FIRST DIVISION
G.R. No. 211649, August 12, 2015
AQA GLOBAL CONSTRUCTION, INC., Petitioner, v. PLANTERS DEVELOPMENT BANK, Respondent.
[G.R. No. 211742]
JE-AN SUPREME BUILDERS AND SALES CORPORATION, Petitioner, v. PLANTERS DEVELOPMENT BANK, Respondent.
D E C I S I O N
PERLAS-BERNABE, J.:
Assailed in these consolidated petitions for review on certiorari1 are the Decision2 dated July 18, 2013 and the Resolution3 dated March 10, 2014 of the Court of Appeals (CA) in CA-G.R. SP No. 127219, which set aside the Orders dated July 16, 20124 and September 25, 20125 issued by the Regional Trial Court of Pasig City, Branch 160 (RTC) in LRC Case No. R-7509, excluding the petitioners in these cases from the implementation of the writ of possession in favor of respondent Planters Development Bank (Plantersbank).
SEC. 33. Deed and possession to be given at expiration of redemption period; by whom executed or given. - If no redemption be made within one (1) year from the date of the registration of the certificate of sale, the purchaser is entitled to a conveyance and possession of the property; or, if so redeemed whenever sixty (60) days have elapsed and no other redemption has been made, and notice thereof given, and the time for redemption has expired, the last redemptioner is entitled to the conveyance and possession; but in all cases the judgment obligor shall have the entire period of one (I) year from the date of the registration of the sale to redeem the property. The deed shall be executed by the officer making the sale or by his successor in office, and in the latter case shall have the same validity as though the officer making the sale had continued in office and executed it.Thus, where a parcel of land levied upon on execution is occupied by a party other than a judgment debtor, the procedure is for the court to order a hearing to determine the nature of said adverse possession.39 For the exception to apply, however, the property need not only be possessed by a third party, but also held by him adversely to the judgment obligor - such as that of a co-owner, agricultural tenant or usufructuary, who possess the property in their own right and not merely the successor or transferee of the right of possession of,40 or privy to,41 the judgment obligor.
Upon the expiration of the right of redemption, the purchaser or redemptioner shall be substituted to and acquire all the rights, title, interest and claim of the judgment obligor to the property as of the time of the levy. The possession of the property shall be given to the purchaser or last redemptioner by the same officer unless a third party is actually holding the property adversely to the judgment obligor. (Emphasis supplied)
The right of the respondent to the possession of the property is clearly unassailable. It is founded on the right of ownership. As the purchaser of the properties in the foreclosure sale, and to which the respective titles thereto have already been issued, the petitioner's rights over the property has become absolute, vesting upon it the right of possession of the property which the court must aid in affecting its delivery. After such delivery, the purchaser becomes the absolute owner of the property. As we said in Tan Soo Huat v. Ongwico (63 Phil., 746), the deed of conveyance entitled the purchaser to have and to hold the purchased property. This means, that the purchaser is entitled to go immediately upon the real property, and that it is the sheriff's inescapable duty to place him in such possession. (Citation omitted).Nonetheless, the Court would like to take exception to the CA's ruling, limiting the remedies of the adverse third party to vindicate his claim of ownership and/or possession over the foreclosed property to a terceria and an independent separate action once a writ of possession had already been issued, as in this case. In Gagoomal v. Spouses Villacorta,58 the Court ruled that aside from such remedies, the adverse third party may take other legal remedies to prosecute his claim, such as invoking the supervisory power of the RTC to enjoin the enforcement/implementation of the writ of possession, as what petitioners did in this case. Unquestionably, the RTC has a general supervisory control over the entire execution process, and such authority carries with it the right to determine every question which may be invariably involved in the execution, and ensure that it is enforcing its judgment only against properties irrefutably belonging to the judgment debtor.59 However, in such instances, the RTC does not and cannot pass upon the question of title to the property, with any character of finality, and can treat of the matter only as may be necessary to decide the question of whether or not the person in possession holds the property adversely to the judgment obligor. If the claimant's proofs do not persuade the court of the validity of his title or right of possession thereto, the claim will be denied.60cralawrednad
Endnotes:
1Rollo (GR. No. 211649), pp. 11-27; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 10-29.
2Rollo (G.R. No. 2ll649), pp. 32-42; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 34-44. Penned by Associate Justice Mariflor P. Punzalan Castillo with Associate Justices Amy C. Lazaro-Javier and Zenaida T. Galapate Laguilles concurring.
3Rollo (GR. No. 211649), pp. 44-45; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 46-47.
4Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 94-96; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 95-97. Penned by Judge Myrna V. Lim-Verano.
5Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), p. 128; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), p. 98.
6Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 115-120, including annex.
7 In accordance with Act No. 3135, entitled "AN ACT To REGULATE THE SALE OF PROPERTY UNDER SPECIAL POWERS INSERTED IN OR ANNEXED To REAL-ESTATE MORTGAGES" as amended.
8 See Certificate of Sale dated May 31, 2010; rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 161-166; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 109-114.
