G.R. No. 181045, July 02, 2014 - SPOUSES EDUARDO AND LYDIA SILOS, Petitioners, v. PHILIPPINE NATIONAL BANK, Respondent.
SECOND DIVISION
G.R. No. 181045, July 02, 2014
SPOUSES EDUARDO AND LYDIA SILOS, Petitioners, v. PHILIPPINE NATIONAL BANK, Respondent.
D E C I S I O N
DEL CASTILLO, J.:
1.03. Interest. (a) The Loan shall be subject to interest at the rate of 19.5% per annum. Interest shall be payable in advance every one hundred twenty days at the rate prevailing at the time of the renewal.The eight Promissory Notes, on the other hand, contained a stipulation granting PNB the right to increase or reduce interest rates “within the limits allowed by law or by the Monetary Board.”11 The Real Estate Mortgage agreement provided the same right to increase or reduce interest rates “at any time depending on whatever policy PNB may adopt in the future.”12
(b) The Borrower agrees that the Bank may modify the interest rate in the Loan depending on whatever policy the Bank may adopt in the future, including without limitation, the shifting from the floating interest rate system to the fixed interest rate system, or vice versa. Where the Bank has imposed on the Loan interest at a rate per annum, which is equal to the Bank’s spread over the current floating interest rate, the Borrower hereby agrees that the Bank may, without need of notice to the Borrower, increase or decrease its spread over the floating interest rate at any time depending on whatever policy it may adopt in the future.10 (Emphases supplied)
1.03. Interest on Line Availments. (a) The Borrowers agree to pay interest on each Availment from date of each Availment up to but not including the date of full payment thereof at the rate per annum which is determined by the Bank to be prime rate plus applicable spread in effect as of the date of each Availment.15 (Emphases supplied)Under this Amendment to Credit Agreement, petitioners issued in favor of
x x x For this purpose, I/We agree that the rate of interest herein stipulated may be increased or decreased for the subsequent Interest Periods, with prior notice to the Borrower in the event of changes in interest rate prescribed by law or the Monetary Board of the Central Bank of the Philippines, or in the Bank’s overall cost of funds. I/We hereby agree that in the event I/we are not agreeable to the interest rate fixed for any Interest Period, I/we shall have the option to prepay the loan or credit facility without penalty within ten (10) calendar days from the Interest Setting Date.18 (Emphasis supplied)Respondent regularly renewed the line from 1990 up to 1997, and petitioners made good on the promissory notes, religiously paying the interests without objection or fail. But in 1997, petitioners faltered when the interest rates soared due to the Asian financial crisis. Petitioners’ sole outstanding promissory note for P2.5 million – PN 9707237 executed in July 1997 and due 120 days later or on October 28, 1997 – became past due, and despite repeated demands, petitioners failed to make good on the note.
Without need for notice or demand, failure to pay this note or any installment thereon, when due, shall constitute default and in such cases or in case of garnishment, receivership or bankruptcy or suit of any kind filed against me/us by the Bank, the outstanding principal of this note, at the option of the Bank and without prior notice of demand, shall immediately become due and payable and shall be subject to a penalty charge of twenty four percent (24%) per annum based on the defaulted principal amount. x x x19 (Emphasis supplied)PNB prepared a Statement of Account20as of October 12, 1998, detailing the amount due and demandable from petitioners in the total amount of P3,620,541.60, broken down as follows:
Despite demand, petitioners failed to pay the foregoing amount. Thus, PNB foreclosed on the mortgage, and on January 14, 1999, TCTs T-14250 and T-16208 were sold to it at auction for the amount of P4,324,172.96.21 The sheriff’s certificate of sale was registered on March 11, 1999.
Principal P 2,500,000.00Interest 538,874.94Penalties 581,666.66Total P 3,620,541.60
During trial, petitioner Lydia Silos (Lydia) testified that the Credit Agreement, the Amendment to Credit Agreement, Real Estate Mortgage and the Supplement thereto were all prepared by respondent PNB and were presented to her and her husband Eduardo only for signature; that she was told by PNB that the latter alone would determine the interest rate; that as to the Amendment to Credit Agreement, she was told that PNB would fill up the interest rate portion thereof; that at the time the parties executed the said Credit Agreement, she was not informed about the applicable spread that PNB would impose on her account; that the interest rate portion of all Promissory Notes she and Eduardo issued were always left in blank when they executed them, with respondent’s mere assurance that it would be the one to enter or indicate thereon the prevailing interest rate at the time of availment; and that they agreed to such arrangement. She further testified that the two Real Estate Mortgage agreements she signed did not stipulate the payment of penalties; that she and Eduardo consulted with a lawyer, and were told that PNB’s actions were improper, and so on March 20, 2000, they wrote to the latter seeking a recomputation of their outstanding obligation; and when PNB did not oblige, they instituted Civil Case No. 5975.27
a) That since 1991 up to 1998, petitioners had paid PNB the total amount of P3,484,287.00;25 and b) That PNB sent, and petitioners received, a March 10, 2000 demand letter.26
IN VIEW OF THE FOREGOING, judgment is hereby rendered in favor of the respondent and against the petitioners by DISMISSING the latter’s petition.Petitioners moved for reconsideration. In an Order39 dated June 4, 2003, the trial court granted only a modification in the award of attorney’s fees, reducing the same from 10% to 1%. Thus, PNB was ordered to refund to petitioner the excess in attorney’s fees in the amount of P356,589.90, viz:
Costs against the petitioners.
SO ORDERED.38
WHEREFORE, judgment is hereby rendered upholding the validity of the interest rate charged by the respondent as well as the extra-judicial foreclosure proceedings and the Certificate of Sale. However, respondent is directed to refund to the petitioner the amount of P356,589.90 representing the excess interest charged against the latter.Ruling of the Court of Appeals
No pronouncement as to costs.
SO ORDERED.40
WHEREFORE, in view of the foregoing, the instant appeal is PARTLY GRANTED. The modified Decision of the Regional Trial Court per Order dated June 4, 2003 is hereby AFFIRMED with MODIFICATIONS, to wit:On the other hand, respondent did not appeal the June 4, 2003 Order of the trial court which reduced its award of attorney’s fees. It simply raised the issue in its appellee’s brief in the CA, and included a prayer for the reversal of said Order.
