CIVIL PROCEDURE| FIRST SEMESTER 2023

INTRODUCTION

Concept of Remedial Laws v. Substan ve Laws

Remedial Law: provides systems/procedure for the enforcement or protec on of rights

Substan ve Law: creates, de nes and regulate rights

Civil Procedure and its importance

Sources of civil procedure and remedial law

• Rules of Court
• Circulars of the Supreme Court (i.e. Rules on Summary Procedure)

Interplay of substan ve law and remedial law

• Substan ve law is that law which creates, de nes regulates and ex nguishes rights and obliga ons.
Remedial law is that law which provides the procedure or remedy for enforcement of rights and
obliga ons through the courts of jus ce.

Hierarchy of Courts; and excep ons

• A case must be led rst before the lowest court possible having the appropriate jurisdic on,
except if one can advance a special reason which would allow a party a direct resort to a higher
court

Concurrent or coordinate courts: exercised by di erent courts over the same subject ma er

Province of Bataan v. Escalada, G.R. No. 181311, 24 November 2021

Facts
Sunrise obtained loan from Metrobank. It mortgaged its real proper es to Metrobank. The PTO
demanded Sunrise to pay its taxes on its real proper es, buildings, and machineries. When Sunrise
failed to se le it, the PTO issued a warrant of levy over the proper es. An auc on was held wherein
the province of Bataan was the highest bidder.

Sunrise also obtained a credit line from PhilExim. He mortagaged over the machinery and
equipment. Meanwhile, the PTO held a public auc on for the real proper es including the
machineries where the Province was the highest bidder.

Sunrise authorized Gawtee to se le its obliga ons. PhilEXIM executed a Deed of Assignment of its
mortgagee rights. The mortgaged machinery and equipment were levied on execu on. Another
auc on was held where Gawtee was the highest bidder. Sunrise prayed for the Nullity the
Compromise agreement between Gawtee and Sunrise. Sunrise claimed that the said agreement was
not signed and executed by its authorized representa ve. A nal cer cate of sale was issued in
favor of Province for the real proper es, machineries, and equipment. Gawtee and Metrobank
moved to intervene.

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 CIVIL PROCEDURE| FIRST SEMESTER 2023
The RTC declared invalid and illegal the warrant of levy made by the Province and No ce to Sale. It
declared Transfer Cer cates of Title Nos. T-246955 and T-246956 of the Registry of Deeds for the
Province of Bataan as falsi ed and invalid and ordering the Registry of Deeds for the Province of
Bataan to cancel said tles. Declaring the demoli on, taking out and disposi on of aforesaid
proper es unauthorized, illegal and invalid. Ordering all the respondents, except the respondent
incumbent Register of Deeds for the Province of Bataan, and the pe oner, jointly and severally, to
reimburse and return to intervenor Victor G. Gawtee the amount received from the sale and
disposi on of subject machinery and equipment. The pe oners moved for reconsidera on which
was also denied by the RTC. Hence, this pe on for cer orari

Issue: Whether the direct recourse to the Court was proper

Ruling

Yes.

The doctrine of hierarchy of courts is subject to certain excep ons, namely: (1) when there are
genuine issues of cons tu onality that must be addressed at the most immediate me; (2) when the
issues involved are of transcendental importance; (3) cases of rst impression; (4) the cons tu onal
issued raised are be er decided by the Court; (5) exigency in certain situa ons; (6) the led pe on
reviews the act of a cons tu onal organ; (7) when pe oners rightly claim that they had no other
plain, speedy, and adequate remedy in the ordinary course of law that could free them from the
injurious e ects of respondents' acts in viola on of their right to freedom of expression; and (8) the
pe on includes ques ons that are "dictated by public welfare and the advancement of public
policy, or demanded by the broader interest of jus ce, or the orders complained of were found to be
patent nulli es, or the appeal was considered as clearly an inappropriate remedy.

A strict applica on of the doctrine of hierarchy of courts would warrant the outright dismissal of
their pe on. However, the Court nds that the h excep on, namely the exigency of the
resolu on of this case, jus es a liberal applica on of the doctrine of hierarchy of courts. The issues
in this case do not only concern the jurisdic on of the RTC but the right of Gawtee as the owner of
the machinery and equipment, the right of Cameron as a mortgagee of the real proper es, and the
extent of the damage they may have su ered because of pe oners

Computa on of Time
Estrella v. SM Prime Holdings, G.R. No. 257814, 20 February 2023

Facts
Estrella led for nulli ca on and cancella on of Transfer Cer cate of Title against Gotesco.
He claimed that the City of Caloocan sold the property to Gotesco. The SM Prime
subs tuted Gotesco as defendant in the case due to the sale of the subject property in their
favor.

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 CIVIL PROCEDURE| FIRST SEMESTER 2023
The pe on for interven on led by Tri-City was admi ed. However, SM Prime moved for
demurrer to evidence which dismissed the case. Estrella and Tri-city moved for
reconsidera on but was dismissed. The CA dismissed the case because they failed to le on
me. They were given them 45 days but it took them 6 months to le the case.

