CIVPROC Finals Reviewer - 25 Cases
CIVPROC Finals Reviewer - 25 Cases
Supreme Court
#03 Lazatin vs. Desierto
The doctrine of stare decisis et non quieta movere (to adhere to precedents and not to unsettle things
which are established) is embodied in Article 8 of the Civil Code of the Philippines which provides, thus:
ART. 8. Judicial decisions applying or interpreting the laws or the Constitution shall form a part of
the legal system of the Philippines.
It was further explained in Fermin v. People as follows:
The doctrine of stare decisis enjoins adherence to judicial precedents. It requires courts in a country
to follow the rule established in a decision of the Supreme Court thereof. That decision becomes a
judicial precedent to be followed in subsequent cases by all courts in the land. The doctrine of stare
decisis is based on the principle that once a question of law has been examined and decided, it
should be deemed settled and closed to further argument.
1 |MKAG: im not liable.
The doctrine has assumed such value in our judicial system that the Court has ruled that [a]bandonment
thereof must be based only on strong and compelling reasons, otherwise, the becoming virtue of
predictability which is expected from this Court would be immeasurably affected and the public's
confidence in the stability of the solemn pronouncements diminished.
Family Courts
#05 Yu vs. Yu
Judgment on the issue of custody in the nullity of marriage case before the Pasig RTC, regardless of which
party would prevail, would constitute res judicata on the habeas corpus case before the Pasay RTC since
the former has jurisdiction over the parties and the subject matter.
Since the ground invoked in the petition for declaration of nullity of marriage before the Pasig RTC is
respondents alleged psychological incapacity to perform her essential marital obligations as provided in
Article 36 of the Family Code, the evidence to support this cause of action necessarily involves evidence
of respondents fitness to take custody of Bianca. Thus, the elements of litis pendentia, to wit: a) identity
of parties, or at least such as representing the same interest in both actions; b) identity of rights asserted
and reliefs prayed for, the relief being founded on the same facts; and c) the identity in the two cases
should be such that the judgment that may be rendered in the pending case would, regardless of which
party is successful, amount to res judicata in the other, are present.
By petitioners filing of the case for declaration of nullity of marriage before the Pasig RTC he automatically
submitted the issue of the custody of Bianca as an incident thereof. After the appellate court subsequently
dismissed the habeas corpus case, there was no need for petitioner to replead his prayer for custody for,
as above-quoted provisions of the Family Code provide, the custody issue in a declaration of nullity case
is deemed pleaded.
introduced. Since a motion to dismiss is not the responsive pleading contemplated by the Rule, a plaintiff
may file an amended complaint even after the original complaint was ordered dismissed, provided that
the order of dismissal is not final.
Rule 14 Summons
#12 Guanzon vs. Arradaza
Summons is the writ by which the defendant is notified of the action brought against him. Service of such
writ is the means by which the court may acquire jurisdiction over his person. As a rule, summons should
be personally served on the defendant. It is only when summons cannot be served personally within a
reasonable period of time that substituted service may be resorted to.
Substituted service is valid service expressly authorized by the Rules. It is allowed when the defendant
cannot be served personally within a reasonable time, in which event, service may be effected by leaving
copies of the summons at defendants dwelling house or residence with some person of suitable age and
discretion then residing therein, or at his office or regular place of business with some competent person
in charge thereof. It is not necessary that the person in charge of the defendants regular place of business
be specifically authorized to receive the summons. It is enough that he appears to be in charge.
Rule 15 Motions
#13 Sarmiento vs Zaratan
As a general rule, notice of motion is required where a party has a right to resist the relief sought by the
motion and principles of natural justice demand that his right be not affected without an opportunity to
be heard. The three-day notice required by law is intended not for the benefit of the movant but to avoid
surprises upon the adverse party and to give the latter time to study and meet the arguments of the
motion. Principles of natural justice demand that the right of a party should not be affected without giving
it an opportunity to be heard.
The test is the presence of the opportunity to be heard, as well as to have time to study the motion and
meaningfully oppose or controvert the grounds upon which it is based. Considering the circumstances of
the present case, we believe that procedural due process was substantially complied with.