1. [T]hat the interest rate to be applied after the expiration of the first 30-day interest period for PN. No. 9707237 should be 12% per annum;
2. [T]hat the attorney’s fees of 10% is valid and binding; and
3. [T]hat [PNB] is hereby ordered to reimburse [petitioners] the excess in the bid price of P377,505.99 which is the difference between the total amount due [PNB] and the amount of its bid price.
SO ORDERED.41
The CA noted that, based on receipts presented by petitioners during trial, the latter dutifully paid a total of P3,027,324.60 in interest for the period August 7, 1991 to August 6, 1997, over and above the P2.5 million principal obligation. And this is exclusive of payments for insurance premiums, documentary stamp taxes, and penalty. All the while, petitioners did not complain nor object to the imposition of interest; they in fact paid the same religiously and without fail for seven years. The appellate court ruled that petitioners are thus estopped from questioning the same.
1) Whether x x x the interest rates on petitioners’ outstanding obligation were unilaterally and arbitrarily imposed by PNB; 2) Whether x x x the penalty charges were secured by the real estate mortgage; and 3) Whether x x x the extrajudicial foreclosure and sale are valid.42
For and in consideration of certain loans, overdrafts and other credit accommodations obtained from the MORTGAGEE and to secure the payment of the same and those others that the MORTGAGEE may extend to the MORTGAGOR, including interest and expenses, and other obligations owing by the MORTGAGOR to the MORTGAGEE, whether direct or indirect, principal or secondary, as appearing in the accounts, books and records of the MORTGAGEE, the MORTGAGOR does hereby transfer and convey by way of mortgage unto the MORTGAGEE x x x43 (Emphasis supplied)The CA believes that the 24% penalty is covered by the phrase “and other obligations owing by the mortgagor to the mortgagee” and should thus be added to the amount secured by the mortgages.44
Petitioners’ ArgumentsI
- THE COURT OF APPEALS AS WELL AS THE LOWER COURT ERRED IN NOT NULLIFYING THE INTEREST RATE PROVISION IN THE CREDIT AGREEMENT DATED JULY 24, 1989 X X X AND IN THE AMENDMENT TO CREDIT AGREEMENT DATED AUGUST 21, 1991 X X X WHICH LEFT TO THE SOLE UNILATERAL DETERMINATION OF THE RESPONDENT PNB THE ORIGINAL FIXING OF INTEREST RATE AND ITS INCREASE, WHICH AGREEMENT IS CONTRARY TO LAW, ART. 1308 OF THE [NEW CIVIL CODE], AS ENUNCIATED IN PONCIANO ALMEIDA V. COURT OF APPEALS, G.R. [NO.] 113412, APRIL 17, 1996, AND CONTRARY TO PUBLIC POLICY AND PUBLIC INTEREST, AND IN APPLYING THE PRINCIPLE OF ESTOPPEL ARISING FROM THE ALLEGED DELAYED COMPLAINT OF PETITIONER[S], AND [THEIR] PAYMENT OF THE INTEREST CHARGED.
- CONSEQUENTLY, THE COURT OF APPEALS AND THE LOWER COURT ERRED IN NOT DECLARING THAT PNB IS NOT AT ALL ENTITLED TO ANY INTEREST EXCEPT THE LEGAL RATE FROM DATE OF DEMAND, AND IN NOT APPLYING THE EXCESS OVER THE LEGAL RATE OF THE ADMITTED PAYMENTS MADE BY PETITIONER[S] FROM 1991-1998 IN THE ADMITTED TOTAL AMOUNT OF P3,484,287.00, TO PAYMENT OF THE PRINCIPAL OF P2,500,000.00 LEAVING AN OVERPAYMENT OF P984,287.00 REFUNDABLE BY RESPONDENT TO PETITIONER[S] WITH INTEREST OF 12% PER ANNUM.
II
THE COURT OF APPEALS AND THE LOWER COURT ERRED IN HOLDING THAT PENALTIES ARE INCLUDED IN THE SECURED AMOUNT, SUBJECT TO FORECLOSURE, WHEN NO PENALTIES ARE MENTIONED [NOR] PROVIDED FOR IN THE REAL ESTATE MORTGAGE AS A SECURED AMOUNT AND THEREFORE THE AMOUNT OF PENALTIES SHOULD HAVE BEEN EXCLUDED FROM [THE] FORECLOSURE AMOUNT.III
THE COURT OF APPEALS ERRED IN REVERSING THE RULING OF THE LOWER COURT, WHICH REDUCED THE ATTORNEY’S FEES OF 10% OF THE TOTAL INDEBTEDNESS CHARGED IN THE X X X EXTRAJUDICIAL FORECLOSURE TO ONLY 1%, AND [AWARDING] 10% ATTORNEY’S FEES.48
On the issue of penalties, respondent reiterates the trial court’s finding that during pre-trial, petitioners admitted that the Statement of Account as of October 12, 1998 – which detailed and included penalty charges as part of the total outstanding obligation owing to the bank – was correct. Respondent justifies the imposition and collection of a penalty as a normal banking practice, and the standard rate per annum for all commercial banks, at the time, was 24%. Respondent adds that the purpose of the penalty or a penal clause for that matter is to ensure the performance of the obligation and substitute for damages and the payment of interest in the event of non-compliance.62 And the promissory note – being the principal agreement as opposed to the mortgage, which is a mere accessory – should prevail. This being the case, its inclusion as part of the secured amount in the mortgage agreements is valid and necessary.