Issue: Whether the CA correctly dismissed the Appeal of Estrella et a;. due to their failure to mely
submit the requisite Appellant’s Brief

Ruling
Yes.

Sec on 7, Rule 44 of the Rules of Court states that it shall be the duty of the appellant to le with the
court, within 45 days from receipt of the no ce…

In this case, Estrella et. al were given 45 days in which they failed to do. They led their Brief six
months later. It is se led that the negligence of a coounsel binds the client as any act performed by a
counsel within the scope of his or her general or implied authority is regarded as an act of his or her
client. While there are excep ons, it is the duty of the counsel of Estrella et. al to monitor the status
of the cases entrusted to him. Estrella et. al. failed to prove that any of these excep ons exist in the
present case to jus fy the Court’s leniency.

GENERAL PROVISIONS
Cases governed (Rule 1, §3)

• Civil Ac on
• Ordinary
• Special
• Criminal Ac on
• Special Proceedings

Civil ac on Rule 1, §3)

• Is one by which a party sues another for the enforcement or protec on of a right, or the
preven on or redress of a wrong.

Concept and Types of Civil Ac ons

In Personam (Against the person)
• Relates to persons
• Can compel the defendant to take or refrain from taking some ac on or pay damages
• (i.e) Lawsuits where one person sues another for damages

In Rem (Against the thing)

• Relates to property.
• Allows court to decide rights to a piece of property and gives the court power over the property
itself
• (i.e) A lawsuit to determine the ownership of a piece of land

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 CIVIL PROCEDURE| FIRST SEMESTER 2023
Quasi In Rem (somewhat in between “Against the person” and “against the thing”
• refers to ac ons that are ini ated by seizing a piece of property owned by a defendant. The
purpose isn't to se le disputes over the property itself (like in rem ac ons) but to compel a
defendant into court.
• (i.e) If someone owes you money, and they don’t live in your jurisdic on, but they own a property
there, you might ini ate a quasi in rem ac on by a aching or seizing that property to get them into
court.

Frias v. Alcayde, G.R. No. 194262, 28 February 2018

Facts
Frias as lessor and Alcayde as lessee, entered into a Contract of Lease involving a residen al house
and lot. Alcayde failed to pay his contractual obliga ons, which had accumulated for 24 months. Frias
led a Complaint for Unlawful Detainer with the MeTC. MeTC ordered respondent to pay the
pe oner and vacate the subject premises. Alcayde led for Annulment of Judgement and Prayer for
Issuance of TRO. He avers that MeTC lacked jurisdic om over the case (1) pe oners' complaint has
no cause of ac on for failure to make a prior demand to pay and to vacate; and (2) pe oner's non-
referral of the case before the barangay. The CA ruled that a pe on for annulment of judgment is
not an ac on in personam, thus, the court need not acquire jurisdic on over the person of the
pe oner, as long as it has acquired jurisdic on over the res, which in this case was through the
ling of the pe on for annulment of judgment with the RTC.

Issue: WHETHER OR NOT THE PUBLIC RESPONDENT COURT OF APPEALS GRAVELY ERRED IN
HOLDING THAT THE RTC 203 NEED NOT ACQUIRE JURISDICTION OVER THE PETITIONER AS LONG AS
SAID RTC 203 HAS ACQUIRED JURISDICTION OVER THE RES.

Ruling

Yes.

In ac ons in personam, the judgment is for or against a person directly. Jurisdic on over the par es
is required in ac ons in personam because they seek to impose personal responsibility or liability
upon a person. Here, respondent led a pe on to annul the MeTC's July 26, 2006 Decision, which
ordered him to vacate the premises of the subject property and to pay the pe oner the accrued
rentals thereon, in viola on of the par es' lease contract.

Had the RTC granted the respondent's pe on, the MeTC's July 26 2006 judgment would have been
declared a nullity. This would have resulted to the following consequences: as to the respondent, he
would no longer be required to pay the rentals and vacate the subject property; and, as to the
pe oner, she would be deprived of her right to demand the rentals and to legally eject the
respondent. Clearly, through the RTC's judgment on the pe on, only the par es' interests, i.e.,
rights and obliga on, would have been a ected. Thus, a pe on for annulment of judgment is one in
personam. It is neither an ac on in rem nor an ac on quasi in rem.

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 CIVIL PROCEDURE| FIRST SEMESTER 2023

Special Civil ac on

Cases not governed (Rule 1, §4)

• Elec on cases
• Cadastral
• Land Registra on
• Naturaliza on
• Insolvency Proceedings
• Other

Note: If two or more suits are ins tuted on the basis of the same cause of ac on, the ling of one or
more or a judgement upon the merits in any one is available as a ground for the dismissal of the
others.

Covered by Special Rules

Rules on Expedited Procedures in the First Level Courts
Summary Procedure
Small Claims
Special Proceedings
Others

Rules determined when ac on is commenced

Construc on (Rule 1, §6)
Uniform procedure (Rule 5)

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