RULE 111

Question No. 1 Should criminal and civil action be jointly instituted?

Exceptions?

Answer: Yes. As provided in Rule 111 of the Revised Rules on Criminal Procedure,
the general rule is that when a criminal action is instituted, the civil action for the
recovery of civil liability arising from the offense charged shall be deemed instituted
with the criminal action. The reason for the implied institution of the criminal action
is the principle that every person criminally liable for a felony is also civilly liable.
The exception is when the offended party (1) waives the civil action; (2) reserves the
right to institute it separately; or (3) institutes the civil action prior to the criminal
action. Thus, criminal and civil actions can be jointly instituted.

Question No. 2: What are types of civil liabilities?

Answer: (1) Exemplary Damages (2) Nominal Damages (3) Emotional Damages (4)

Question No. 3: When should reservation to institute a separate civil action be

made?

Answer: If the offended party desires to reserve the right to institute the civil action
after the criminal action has been instituted, the reservation shall be made before the
prosecution starts presenting its evidence. The reservation is to be made under
circumstances that would afford the offended party a reasonable opportunity to make
such reservation.

Question no. 4: Are counterclaim, etcetera, allowed to be filed in criminal cases?

Question No. 5: Can the accused file his counterclaim, cross-claim or third party
claim be filed in the same criminal action?

Answer: No. A court cannot entertain counterclaims, cross-claims and third party
complaints in the criminal action. A criminal case is not the proper proceedings to
determine the private complainant's civil liability. A court trying a criminal case is
limited to determining the guilt of the accused, and if proper, to determine his civil
liability. It cannot award damages in favor of the accused.

Question no. 6: What are the aims in the institution of criminal and civil
actions?

Answer: The prime purpose of the criminal action is to punish the offender in order
to deter him and others from committing the same or similar offense, to isolate him
from society, reform and rehabilitate him or, in general, to maintain social order. On
the other hand, the purpose of the civil action is for the resolution, reparation or
indemnification of the private offended party for the damage or injury he sustained by
reason of the delictual or felonious act of the accused.

Question no. 7: In the event of acquittal, can the offended party file an appeal?

Question no. 8: When can exemplary damages awarded?

Question No. 9: Does acquittal extinguishes civil liability?

Answer: No. In case of acquittal, the accused may still be adjudged civilly liable. The
extinction of the penal action does not carry with it the extinction of the civil action
where (a) the acquittal is based on reasonable doubt as only preponderance of
evidence is required; (b) the court declares that the liability of the accused is only
civil; and (c) the civil liability of the accused does not arise from or is not based upon
the crime of which the accused was acquitted. The civil liability is not extinguished
by acquittal where such acquitted is based on lack of proof beyond reasonable doubt,
since only preponderance of evidence is required in civil cases.

Question No. 10: When is the separate civil action deemed suspended, and until
when? Reason?

Question no. 11: Supposing that the accused dies during the pendency of the
case, what are its effect?

Answer:

(1) The civil liability of the accused arising from the crime is extinguished but the
independent civil actions mentioned in Sec. 3 of Rule 111 and civil liabilities
arising from other sources of obligation may be continued against the estate or
legal representative of the accused after proper substitution or against the
estate as the case may be.

(2) If the accused dies before arraignment, the case shall be dismissed but the
offended party may file the proper civil action against the estate of the
deceased.

(3) The death of the accused likewise extinguished the civil liability that was
based exclusively on the crime for which the accused was convicted.
Question No. 12: Supposing that the civil case filed against A by B, arising from
fraud, was dismissed, can the latter file a case for Estafa?

Answer: No. This is a prejudicial question. A prejudicial question is an issue

involved in a civil case which is similar or intimately related to the issue raised in the
criminal action, the resolution of which determines whether or not the criminal action
may proceed. To constitute a prejudicial question, the rule also requires, aside from
the related issues, that the civil action be instituted previously or ahead of the criminal
action. In this example, the civil action was filed ahead of the criminal action. The
determination of the latter will determine whether the criminalaction for Estafa may
proceed. Thus, it cannot be filed.

Question No. 13: What is a prejudicial question, its elements?

Answer: A prejudicial question is that which arises in a case, the resolution of which
is a logical antecedent of the issue involved in that case. As to its elements, Sec. 6 of
Rule 111 of the Rules of Criminal Procedure provides that: (a) the previously
instituted civil action involves an issue similar or intimately related to the issue raised
in the subsequent criminal action, and (b) the resolution of such issue determines
whether or not the criminal action may proceed".

Question No. 14: Where to file the petition to suspend criminal action due to
prejudicial question?

Answer: The rule provides therefore, that a petition for the suspension of the criminal
action may be filed in the office of the prosecutor conducting the preliminary
investigation. When the criminal action has been filed in court for trial, the petition to
suspend shall be filed in the same criminal action at any time before the prosecution
rests.

Question No. 15: Why the need to suspend criminal action based on prejudicial
question?

Question No. 16: Wife A filed a case for Bigamy against husband B. During the
pendency of the criminal proceeding, husband B filed a petition to declare his first
marriage null and void. Later on, husband B contemplated of filing a petition for the
suspension of criminal proceeding based on prejudicial question. Where will husband
B file his petition and will it prosper?

CASES FOR READING

1.Phil. Rabbit Bus Lines Inc. vs People, G.R. No147703, 14 April 2004
2.ABS CBD Broadcasting Corp vs. Ombudsman, G.R. No 133747, 13 Oct 2008

3. People vs Wahiman, 758 SCRA 366

4. (Ricarze vs. CA. G.R. No. 160451, 9 February 2007)

5. Mobilia Products Inc. vs. Hajime Umezawa, G.R. No 149357, supra

8. People vs Alinao g. R. No. 191256, 18 September, 2013

9. Cristina B. Salvador v. Phillip Salvador, G.R. No 191240, July 30, 2014

10. People vs Bayotas
11. VILLEGAS VS. CAG.R. No. 82562, 271 SCRA 148 (April 11, 1997