- That Credit Agreements and promissory notes were signed by petitioner[s] in blank – Respondent claims that this issue was never raised in the lower court. Besides, documentary evidence prevails over testimonial evidence; Lydia Silos’ testimony in this regard is self-serving, unsupported and uncorroborated, and for being the lone evidence on this issue. The fact remains that these documents are in proper form, presumed regular, and endure, against arbitrary claims by Silos – who is an experienced business person – that she signed questionable loan documents whose provisions for interest rates were left blank, and yet she continued to pay the interests without protest for a number of years.56
- That interest rates were at short periods – Respondent argues that the law which governs and prohibits changes in interest rates made more than once every twelve months has been removed57 with the issuance of Presidential Decree No. 858.58
- That no interest rates could be charged where no agreement on interest rates was made in writing in violation of Article 1956 of the Civil Code, which provides that no interest shall be due unless it has been expressly stipulated in writing – Respondent insists that the stipulated 25% per annum as embodied in PN 9707237 should be imposed during the interim, or the period after the loan became due and while it remains unpaid, and not the legal interest of 12% as claimed by petitioners.59
- That PNB fixed interest rates on the basis of arbitrary policies and standards left to its choosing – According to respondent, interest rates were fixed taking into consideration increases or decreases as provided by law or by the Monetary Board, the bank’s overall costs of funds, and upon agreement of the parties.60
- That interest rates based on prime rate plus applicable spread are indeterminate and arbitrary – On this score, respondent submits there are various factors that influence interest rates, from political events to economic developments, etc.; the cost of money, profitability and foreign currency transactions may not be discounted.61
The Credit Agreement provided inter alia, that —Then again, in a third case, Spouses Almeda v. Court of Appeals,68 the Court invalidated the very same provisions in the respondent’s prepared Credit Agreement, declaring thus:(a) The BANK reserves the right to increase the interest rate within the limits allowed by law at any time depending on whatever policy it may adopt in the future; Provided, that the interest rate on this accommodation shall be correspondingly decreased in the event that the applicable maximum interest is reduced by law or by the Monetary Board. In either case, the adjustment in the interest rate agreed upon shall take effect on the effectivity date of the increase or decrease in the maximum interest rate.The Promissory Note, in turn, authorized the PNB to raise the rate of interest, at any time without notice, beyond the stipulated rate of 12% but only “within the limits allowed by law.”The Real Estate Mortgage contract likewise provided that —In making the unilateral increases in interest rates, petitioner bank relied on the escalation clause contained in their credit agreement which provides, as follows:
(k) INCREASE OF INTEREST RATE: The rate of interest charged on the obligation secured by this mortgage as well as the interest on the amount which may have been advanced by the MORTGAGEE, in accordance with the provision hereof, shall be subject during the life of this contract to such an increase within the rate allowed by law, as the Board of Directors of the MORTGAGEE may prescribe for its debtors.
x x x xThe Bank reserves the right to increase the interest rate within the limits allowed by law at any time depending on whatever policy it may adopt in the future and provided, that, the interest rate on this accommodation shall be correspondingly decreased in the event that the applicable maximum interest rate is reduced by law or by the Monetary Board. In either case, the adjustment in the interest rate agreed upon shall take effect on the effectivity date of the increase or decrease in maximum interest rate.This clause is authorized by Section 2 of Presidential Decree (P.D.) No. 1684 which further amended Act No. 2655 (“The Usury Law”), as amended, thus:Section 2. The same Act is hereby amended by adding a new section after Section 7, to read as follows:Section 1 of P.D. No. 1684 also empowered the Central Bank’s Monetary Board to prescribe the maximum rates of interest for loans and certain forbearances. Pursuant to such authority, the Monetary Board issued Central Bank (C.B.) Circular No. 905, series of 1982, Section 5 of which provides:Sec. 7-a. Parties to an agreement pertaining to a loan or forbearance of money, goods or credits may stipulate that the rate of interest agreed upon may be increased in the event that the applicable maximum rate of interest is increased by law or by the Monetary Board; Provided, That such stipulation shall be valid only if there is also a stipulation in the agreement that the rate of interest agreed upon shall be reduced in the event that the applicable maximum rate of interest is reduced by law or by the Monetary Board; Provided further, That the adjustment in the rate of interest agreed upon shall take effect on or after the effectivity of the increase or decrease in the maximum rate of interest.Sec. 5. Section 1303 of the Manual of Regulations (for Banks and Other Financial Intermediaries) is hereby amended to read as follows:P.D. No. 1684 and C.B. Circular No. 905 no more than allow contracting parties to stipulate freely regarding any subsequent adjustment in the interest rate that shall accrue on a loan or forbearance of money, goods or credits. In fine, they can agree to adjust, upward or downward, the interest previously stipulated. However, contrary to the stubborn insistence of petitioner bank, the said law and circular did not authorize either party to unilaterally raise the interest rate without the other’s consent.Sec. 1303. Interest and Other Charges. — The rate of interest, including commissions, premiums, fees and other charges, on any loan, or forbearance of any money, goods or credits, regardless of maturity and whether secured or unsecured, shall not be subject to any ceiling prescribed under or pursuant to the Usury Law, as amended.
It is basic that there can be no contract in the true sense in the absence of the element of agreement, or of mutual assent of the parties. If this assent is wanting on the part of the one who contracts, his act has no more efficacy than if it had been done under duress or by a person of unsound mind.
Similarly, contract changes must be made with the consent of the contracting parties. The minds of all the parties must meet as to the proposed modification, especially when it affects an important aspect of the agreement. In the case of loan contracts, it cannot be gainsaid that the rate of interest is always a vital component, for it can make or break a capital venture. Thus, any change must be mutually agreed upon, otherwise, it is bereft of any binding effect.
