THIRD DIVISION
G.R. No. 184827, February 11, 2015
FELIPE JHONNY A. FRIAS, JR. AND HEIRS OF ROGELIO B. VENERACION, Petitioners, v. THE HONORABLE EDWIN D. SORONGON, ASSISTING JUDGE, BRANCH 211, REGIONAL TRIAL COURT, MANDALUYONG CITY; FIRST ASIA REALTY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION AND/OR SM PRIME HOLDINGS, INC., AND ORTIGAS & COMPANY LIMITED PARTNERSHIP, Respondents.
D E C I S I O N
VILLARAMA, JR., J.:
Case Title Case No. Raffled to: Felipe Jhonny Frias, Jr. and Rogelio B. Veneracion v. Ortigas & Company Limited Partnership, et al. MC07-3275 Branch 208 Felipe Jhonny Frias, Jr., Rogelio B. Veneracion and Isaias Nicolas v. Greenfield Development Corporation and Ortigas & Company Limited Partnership MC07-3227 Branch 208 Felipe Jhonny Frias, Jr., Rogelio B. Veneracion and Isaias A. Nicolas v. Shangri-la Properties, Inc. and Ortigas & Company Limited Partnership MC07-3237 Branch 212 Felipe Jhonny Frias, Jr., Rogelio B. Veneracion and Isaias A. Nicolas v. United Laboratories, Inc. and Ortigas & Company Limited Partnership MC-07-3226 Branch 214
1) | Certification6 dated March 8, 2007 from the Office of the City Assessor of Antipolo City that Frias, Jr. has no real property registered for taxation purposes; |
2) | Pinagpisang Salaysay7 dated March 19, 2007 executed by Reynaldo L. Garcia and Shirley Percival, neighbors of Frias, Jr., stating that he neither has a job nor real property; |
3) | Certification8 dated March 17, 2007 from the City Assessor’s Office of Quezon City that there is no record of real property, whether land or improvement, registered for taxation purposes under the name of Veneracion; |
4) | Pinagpisang Salaysay9 dated March 20, 2007 executed by Rogelio Cagumoc and Salvacion Sanay, friends of Veneracion, stating that he has neither a steady job nor real property; |
5) | Letter10 dated May 7, 2007 from Leonila De Los Santos, MD, Medical Director of Unciano Medical Center, Antipolo City, addressed to Rosario Uriarte, then General Manager of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO), stating that the hospital is willing to accept a guarantee letter from PCSO as payment for the hospitalization of Veneracion, who was then a patient of said hospital; |
6) | Patient Bills11 of Veneracion at the Unciano Medical Center for his confinement from April 11 to May 8, 2007. |
Granted provided the docket fees for this case shall be a lien in case plaintiffs get a favorable judgment.12ChanRoblesVirtualawlibrary
1) | October 22, 2007 Order19 of Branch 208 in MC07-3227 dismissing the case for forum-shopping, litis pendentia, prescription and laches; |
2) | October 31, 2007 Order20 of Branch 208 in MC07-3275 dismissing the case for forum-shopping, improper venue, prescription and/or laches; |
3) | July 20, 2007 Order21 of Branch 212 in MC07-3237 dismissing the case for laches, prescription and forum-shopping; |
4) | November 12, 2007 Joint Order22 of Branch 214 in MC-07-3226 issued by respondent Judge Edwin D. Sorongon giving petitioner 60 days to pay the proper docket fees, with warning that failure to comply therewith shall cause the dismissal of the complaint. |
WHEREFORE, consistent with the Order of November 12, 2007 in Civil Case No. MC07-3226, issued by the undersigned presiding judge, plaintiffs are hereby given a period of sixty (60) days from receipt hereof to pay the proper docket fees, which shall be assessed by the Clerk of Court of the Regional Trial Court of Mandaluyong City, and failure to comply therewith shall cause the 1) DISMISSAL of the complaint on jurisdictional grounds; 2) to DENY plaintiff’s motion for receivership for utter lack of merit; and, 3) to CONSIDER the issues raised by the defendant in its respective motion for reconsideration ripe for resolution only after plaintiffs have paid the proper amount of docket fees.ChanRoblesVirtualawlibrary
SO ORDERED.23
WHETHER OR NOT RESPONDENT JUDGE HAS COMMITTED GRAVE ABUSE OF DISCRETION IN ISSUING THE QUESTIONED ORDER x x x ORDERING PETITIONERS TO PAY THE DOCKET FEES OF THE COMPLAINT AUTHORIZED AND ADMITTED TO BE FILED AS INDIGENTS BY THE EXECUTIVE JUDGE OF THE TRIAL COURT.24ChanRoblesVirtualawlibrary
x x x In Vergara, Sr. v. Suelto, this Court stressed that “[w]here the issuance of an extraordinary writ is also within the competence of the Court of Appeals or a Regional Trial Court, it is in either of these courts that the specific action for the writ’s procurement must be presented,” thus:
cralawredThe Supreme Court is a court of last resort, and must so remain if it is to satisfactorily perform the functions assigned to it by the fundamental charter and immemorial tradition. It cannot and should not be burdened with the task of dealing with causes in the first instance. Its original jurisdiction to issue the so-called extraordinary writs should be exercised only where absolutely necessary or where serious and important reasons exist therefor. Hence, that jurisdiction should generally be exercised relative to actions or proceedings before the Court of Appeals, or before constitutional or other tribunals, bodies or agencies whose acts for some reason or another are not controllable by the Court of Appeals. Where the issuance of an extraordinary writ is also within the competence of the Court of Appeals or a Regional Trial Court, it is in either of these courts that the specific action for the writ’s procurement must be presented. This is, and should continue, to be the policy in this regard, a policy that courts and lawyers must strictly observe. (Emphasis omitted)
SEC. 21. Indigent party. – A party may be authorized to litigate his action, claim or defense as an indigent if the court, upon an ex parte application and hearing, is satisfied that the party is one who has no money or property sufficient and available for food, shelter and basic necessities for himself and his family.
