II
That Complainant is the widow of the late Feliciano Rubin who was appointed as the Judicial Administrator of the Estate of the Spouses Dioscoro Rubin and Emperatriz Rubin;chanroblesvirtuallawlibraryIII
That Complainant, during the lifetime of her husband, Feliciano Rubin, who is the aforesaid Judicial Administrator, had witnessed and experienced that her husband and their family were victims of Graft and Corruption, Grave Injustice amounting to Violation of the Constitution, Betrayal of Public Trust, Grave Misconduct, Grave Abuse of Authority, Gross Ignorance of Law, Conduct Unbecoming of a Judge or Judicial Magistrate, Manifest Bias and Partiality, and Violation of the Code of Judicial Conduct, on the part of the respondent Judge committed during the conduct of the proceedings in Special Proceeding No. 28, Intestate Estate of the Spouses Dioscoro Rubin and Emperatriz Rubin, and in Civil Case No. 184, an Annulment of Adoption pending before him, as follows:chanroblesvirtuallawlibraryA
The respondent Judge, by way of devious schemes and clever machinations extorted money from the aforesaid Estate by lending expertise in connivance with other lawyer in pursuing an alleged claim against the Estate allegedly intended for workers' wages as money claims against the Estate, in a labor case entitled "Constancia Amar, et.(sic) al. versus Hacienda Fanny and Dioscoro Rubin," RAB Case Nos. 1092-81 and A-593-81, both consolidated and numbered as 0104-82, which was then pending and decided by Labor Arbiter Ricardo T. Octavio;chanroblesvirtuallawlibraryB
That the aforesaid consolidated labor cases were decided and became final and executory and the judgment was already satisfied and paid for personally by Dioscoro Rubin when he was still alive in the amount of P44,000.00 in the form of check which was given to Atty. Corral, counsel for the claimants, through Atty. Rogelio Necessario, counsel for Hacienda Fanny and Dioscoro Rubin x x x.C
That respondent Judge acted with grave abuse of discretion and grave abuse of authority by ordering the aforesaid Estate to pay P205,125.00 upon a Motion based on a non-existing final or executory decision, which order was illegal and improper and without any notice and/or hearing accorded to the Estate through its then Judicial [Administrator] Feliciano Rubin. x x x xD
The labor case decided by Labor Arbiter Oscar Uy awarded the claimants in the amount of P205,125.00, which decision was appealed by Judicial Administrator Feliciano Rubin and was ordered rema[n]ded and decided by Labor Arbiter Octavio in the consolidated cases with the reduction of the award in the amount of P62,437.50. The judgment amount was further reduced after an audit in the amount of P44,000.00. x x x xE
That respondent Judge had threatened the Judicial Administrator and threatened to be cited for contempt if he will not pay the said labor claims, further threatened to sell the properties if he will not pay the said labor claims, and likewise threatened that he would order the x x x properties of the Estate to be sold at public auction if the said claim will not be paid. x x x x The evident purpose of the respondent Judge was to cause harassment and anxiety against the then Judicial Administrator which made his health condition deteriorate so fast that facilitated his death.F
That Complainant's deceased husband who was the Administrator of the said Estate was forced to pay the amount ordered by the respondent Judge which was deposited in court but which was ordered released by the same respondent Judge [b]ecause the money claim ordered to be paid by respondent Judge had already been paid and satisfied by Administrator Feliciano Rubin, naturally no recipient would claim the amount nor anybody can be found from the records of the case or that no laborer came forward to claim that he had not been paid of his money claim;chanroblesvirtuallawlibraryG
The respondent Judge was grossly ignorant of the law when he ordered the change of Administrator after the then Judicial Administrator Feliciano Rubin refused to follow the invalid and unlawful orders of the respondent Judge, as he ordered his Clerk of Court, Atty. Gregorio A. Lanaria to act as Special Administrator of the Estate with orders to sell the properties of the Estate to satisfy the outstanding claim or obligations of the Estate, which was part of the clever scheme of respondent Judge to extort money from the Estate x x x.H