We cannot countenance petitioner bank’s posturing that the escalation clause at bench gives it unbridled right to unilaterally upwardly adjust the interest on private respondents’ loan. That would completely take away from private respondents the right to assent to an important modification in their agreement, and would negate the element of mutuality in contracts. In Philippine National Bank v. Court of Appeals, et al., 196 SCRA 536, 544-545 (1991) we held —x x x The unilateral action of the PNB in increasing the interest rate on the private respondent’s loan violated the mutuality of contracts ordained in Article 1308 of the Civil Code:Art. 1308. The contract must bind both contracting parties; its validity or compliance cannot be left to the will of one of them.In order that obligations arising from contracts may have the force of law between the parties, there must be mutuality between the parties based on their essential equality. A contract containing a condition which makes its fulfillment dependent exclusively upon the uncontrolled will of one of the contracting parties, is void . . . . Hence, even assuming that the . . . loan agreement between the PNB and the private respondent gave the PNB a license (although in fact there was none) to increase the interest rate at will during the term of the loan, that license would have been null and void for being violative of the principle of mutuality essential in contracts. It would have invested the loan agreement with the character of a contract of adhesion, where the parties do not bargain on equal footing, the weaker party’s (the debtor) participation being reduced to the alternative “to take it or leave it” . . . . Such a contract is a veritable trap for the weaker party whom the courts of justice must protect against abuse and imposition.67 (Emphases supplied)
The binding effect of any agreement between parties to a contract is premised on two settled principles: (1) that any obligation arising from contract has the force of law between the parties; and (2) that there must be mutuality between the parties based on their essential equality. Any contract which appears to be heavily weighed in favor of one of the parties so as to lead to an unconscionable result is void. Any stipulation regarding the validity or compliance of the contract which is left solely to the will of one of the parties, is likewise, invalid.Still, in a fourth case, Philippine National Bank v. Court of Appeals,70 the above doctrine was reiterated:
It is plainly obvious, therefore, from the undisputed facts of the case that respondent bank unilaterally altered the terms of its contract with petitioners by increasing the interest rates on the loan without the prior assent of the latter. In fact, the manner of agreement is itself explicitly stipulated by the Civil Code when it provides, in Article 1956 that “No interest shall be due unless it has been expressly stipulated in writing.” What has been “stipulated in writing” from a perusal of interest rate provision of the credit agreement signed between the parties is that petitioners were bound merely to pay 21% interest, subject to a possible escalation or de-escalation, when 1) the circumstances warrant such escalation or de-escalation; 2) within the limits allowed by law; and 3) upon agreement.
Indeed, the interest rate which appears to have been agreed upon by the parties to the contract in this case was the 21% rate stipulated in the interest provision. Any doubt about this is in fact readily resolved by a careful reading of the credit agreement because the same plainly uses the phrase “interest rate agreed upon,” in reference to the original 21% interest rate. x x x
x x x x
Petitioners never agreed in writing to pay the increased interest rates demanded by respondent bank in contravention to the tenor of their credit agreement. That an increase in interest rates from 18% to as much as 68% is excessive and unconscionable is indisputable. Between 1981 and 1984, petitioners had paid an amount equivalent to virtually half of the entire principal (P7,735,004.66) which was applied to interest alone. By the time the spouses tendered the amount of P40,142,518.00 in settlement of their obligations; respondent bank was demanding P58,377,487.00 over and above those amounts already previously paid by the spouses.
Escalation clauses are not basically wrong or legally objectionable so long as they are not solely potestative but based on reasonable and valid grounds. Here, as clearly demonstrated above, not only [are] the increases of the interest rates on the basis of the escalation clause patently unreasonable and unconscionable, but also there are no valid and reasonable standards upon which the increases are anchored.
x x x x
In the face of the unequivocal interest rate provisions in the credit agreement and in the law requiring the parties to agree to changes in the interest rate in writing, we hold that the unilateral and progressive increases imposed by respondent PNB were null and void. Their effect was to increase the total obligation on an eighteen million peso loan to an amount way over three times that which was originally granted to the borrowers. That these increases, occasioned by crafty manipulations in the interest rates is unconscionable and neutralizes the salutary policies of extending loans to spur business cannot be disputed.69 (Emphases supplied)
The promissory note contained the following stipulation:We made the same pronouncement in a fifth case, New Sampaguita Builders Construction, Inc. v. Philippine National Bank,72 thus –
For value received, I/we, [private respondents] jointly and severally promise to pay to the ORDER of the PHILIPPINE NATIONAL BANK, at its office in San Jose City, Philippines, the sum of FIFTEEN THOUSAND ONLY (P15,000.00), Philippine Currency, together with interest thereon at the rate of 12% per annum until paid, which interest rate the Bank may at any time without notice, raise within the limits allowed by law, and I/we also agree to pay jointly and severally ____% per annum penalty charge, by way of liquidated damages should this note be unpaid or is not renewed on due dated.
Payment of this note shall be as follows:
*THREE HUNDRED SIXTY FIVE DAYS* AFTER DATE
On the reverse side of the note the following condition was stamped:
All short-term loans to be granted starting January 1, 1978 shall be made subject to the condition that any and/or all extensions hereof that will leave any portion of the amount still unpaid after 730 days shall automatically convert the outstanding balance into a medium or long-term obligation as the case may be and give the Bank the right to charge the interest rates prescribed under its policies from the date the account was originally granted.
To secure payment of the loan the parties executed a real estate mortgage contract which provided:
(k) INCREASE OF INTEREST RATE:
The rate of interest charged on the obligation secured by this mortgage as well as the interest on the amount which may have been advanced by the MORTGAGEE, in accordance with the provision hereof, shall be subject during the life of this contract to such an increase within the rate allowed by law, as the Board of Directors of the MORTGAGEE may prescribe for its debtors.
x x x x
To begin with, PNB’s argument rests on a misapprehension of the import of the appellate court’s ruling. The Court of Appeals nullified the interest rate increases not because the promissory note did not comply with P.D. No. 1684 by providing for a de-escalation, but because the absence of such provision made the clause so one-sided as to make it unreasonable.
That ruling is correct. It is in line with our decision in Banco Filipino Savings & Mortgage Bank v. Navarro that although P.D. No. 1684 is not to be retroactively applied to loans granted before its effectivity, there must nevertheless be a de-escalation clause to mitigate the one-sidedness of the escalation clause. Indeed because of concern for the unequal status of borrowers vis-a-vis the banks, our cases after Banco Filipino have fashioned the rule that any increase in the rate of interest made pursuant to an escalation clause must be the result of agreement between the parties.