Such authority shall include an exemption from payment of docket and other lawful fees, and of transcripts of stenographic notes which the court may order to be furnished him. The amount of the docket and other lawful fees which the indigent was exempted from paying shall be a lien on any judgment rendered in the case favorable to the indigent, unless the court otherwise provides.
Any adverse party may contest the grant of such authority at any time before judgment is rendered by the trial court. If the court should determine after hearing that the party declared as an indigent is in fact a person with sufficient income or property, the proper docket and other lawful fees shall be assessed and collected by the clerk of court. If payment is not made within the time fixed by the court, execution shall issue or the payment thereof, without prejudice to such other sanctions as the court may impose.
SEC. 19. Indigent litigants exempt from payment of legal fees. – Indigent litigants (a) whose gross income and that of their immediate family do not exceed an amount double the monthly minimum wage of an employee and (b) who do not own real property with A FAIR MARKET VALUE AS STATED IN THE CURRENT TAX DECLARATION of more than THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND (P300,000.00) PESOS shall be exempt from the payment of legal fees.
The legal fees shall be a lien on any judgment rendered in the case favorable to the indigent litigant unless the court otherwise provides.
To be entitled to the exemption herein provided, the litigant shall execute an affidavit that he and his immediate family do not earn a gross income abovementioned, and they do not own any real property with the fair value aforementioned, supported by an affidavit of a disinterested person attesting to the truth of the litigant’s affidavit. The current tax declaration, if any, shall be attached to the litigant’s affidavit.
Any falsity in the affidavit of litigant or disinterested person shall be sufficient cause to dismiss the complaint or action or to strike out the pleading of that party, without prejudice to whatever criminal liability may have been incurred.
In the light of the foregoing considerations, therefore, the two (2) rules can stand together and are compatible with each other. When an application to litigate as an indigent litigant is filed, the court shall scrutinize the affidavits and supporting documents submitted by the applicant to determine if the applicant complies with the income and property standards prescribed in the present Section 19 of Rule 141—that is, the applicant’s gross income and that of the applicant’s immediate family do not exceed an amount double the monthly minimum wage of an employee; and the applicant does not own real property with a fair market value of more than Three Hundred Thousand Pesos (Php300,000.00). If the trial court finds that the applicant meets the income and property requirements, the authority to litigate as indigent litigant is automatically granted and the grant is a matter of right.ChanRoblesVirtualawlibrary
However, if the trial court finds that one or both requirements have not been met, then it would set a hearing to enable the applicant to prove that the applicant has “no money or property sufficient and available for food, shelter and basic necessities for himself and his family.” In that hearing, the adverse party may adduce countervailing evidence to disprove the evidence presented by the applicant; after which the trial court will rule on the application depending on the evidence adduced. In addition, Section 21 of Rule 3 also provides that the adverse party may later still contest the grant of such authority at any time before judgment is rendered by the trial court, possibly based on newly discovered evidence not obtained at the time the application was heard. If the court determines after hearing, that the party declared as an indigent is in fact a person with sufficient income or property, the proper docket and other lawful fees shall be assessed and collected by the clerk of court. If payment is not made within the time fixed by the court, execution shall issue or the payment of prescribed fees shall be made, without prejudice to such other sanctions as the court may impose.28
Endnotes:
1Rollo, p. 25.
2 Id. at 27.
3 Id. at 76-83.
4 Id. at 435-448, 468-482 & 658.
5 Id. at 36-38.
6 Id. at 39.
7 Id. at 40.
8 Id. at 41.
9 Id. at 42.
10 Id. at 43.
11 Id. at 44-45.
12 Id. at 50.
13 Id. at 242-282.
14 Id. at 691.
15 Id.
16 Id. at 357-373.
17 Id. at 29-30.
18 Id. at 390-434.
19 Id. at 435-439.
20 Id. at 440-448.
21 Id. at 468-477.
22 Id. at 478-482.
23 Id. at 25.
24 Id. at 658.
25 601 Phil. 124, 128-129 (2009).
26 240 Phil 719, 732-733 (1987).
27 536 Phil. 819 (2006).
28 Id. at 835-836.
29 Id. at 836.