Question

1. Mr. Reyes, a homeowner, decided to build a house on his property. In the process of constructing his house, he accidentally used materials that actually belonged to Ms. Santos who lived next door. Ms. Santos discovered this and demanded the return of her materials. Mr. Reyes, on the other hand, argued that since the materials were already incorporated into the structure of his house, Ms. Santos no longer had the right to claim them.

1. Based on the provisions of the Civil Code, who has a valid claim over the materials used in the construction of Mr. Reyes' house? Explain your answer.

2. Juan and Pedro jointly own a piece of land where they operate a small farm. Juan, being financially strapped, decided to sell his share of the land to Pedro. However, they failed to specify whether the crops planted on the land at the time of the sale were included in the transfer. After the sale, Juan argued that he should still be entitled to the crops since they were planted before the sale took place. Pedro, on the other hand, insisted that since he now owned the land, he also owned the crops on it.

3. Who has the right to the crops planted on the land at the time of the sale? Discuss the applicable provisions of the Civil Code to support your answer.

4. Maria purchased a vacant lot and decided to build a commercial building on it. In the process of construction, she discovered an underground water source. Maria used the water to supply her commercial building without seeking permission from the government or obtaining any necessary permits. The government later found out about this and claimed that Maria should pay for the use of the water source.

5. Does the government have a valid claim against Maria for the use of the underground water source? Explain the legal basis of your answer.