Thus in Philippine National Bank v. Court of Appeals, two promissory notes authorized PNB to increase the stipulated interest per annum “within the limits allowed by law at any time depending on whatever policy [PNB] may adopt in the future; Provided, that the interest rate on this note shall be correspondingly decreased in the event that the applicable maximum interest rate is reduced by law or by the Monetary Board.” The real estate mortgage likewise provided:The rate of interest charged on the obligation secured by this mortgage as well as the interest on the amount which may have been advanced by the MORTGAGEE, in accordance with the provisions hereof, shall be subject during the life of this contract to such an increase within the rate allowed by law, as the Board of Directors of the MORTGAGEE may prescribe for its debtors.Pursuant to these clauses, PNB successively increased the interest from 18% to 32%, then to 41% and then to 48%. This Court declared the increases unilaterally imposed by [PNB] to be in violation of the principle of mutuality as embodied in Art. 1308 of the Civil Code, which provides that “[t]he contract must bind both contracting parties; its validity or compliance cannot be left to the will of one of them.” As the Court explained:
In order that obligations arising from contracts may have the force of law between the parties, there must be mutuality between the parties based on their essential equality. A contract containing a condition which makes its fulfillment dependent exclusively upon the uncontrolled will of one of the contracting parties, is void (Garcia vs. Rita Legarda, Inc., 21 SCRA 555). Hence, even assuming that the P1.8 million loan agreement between the PNB and the private respondent gave the PNB a license (although in fact there was none) to increase the interest rate at will during the term of the loan, that license would have been null and void for being violative of the principle of mutuality essential in contracts. It would have invested the loan agreement with the character of a contract of adhesion, where the parties do not bargain on equal footing, the weaker party’s (the debtor) participation being reduced to the alternative “to take it or leave it” (Qua vs. Law Union & Rock Insurance Co., 95 Phil. 85). Such a contract is a veritable trap for the weaker party whom the courts of justice must protect against abuse and imposition.
A similar ruling was made in Philippine National Bank v. Court of Appeals. The credit agreement in that case provided:
The BANK reserves the right to increase the interest rate within the limits allowed by law at any time depending on whatever policy it may adopt in the future: Provided, that the interest rate on this accommodation shall be correspondingly decreased in the event that the applicable maximum interest is reduced by law or by the Monetary Board. . . .
As in the first case, PNB successively increased the stipulated interest so that what was originally 12% per annum became, after only two years, 42%. In declaring the increases invalid, we held:
We cannot countenance petitioner bank’s posturing that the escalation clause at bench gives it unbridled right to unilaterally upwardly adjust the interest on private respondents’ loan. That would completely take away from private respondents the right to assent to an important modification in their agreement, and would negate the element of mutuality in contracts.
Only recently we invalidated another round of interest increases decreed by PNB pursuant to a similar agreement it had with other borrowers:
[W]hile the Usury Law ceiling on interest rates was lifted by C.B. Circular 905, nothing in the said circular could possibly be read as granting respondent bank carte blanche authority to raise interest rates to levels which would either enslave its borrowers or lead to a hemorrhaging of their assets.
In this case no attempt was made by PNB to secure the conformity of private respondents to the successive increases in the interest rate. Private respondents’ assent to the increases can not be implied from their lack of response to the letters sent by PNB, informing them of the increases. For as stated in one case, no one receiving a proposal to change a contract is obliged to answer the proposal.71 (Emphasis supplied)
Courts have the authority to strike down or to modify provisions in promissory notes that grant the lenders unrestrained power to increase interest rates, penalties and other charges at the latter’s sole discretion and without giving prior notice to and securing the consent of the borrowers. This unilateral authority is anathema to the mutuality of contracts and enable lenders to take undue advantage of borrowers. Although the Usury Law has been effectively repealed, courts may still reduce iniquitous or unconscionable rates charged for the use of money. Furthermore, excessive interests, penalties and other charges not revealed in disclosure statements issued by banks, even if stipulated in the promissory notes, cannot be given effect under the Truth in Lending Act.73 (Emphasis supplied)Yet again, in a sixth disposition, Philippine National Bank v. Spouses Rocamora,74 the above pronouncements were reiterated to debunk PNB’s repeated reliance on its invalidated contract stipulations:
We repeated this rule in the 1994 case of PNB v. CA and Jayme-Fernandez and the 1996 case of PNB v. CA and Spouses Basco. Taking no heed of these rulings, the escalation clause PNB used in the present case to justify the increased interest rates is no different from the escalation clause assailed in the 1996 PNB case; in both, the interest rates were increased from the agreed 12% per annum rate to 42%. x x xVerily, all these cases, including the present one, involve identical or similar provisions found in respondent’s credit agreements and promissory notes. Thus, the July 1989 Credit Agreement executed by petitioners and respondent contained the following stipulation on interest:
x x x x
On the strength of this ruling, PNB’s argument – that the spouses Rocamora’s failure to contest the increased interest rates that were purportedly reflected in the statements of account and the demand letters sent by the bank amounted to their implied acceptance of the increase – should likewise fail.