As a general rule, notice of motion is required where a party has a right to resist the relief sought by the
motion and principles of natural justice demand that his rights be not affected without an opportunity to
be heard. It has been said that ex parte motions are frequently permissible in procedural matters, and
also in situations and under circumstances of emergency; and an exception to a rule requiring notice is
sometimes made where notice or the resulting delay might tend to defeat the objective of the motion.
In determining whether the allegations of a complaint are sufficient to support a cause of action, it must
be borne in mind that the complaint does not have to establish or allege the facts proving the existence
of a cause of action at the outset; this will have to be done at the trial on the merits of the case. If the
allegations in a complaint can furnish a sufficient basis by which the complaint can be maintained, the
same should not be dismissed regardless of the defenses that may be assessed by the defendants. To
sustain a motion to dismiss for lack of cause of action, the complaint must show that the claim for relief
does not exist rather than that a claim has been defectively stated or is ambiguous, indefinite or uncertain.
Moreover, a defendant moving to dismiss a complaint on the ground of lack of cause of action is regarded
as having hypothetically admitted all the averments thereof.
Rule 30 Trial
#16 Calo vs. Tan
The absence of a party during trial constitutes waiver of his right to present evidence and cross-examine
the opponents witnesses is firmly supported by jurisprudence. Although a defendant who answered the
complaint but fails to appear at the scheduled trial cannot be declared in default, the trial, however, may
proceed without his presence. And if the absence of a party during the hearing was due to his own fault,
he cannot later on complain that he was deprived of his day in court.
The absence of petitioners and their counsel at the aforesaid hearings cannot be justified by their belief
that the trial court would first require respondent spouses to comment to or oppose the motions before
resolving them.
pleading, the court may, on motion of that party, direct judgment on such pleading. The answer would
fail to tender an issue, of course, if it does not comply with the requirements for a specific denial set out
in Section 10 of Rule 8 (Manner of Making Allegations in Pleadings); and it would admit the material
allegations of the adverse party's pleadings not only where it expressly confesses the truthfulness thereof
but also if it omits to deal with them at all.
Now, if an answer does in fact specifically deny the material averments of the complaint in the manner
indicated by said Section 10 of Rule 8, and/or asserts affirmative defenses (allegations of new matter
which, while admitting the material allegations of the complaint expressly or impliedly, would
nevertheless prevent or bar recovery by the plaintiff) in accordance with Sections 4 and 5 of Rule 6, a
judgment on the pleadings would naturally not be proper.
Rule 65 Certiorari
#22 Cervantes vs. Court of Appeals
As held in Flores v. Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Pampanga, the plain and adequate remedy referred
to in the foregoing Rule (Section 1, Rule 65) is a motion for reconsideration of the assailed Order or
Resolution, the filing of which is an indispensable condition to the filing of a special civil action for
certiorari, subject to certain exceptions, to wit:
(a) where the order is a patent nullity, as where the court a quo has no jurisdiction;
(b) where the questions raised in the certiorari proceedings have been duly raised and passed upon
by the lower court, or are the same as those raised and passed upon in the lower court;
(c) where there is an urgent necessity for the resolution of the question and any further delay would
prejudice the interests of the Government or of the petitioner or the subject matter of the action
is perishable;
(d) where, under the circumstances, a motion for reconsideration would be useless;
(e) where petitioner was deprived of due process and there is extreme urgency for relief;
(f) where, in a criminal case, relief from an order of arrest is urgent and the granting of such relief by
the trial court is improbable;
(g) where the proceedings in the lower court are a nullity for lack of due process;
(h) where the proceedings was ex parte or in which the petitioner had no opportunity to object; and
(i) where the issue raised is one purely of law or public interest is involved.
It must be emphasized that a writ of certiorari is a prerogative writ, never demandable as a matter of
right, never issued except in the exercise of judicial discretion. Hence, he who seeks a writ of certiorari
must apply for it only in the manner and strictly in accordance with the provisions of the law and the
Rules. Petitioner may not arrogate to himself the determination of whether a motion for reconsideration
is necessary or not. To dispense with the requirement of filing a motion for reconsideration, petitioner
must show a concrete, compelling, and valid reason for doing so, which petitioner failed to do.
remedy of appeal, especially if the loss is occasioned by the petitioners own neglect or error in the choice
of remedies.
10 | M K A G : i m n o t l i a b l e .