That respondent Judge had extended unwarranted benefit, advantage and preference to the newly appointed Judicial Administratrix of the Estate, Aileen Rubin, through his manifest bias and partiality and evident bad faith towards the late Administrator's wife, complainant herein, and the surviving heirs, especially in his conduct of the proceedings involving the Estate and the Annulment of Adoption case. Respondent Judge even appointed Aileen Rubin as Administratrix of the Estate whose legal personality is still the subject of the Annulment of Adoption case, and even pronounced that under the eyes of the law Aileen Rubin is the sole and legal heir of the aforesaid Estate - thus prejudging the cases before him even if the proceedings are still pending;chanroblesvirtuallawlibraryI
That respondent Judge ordered his appointed Administratrix, Aileen Rubin, to enter into the Estate, and having entered therein, she and her cohorts ransacked the premises, took out records, personal belongings of the deceased Feliciano Rubin, then Administrator of the Estate, and his wife, the complainant herein x x x.3
[H] is act of sending a letter to a party litigant for a personal conference, however motivated, does not validate his action and the damning implications it may generate to the [J]udiciary this is especially so since the content of said letter can constitute as an act of fraternizing with party-litigants. It must be emphasized that in-chambers sessions without the presence of the other party and his counsel must be avoided. The prohibition is to maintain impartiality. Being a judicial front-liner who has a direct contact with the litigating parties, the respondent judge should conduct himself beyond reproach.12
...[W]ithin the hierarchy of courts, trial courts stand as an important and visible symbol of government especially considering that as opposed to appellate courts, trial judges are those directly in contact with the parties, their counsel and the communities which the Judiciary is bound to serve. Occupying as he does an exalted position in the administration of justice, a judge must pay a high price for the honor bestowed upon him. Thus, a judge must comport himself at all times in such manner that his conduct, official or otherwise, can bear the most searching scrutiny of the public that looks up to him as the epitome of integrity and justice. x x x it is essential that judges, like Caesar's wife, should be above suspicion.
C. If the respondent is guilty of a light charge, any of the following sanctions shall be imposed:The Investigating Justice recommended the penalty of reprimand with stern warning. In light of Judge Aguirre's death, however, we resolve to impose a fine of P5,000.00 instead. Jurisprudence holds that the death of the respondent in an administrative case, as a rule, does not preclude a finding of administrative liability, save for recognized exceptions.28 None of the exceptions applies to the present case.29cralawlibrary
- A fine of not less than P1,000.00 but not exceeding P10,000.00 and/or;
- Censure;
- Reprimand;
- Admonition with warning.
Endnotes:
1 Rollo, pp. 1-9.
2 Now deceased.
3 Supra note 1, at 2.
4 They are: (1) Satisfaction of Judgment in the amount of P44,000.00 in RAB Case No. V-0104-2, Receipt dated January 20, 1987 issued by Atty. Napoleon Corral as counsel for the complainant and Receipts dated August 20, 1987 issued by Atty. Rogelio M. Necesario as counsel for Dioscoro Rubin (Annex "A" with submarkings); (2) Decision dated January 14, 1985 in RAB Case No. VI-0104-82 and Computation of Separation Pay (Annex "B"); (3) Order dated March 17, 1999 in Spec. Proc. No. 28, entitled "In the Matter of the Intestate Estate of the Deceased Spouses Dioscoro M. Rubin & Emperatriz C. Rubin, Feliciano Rubin, Judicial Administrator" (Annex "C"); (4) Order dated October 20, 1999 in Spec. Proc. No. 28 (Annex "D"); (5) Order dated May 24, 1999 in Spec. Proc. No. 28 (Annex "F"); (6) Order dated June 10, 1998 in Spec. Proc. No. 28 (Annex "G"); (7) Letters dated February 17, 1999 and May 7, 1999 of Judge Aguirre to Feliciano Rubin (Annex "H" with submarkings); and (8) Excerpt from the Police Blotter Report (Annex "J"). Rollo, pp. 12-33.