Evidently, PNB’s failure to secure the spouses Rocamora’s consent to the increased interest rates prompted the lower courts to declare excessive and illegal the interest rates imposed. To go around this lower court finding, PNB alleges that the P206,297.47 deficiency claim was computed using only the original 12% per annum interest rate. We find this unlikely. Our examination of PNB’s own ledgers, included in the records of the case, clearly indicates that PNB imposed interest rates higher than the agreed 12% per annum rate. This confirmatory finding, albeit based solely on ledgers found in the records, reinforces the application in this case of the rule that findings of the RTC, when affirmed by the CA, are binding upon this Court.75 (Emphases supplied)
1.03. Interest. (a) The Loan shall be subject to interest at the rate of 19.5% [per annum]. Interest shall be payable in advance every one hundred twenty days at the rate prevailing at the time of the renewal.while the eight promissory notes issued pursuant thereto granted PNB the right to increase or reduce interest rates “within the limits allowed by law or the Monetary Board”77 and the Real Estate Mortgage agreement included the same right to increase or reduce interest rates “at any time depending on whatever policy PNB may adopt in the future.”78
(b) The Borrower agrees that the Bank may modify the interest rate in the Loan depending on whatever policy the Bank may adopt in the future, including without limitation, the shifting from the floating interest rate system to the fixed interest rate system, or vice versa. Where the Bank has imposed on the Loan interest at a rate per annum which is equal to the Bank’s spread over the current floating interest rate, the Borrower hereby agrees that the Bank may, without need of notice to the Borrower, increase or decrease its spread over the floating interest rate at any time depending on whatever policy it may adopt in the future.76 (Emphases supplied)
1st Promissory Note dated July 24, 1989 – 19.5%;On the other hand, the August 1991 Amendment to Credit Agreement contains the following stipulation regarding interest:
2nd Promissory Note dated November 22, 1989 – 23%;
3rd Promissory Note dated March 21, 1990 – 22%;
4th Promissory Note dated July 19, 1990 – 24%;
5th Promissory Note dated December 17, 1990 – 28%;
6th Promissory Note dated February 14, 1991 – 32%;
7th Promissory Note dated March 1, 1991 – 30%; and
8th Promissory Note dated July 11, 1991 – 24%.79
1.03. Interest on Line Availments. (a) The Borrowers agree to pay interest on each Availment from date of each Availment up to but not including the date of full payment thereof at the rate per annum which is determined by the Bank to be prime rate plus applicable spread in effect as of the date of each Availment.80 (Emphases supplied)and under this Amendment to Credit Agreement, petitioners again executed and signed the following promissory notes in blank, for the respondent to later on enter the corresponding interest rates, which it did, as follows:
9th Promissory Note dated November 8, 1991 – 26%;The 9th up to the 17th promissory notes provide for the payment of interest at the “rate the Bank may at any time without notice, raise within the limits allowed by law x x x.”82 On the other hand, the 18th up to the 26th promissory notes – which includes PN 9707237 – carried the following provision:
10th Promissory Note dated March 19, 1992 – 25%;
11th Promissory Note dated July 11, 1992 – 23%;
12th Promissory Note dated November 10, 1992 – 21%;
13th Promissory Note dated March 15, 1993 – 21%;
14th Promissory Note dated July 12, 1993 – 17.5%;
15th Promissory Note dated November 17, 1993 – 21%;
16th Promissory Note dated March 28, 1994 – 21%;
17th Promissory Note dated July 13, 1994 – 21%;
18th Promissory Note dated November 16, 1994 – 16%;
19th Promissory Note dated April 10, 1995 – 21%;
20th Promissory Note dated July 19, 1995 – 18.5%;
21st Promissory Note dated December 18, 1995 – 18.75%;
22nd Promissory Note dated April 22, 1996 – 18.5%;
23rd Promissory Note dated July 22, 1996 – 18.5%;
24th Promissory Note dated November 25, 1996 – 18%;
25th Promissory Note dated May 30, 1997 – 17.5%; and
26th Promissory Note (PN 9707237) dated July 30, 1997 – 25%.81
x x x For this purpose, I/We agree that the rate of interest herein stipulated may be increased or decreased for the subsequent Interest Periods, with prior notice to the Borrower in the event of changes in interest rate prescribed by law or the Monetary Board of the Central Bank of the Philippines, or in the Bank’s overall cost of funds. I/We hereby agree that in the event I/we are not agreeable to the interest rate fixed for any Interest Period, I/we shall have the option to prepay the loan or credit facility without penalty within ten (10) calendar days from the Interest Setting Date.83 (Emphasis supplied)These stipulations must be once more invalidated, as was done in previous cases. The common denominator in these cases is the lack of agreement of the parties to the imposed interest rates. For this case, this lack of consent by the petitioners has been made obvious by the fact that they signed the promissory notes in blank for the respondent to fill. We find credible the testimony of Lydia in this respect. Respondent failed to discredit her; in fact, its witness PNB Kalibo Branch Manager Aspa admitted that interest rates were fixed solely by its Treasury Department in Manila, which were then simply communicated to all PNB branches for implementation. If this were the case, then this would explain why petitioners had to sign the promissory notes in blank, since the imposable interest rates have yet to be determined and fixed by respondent’s Treasury Department in Manila.
The stipulation in the promissory notes subjecting the interest rate to review does not render the imposition by UCPB of interest rates on the obligations of the spouses Beluso valid. According to said stipulation:To repeat what has been said in the above-cited cases, any modification in the contract, such as the interest rates, must be made with the consent of the contracting parties. The minds of all the parties must meet as to the proposed modification, especially when it affects an important aspect of the agreement. In the case of loan agreements, the rate of interest is a principal condition, if not the most important component. Thus, any modification thereof must be mutually agreed upon; otherwise, it has no binding effect.The interest rate shall be subject to review and may be increased or decreased by the LENDER considering among others the prevailing financial and monetary conditions; or the rate of interest and charges which other banks or financial institutions charge or offer to charge for similar accommodations; and/or the resulting profitability to the LENDER after due consideration of all dealings with the BORROWER.It should be pointed out that the authority to review the interest rate was given [to] UCPB alone as the lender. Moreover, UCPB may apply the considerations enumerated in this provision as it wishes. As worded in the above provision, UCPB may give as much weight as it desires to each of the following considerations: (1) the prevailing financial and monetary condition; (2) the rate of interest and charges which other banks or financial institutions charge or offer to charge for similar accommodations; and/or (3) the resulting profitability to the LENDER (UCPB) after due consideration of all dealings with the BORROWER (the spouses Beluso). Again, as in the case of the interest rate provision, there is no fixed margin above or below these considerations.
In view of the foregoing, the Separability Clause cannot save either of the two options of UCPB as to the interest to be imposed, as both options violate the principle of mutuality of contracts.84 (Emphases supplied)
The Bank reserves the right to increase the interest rate within the limits allowed by law at any time depending on whatever policy it may adopt in the future: Provided, that, the interest rate on this accommodation shall be correspondingly decreased in the event that the applicable maximum interest rate is reduced by law or by the Monetary Board. In either case, the adjustment in the interest rate agreed upon shall take effect on the effectivity date of the increase or decrease in maximum interest rate.85 (Emphasis supplied)Whereas, in the present credit agreements under scrutiny, it is stated that:
IN THE JULY 1989 CREDIT AGREEMENTPlainly, with the present credit agreement, the element of consent or agreement by the borrower is now completely lacking, which makes respondent’s unlawful act all the more reprehensible.
