercy and leniency. Yet decisions must appear to the children as coming from both parents, the one always supporting and upholding the other when the decision has been mutually made. 

Example of Parental Authority

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Arianne is going birth in a few days. She and her spouse Ariel have lots to do, from last minute shopping to the final touches to the baby’s room. Looking through the file of magazines her mother gave her, Arianne notice a term she had never heard before: “parental authority”.

 The birth of the baby is a new challenge that parents tackle with all their particular cultural religious and educational backgrounds. The arrival of the child also brings with its new rights and responsibilities for parents.

 A child’s father and mother together, hold and exercise parental authority. How a child responds to the authority of his/her parent will determine how they will respond to authority the rest of their life. That is why it is vitally important that parents take time to teach their children how to honour and respect them. The parents must take it upon themselves to instruct their children on how to respect. Each child should acknowledge parental authority in the home. The child respect fro authority of parents can be based on love, so that the child goes along with what parents want because the child values its parents and their relationship. Children shall always observe respect towards their parents, as the fourth commandments of God reads: “Honour thy father and thy mother” implicit in this commandment is the law that parents must rightfully fulfill their obligations towards their children. To fulfill these obligations, parents must know and ponder on them often.