5Decision dated July 19, 2002 and Resolution dated September 26, 2002 in CA-G.R. SP No. 70136, entitled "In the Matter of the Intestate Estate of the Deceased Sps. Dioscoro and Emperatriz Rubin, Heirs of Feliciano Rubin v. Hon. Judge Jose Y. Aguirre, Jr., Presiding Judge, RTC, Branch 55, Himamaylan, Negros Occidental."chanroblesvirtuallawlibrary
6.Resolution dated December 11, 2002 in G.R. No. 155506, entitled "In the matter of the Intestate Estate of the deceased Spouses Dioscoro and Emperatriz Rubin, Heirs of Feliciano Rubin v. Hon. Judge Jose Y. Aguirre, Jr. and Aileen Ravina [Rubin], Judicial Administrator."chanroblesvirtuallawlibrary
7 Orders dated September 7, 1998, March 17, 1999, May 24, 1999 and August 23, 1999 in Spec. Proc. No. 28, Motion for Execution of the Order and Motion to Cite the Judicial Administrator for Contempt filed by Atty. Napoleon Corral in Spec. Proc. No. 28; Order dated November 13, 1998 in Spec. Proc. No. 28; Entry of Appearance by Atty. Nilo G. Sorbito in Spec. Proc. No. 28; Manifestation filed by Atty. Nilo G. Sorbito in Spec. Proc. No. 28; Opposition to the Manifestation filed by Atty. Napoleon Corral in Spec. Proc. No. 28; Letter dated August 21, 1999 to Chief Justice Hilario Davide, Jr. by Atty. Napoleon Corral; and letter dated August 23, 1999. Rollo, pp. 51-70.
8 See Notes 4, 5 and 6; and rollo, pp. 71-112.
9 Rollo, p. 117.
10 Report dated June 29, 2004, p. 12.
11 Ibid.
12 Id. at 12-13.
13 Request for Assistance Relative to Special Proceedings No. 28 Pending at [the] Regional Trial Court of Himamaylan, Negros Occidental, Branch 55, Presided by Judge Jose Y. Aguirre, Jr., Adm. Case No. RTJ-01-1624, March 26, 2001.
14 Rollo, pp. 43-50; penned by CA Associate Justice (now Supreme Court Associate Justice) Martin S. Villarama, Jr., with the concurrence of CA Associate Justices (now Supreme Court Associate Justices) Conchita Carpio Morales and Mariano C. del Castillo.
15 Id. at 41.
16 Supra note 10, at 7.
17 A.M. No. RTJ-90-483, September 25, 1998, 296 SCRA 88, 97, citing Hon. Judge Adriano Villamor v. Hon. Judge Bernardo Ll. Salas & George Carlos, 203 SCRA 540 (1991).
18 Id. at 98.
19 Balanay Jr. v. Martinez, G.R. No. L-39247, June 27, 1975, 64 SCRA 452, 461-462.
20 Que v. Atty. Revilla, Jr., A.C. No. 7054, December 4, 2009, 607 SCRA 1, 17.
21 A.M. No. P-07-2340, July 26, 2007, 528 SCRA 203, 209, citing Re: Affidavit of Frankie N. Calabines, 518 SCRA 268 (2007).
22 Avancena v. Liwanag, A.M. No. MTJ-01-1383, July 17, 2003, 406 SCRA 300, 304.
23 Ibid.
24 A.M. No. MTJ-00-1245, January 19, 2000, 322 SCRA 255, 266.
25 Chuan & Sons, Inc. v. Peralta, A.M. No. RTJ-05-1917 [Formerly OCA I.P.I. No. 04-2006-RTJ], April 16, 2009, 585 SCRA 93, 96.
26 A.M. No. RTJ-03-1796, February 10, 2006, 482 SCRA 149, 162.
27 A.M. No. 01-8-10-SC which took effect on October 1, 2001.
28 Mercado v. Salcedo, A.M. No. RTJ-03-1781, October 16, 2009, 604 SCRA 4. The recognized exceptions to this rule are: first, when the respondent has not been heard and continuation of the proceedings would deny him of his right to due process; second, where exceptional circumstances exist in the case leading to equitable and humanitarian considerations; and third, when the kind of penalty imposed or imposable would render the proceedings useless.
29 Ibid.
30 Pancho v. Aguirre, Jr., A.M. No. RTJ-09-2196, April 7, 2010, citing the Resolution, dated August 17, 2005, in A.M. No. 12054 Ret. (Compulsory Retirement of the late Judge Jose Y. Aguirre, Jr. [formerly Regional Trial Court Himamaylan, Negros Occidental, Branch 55] ).