(b) The Borrower agrees that the Bank may modify the interest rate on the Loan depending on whatever policy the Bank may adopt in the future, including without limitation, the shifting from the floating interest rate system to the fixed interest rate system, or vice versa. Where the Bank has imposed on the Loan interest at a rate per annum, which is equal to the Bank’s spread over the current floating interest rate, the Borrower hereby agrees that the Bank may, without need of notice to the Borrower, increase or decrease its spread over the floating interest rate at any time depending on whatever policy it may adopt in the future.86 (Emphases supplied)
IN THE AUGUST 1991 AMENDMENT TO CREDIT AGREEMENT
1.03. Interest on Line Availments. (a) The Borrowers agree to pay interest on each Availment from date of each Availment up to but not including the date of full payment thereof at the rate per annum which is determined by the Bank to be prime rate plus applicable spread in effect as of the date of each Availment.87 (Emphasis supplied)
SEC. 4. Any creditor shall furnish to each person to whom credit is extended, prior to the consummation of the transaction, a clear statement in writing setting forth, to the extent applicable and in accordance with rules and regulations prescribed by the Board, the following information:Under Section 4(6), “finance charge” represents the amount to be paid by the debtor incident to the extension of credit such as interest or discounts, collection fees, credit investigation fees, attorney’s fees, and other service charges. The total finance charge represents the difference between (1) the aggregate consideration (down payment plus installments) on the part of the debtor, and (2) the sum of the cash price and non-finance charges.91
(1) the cash price or delivered price of the property or service to be acquired;
(2) the amounts, if any, to be credited as down payment and/or trade-in;
(3) the difference between the amounts set forth under clauses (1) and (2);
(4) the charges, individually itemized, which are paid or to be paid by such person in connection with the transaction but which are not incident to the extension of credit;
(5) the total amount to be financed;
(6) the finance charge expressed in terms of pesos and centavos; and
(7) the percentage that the finance bears to the total amount to be financed expressed as a simple annual rate on the outstanding unpaid balance of the obligation.
UCPB further argues that since the spouses Beluso were duly given copies of the subject promissory notes after their execution, then they were duly notified of the terms thereof, in substantial compliance with the Truth in Lending Act.However, the one-year period within which an action for violation of the Truth in Lending Act may be filed evidently prescribed long ago, or sometime in 2001, one year after petitioners received the March 2000 demand letter which contained the illegal charges.
Once more, we disagree. Section 4 of the Truth in Lending Act clearly provides that the disclosure statement must be furnished prior to the consummation of the transaction:SEC. 4. Any creditor shall furnish to each person to whom credit is extended, prior to the consummation of the transaction, a clear statement in writing setting forth, to the extent applicable and in accordance with rules and regulations prescribed by the Board, the following information:The rationale of this provision is to protect users of credit from a lack of awareness of the true cost thereof, proceeding from the experience that banks are able to conceal such true cost by hidden charges, uncertainty of interest rates, deduction of interests from the loaned amount, and the like. The law thereby seeks to protect debtors by permitting them to fully appreciate the true cost of their loan, to enable them to give full consent to the contract, and to properly evaluate their options in arriving at business decisions. Upholding UCPB’s claim of substantial compliance would defeat these purposes of the Truth in Lending Act. The belated discovery of the true cost of credit will too often not be able to reverse the ill effects of an already consummated business decision.
(1) the cash price or delivered price of the property or service to be acquired;
(2) the amounts, if any, to be credited as down payment and/or trade-in;
(3) the difference between the amounts set forth under clauses (1) and (2);
(4) the charges, individually itemized, which are paid or to be paid by such person in connection with the transaction but which are not incident to the extension of credit;
(5) the total amount to be financed;
(6) the finance charge expressed in terms of pesos and centavos; and
(7) the percentage that the finance bears to the total amount to be financed expressed as a simple annual rate on the outstanding unpaid balance of the obligation.
In addition, the promissory notes, the copies of which were presented to the spouses Beluso after execution, are not sufficient notification from UCPB. As earlier discussed, the interest rate provision therein does not sufficiently indicate with particularity the interest rate to be applied to the loan covered by said promissory notes.92 (Emphases supplied)
x x x [A]n appellee, who is at the same time not an appellant, may on appeal be permitted to make counter assignments of error in ordinary actions, when the purpose is merely to defend himself against an appeal in which errors are alleged to have been committed by the trial court both in the appreciation of facts and in the interpretation of the law, in order to sustain the judgment in his favor but not when his purpose is to seek modification or reversal of the judgment, in which case it is necessary for him to have excepted to and appealed from the judgment.102Since petitioners did not raise the issue of reduction of attorney’s fees, the CA possessed no authority to pass upon it at the instance of respondent. The ruling of the trial court in this respect should remain undisturbed.
Endnotes:
* Per Raffle dated June 9, 2014.
1 Rollo, pp. 9-45.
2 Id. at 47-64; penned by Associate Justice Francisco P. Acosta and concurred in by Executive Justice Arsenio J. Magpale and Associate Justice Agustin S. Dizon.
3 Records, pp. 361-367; penned by Judge Niovady M. Marin.
4 Rollo, pp. 72-73.
5 Records, p. 94.
6 See Whereas Clause of Supplement to Existing Real Estate Mortgage, id. at 10.
7 Id. at 10-11.
8 Rollo, p. 148.
9 Records, pp. 47-54.
10 Id. at 47.
11 Id. at 192.
12 Id. at 74, dorsal portion.
13 Id. at 192-199.
14 Id. at 55-58.
15 Id. at 56.
16 Id. at 174-191.
17 Id. at 191.
18 Id. at 174.
19 Id.
20 Id. at 12.
21 Id. at 13.
22 Id. at 68-70.
23 Id. at 71.
24 Id. at 37-43.
25 Id. at 165.
26Id. at 149.
27 Rollo, pp. 51-52.
28 Id. at 52.
29 Id. at 52-53.
30 Records, pp. 361-367; penned by Judge Niovady M. Marin.
31 Id. at 365-366.
32 408 Phil. 803, 811-812 (2001). The Court therein held:
While it may be acceptable, for practical reasons given the fluctuating economic conditions, for banks to stipulate that interest rates on a loan not be fixed and instead be made dependent upon prevailing market conditions, there should always be a reference rate upon which to peg such variable interest rates. An example of such a valid variable interest rate was found in Polotan, Sr. v. Court of Appeals. In that case, the contractual provision stating that “if there occurs any change in the prevailing market rates, the new interest rate shall be the guiding rate in computing the interest due on the outstanding obligation without need of serving notice to the Cardholder other than the required posting on the monthly statement served to the Cardholder” was considered valid. The aforequoted provision was upheld notwithstanding that it may partake of the nature of an escalation clause, because at the same time it provides for the decrease in the interest rate in case the prevailing market rates dictate its reduction. In other words, unlike the stipulation subject of the instant case, the interest rate involved in the Polotan case is designed to be based on the prevailing market rate. On the other hand, a stipulation ostensibly signifying an agreement to “any increase or decrease in the interest rate,” without more, cannot be accepted by this Court as valid for it leaves solely to the creditor the determination of what interest rate to charge against an outstanding loan. (Emphasis supplied)
33 Records, p. 365.
34 Id. at 366.
35Id.
36Id.
37 Id. at 367.
38 Id.
39 Rollo, pp. 72-73.
40Id. at 73
41 Id. at 63-64.
42 Id. at 55.
43 Records, p. 74.
44 Rollo, p. 61.
45 Id. at 61-62.
46Id. at 62.
47 Id. at 63.
48 Id. at 23-24.
49 Which removed the ceiling on interest rates for secured and unsecured loans, regardless of maturity (Section 1), but required that the rate of interest on a floating rate loan during each interest period shall be stated on the basis of a reference rate plus a margin as may be agreed upon by the parties (Section 7).
50] Rollo, p. 167, citing United Coconut Planters Bank v. Spouses Beluso, 557 Phil. 326 (2007).
51 323 Phil. 297 (1996).
52 Records, p. 74.
53Philippine Bank of Communications v. Court of Appeals, supra note 50 at 313.
54 Citing Mambulao Lumber Co. v. Philippine National Bank, 130 Phil. 366, 380-381 (1968).
55 Citing New Sampaguita Builders Construction, Inc. v. Philippine National Bank, 479 Phil. 483, 510 (2004).
56 Rollo, pp. 100, 102.
57 Id. at 103.
58 Amending Further Act Numbered Two Thousand Six Hundred Fifty-Five, As Amended, Otherwise Known As The “Usury Law”.
59 Rollo, pp. 103-104.
60 Id. at 104-105.
61Id. at 106-107.
62 Citing Article 1226 of the Civil Code and Paras, Civil Code of the Philippines Annotated (Commentaries) Vol. IV, 1989 12th edition, p. 298.
63 Philippine National Bank, petitioner, versus Spouses Eduardo and Lydia Silos, respondents.
64 273 Phil. 789, 796-797, 799 (1991).
65 Art. 1308. The contract must bind both contracting parties; its validity or compliance cannot be left to the will of one of them.
66 G.R. No. 107569, November 8, 1994, 238 SCRA 20.
67 Id. at 22-26.
68326 Phil. 309 (1996).
69 Id. at 316-317, 322, 325.
70 328 Phil. 54 (1996).
71 Id. at 56-57, 60-63.
72 New Sampaguita Builders Construction, Inc. v. Philippine National Bank, supra note 55.
73 Id. at 486.
74616 Phil. 369 (2009).
75Id. at 382-383.
76 Records, p. 74.
77 Id. at 192.
78 Id. at 74, dorsal portion.
79 Id. at 192-199.
80 Id. at 56.
81 Id. at 174-191.
82 Id. at 191.
83 Id. at 174.
84 United Coconut Planters Bank v. Spouses Beluso, supra note 49 at 342-343.
85 See Philippine National Bank v. Court of Appeals, supra note 66 at 22.
86 Records, p. 47.
87 Id. at 56.
88 United Coconut Planters Bank v. Spouses Beluso, supra note 50 at 343.
89 Section 2 thereof.
90 Heirs of Zoilo Espiritu v. Spouses Landrito, 549 Phil. 180, 190-191 (2007).
91 Central Bank Circular No. 158.
92 United Coconut Planters Bank v. Spouses Beluso, supra note 50 at 356-358.
93Id. at 358.
94 New Sampaguita Builders Construction, Inc. v. Philippine National Bank, supra note 55 at 500.
95 Id.
96 See also Equitable PCI Bank v. Ng Sheung Ngor, 565 Phil. 520, 539 (2007).
97 Hodges v. Salas, 63 Phil. 567, 574 (1936), citing Aguilar v. Rubiato and Gonzalez Vila, 40 Phil. 570 (1920); Go Chioco v. Martinez, 45 Phil. 256, 279-282 (1923); Gui Jong & Co. v. Rivera and Avellar, 45 Phil. 778, 784 (1924); Sajo v. Gustilo, 48 Phil. 451, 462 (1925).
98 See Philippine Savings Bank v. Castillo, G.R. No. 193178, May 30, 2011, 649 SCRA 527, 538.
99 G.R. No. 189871, August 13, 2013.
100 Citing Article 1226 of the Civil Code and Paras, Civil Code of the Philippines Annotated (Commentaries) Vol. IV, 1989 12th edition, p. 298.
101] Philippine Bank of Communications v. Court of Appeals, supra note 51 at 314.
102 Saenz v. Mitchell, 60 Phil. 69, 80 (1934).
103 Or 6% per annum, when applicable.
104 Or 6% per annum, when applicable.
105 Id.
106 Rollo, p. 63.
107Also, under the Civil Code, Art. 1413, interest paid in excess of the interest allowed by the usury laws may be recovered by the debtor, with interest thereon from the date of the payment.