9 TCT Nos. 11057-B to 11075-B in some parts of the records.
10 Not attached to the rollos.
11 Not attached to the rollos.
12 CA rollo, p. 56.
13Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), p. 33; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), p. 35.
14Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 51-55.
15Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 57-60; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 65-68.
16Rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 69-71.
17 Id. at 69.
18Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 75-79; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 72-76.
19 See Comment/Opposition (Re: AQA's Manifestation and Motion dated February 6, 2012); rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 64-66.
20 Id. at 107-108.
21 Id. at 65.
22 Dated March 2, 2012. Id. at 67-71.
23 See Rescission of Previously Executed Deed of Assignment dated August 1, 2003; id. at 72-74.
24Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 94-96; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 95-97.
25cralawred See Motion for Reconsideration dated August 8, 2012 (Re: Order dated 16 July 2012); CA rollo, pp. 90-97.
26Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), p. 128; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), p. 98.
27Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 129-145; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 77-93. While the petition was captioned as a Petition for Review, PDB stated that the same was an original special civil action for certiorari under Rule 65 of the Rules.
28Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 32-42; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 34-44.
29Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), p. 37; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), p. 39.
30Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), p. 40; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), p. 42.
31 See Motion for Reconsideration of AQA dated August 7, 2013 (CA rollo, pp. 201-213) and Motion for Reconsideration of Je-An dated August 7, 2013 (CA rollo, pp. 191-200).
32Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 44-45; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 46-47.
33Gagoomal v. Spouses Villacorta, 679 Phil. 441, 449-450 (2012), citing Spouses Matos v. Real Bank (A Thrift Bank), Inc., 610 Phil. 628, 636 (2009).
34 Entitled "AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE ADJUDICATION AND REGISTRATION OF TITLES TO LANDS IN THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS." (January 1, 1903).
35 Entitled "AN ACT TO REGULATE THE SALE OF PROPERTY UNDER SPECIAL POWERS INSERTED IN OR ANNEXED TO REAL ESTATE MORTGAGES." (March 6, 1924).
36 Entitled "AN ACT TO AMEND ACT NUMBERED THIRTY-ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FIVE, ENTITLED "AN ACT TO REGULATE THE SALE OF PROPERTY UNDER SPECIAL POWERS INSERTED IN OR ANNEXED TO REAL-ESTATE MORTGAGES." (December 7, 1933).
37BPI Family Savings Bank, Inc. v. Golden Power Diesel Sales Center, Inc., 654 Phil. 382, 391 (2011).
38Villanueva v. Cherdan Lending Investors Corp., 647 Phil. 494, 502 (2010).
39China Banking Corp. v. Spouses Lozada, 579 Phil. 454, 474-475 (2008).
40 Id. at 478-480.
41Dev't. Bank of the Phils. v. Prime Neighborhood Ass'n., 605 Phil. 660, 673 (2009).
42Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 75-79; rollo (G.R. No. 211742), pp. 72-76.
43 See Spouses Vilbar v. Opinion, G.R. No. 176043, January 15, 2014, 713 SCRA 428.
44Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 107-108.
45 Id. at 122-123.
46 See Entry of Appearance and Pre-Trial Brief filed by Je-An and Achurra in Civil Case Nos. 69973 and 69988; id. at 121-125.
47 Id. at 115-120, including annex.
48 Section 70 of Presidential Decree 1529, otherwise known as the Property Registration Decree (June 11, 1978) provides:cralawlawlibrarySEC. 70. Adverse claim. Whoever claims any part or interest in registered land adverse to the registered owner, arising subsequent to the date of the original registration, may, if no other provision is made in this Decree for registering the same, make a statement in writing setting forth fully his alleged right or interest, and how or under whom acquired, a reference to the number of the certificate of title of the registered owner, the name of the registered owner, and a description of the land in which the right or interest is claimed.49 Rescission of Previously Executed Deed of Assignment dated August 1, 2003; rollo (G.R. No. 211649), pp. 72-74.
The statement shall be signed and sworn to, and shall state the adverse claimant's residence, and a place at which all notices may be served upon him. This statement shall be entitled to registration as an adverse claim on the certificate of title. The adverse claim shall be effective for a period of thirty days from the date of registration. After the lapse of said period, the annotation of adverse claim may be canceled upon filing of a verified petition therefor by the party in interest: Provided, however, that after cancellation, no second adverse claim based on the same ground shall be registered by the same claimant.
Before the lapse of thirty days aforesaid, any party in interest may file a petition in the Court of First Instance where the land is situated for the cancellation of the adverse claim, and the court shall grant a speedy hearing upon the question of the validity of such adverse claim, and shall render judgment as may be just and equitable. If the adverse claim is adjudged to be invalid, the registration thereof shall be ordered canceled. If, in any case, the court, after notice and hearing, shall find that the adverse claim thus registered was frivolous, it may fine the claimant in an amount not less than one thousand pesos nor more than five thousand pesos, in its discretion. Before the lapse of thirty days, the claimant may withdraw his adverse claim by filing with the Register of Deeds a sworn petition to that effect.
50 See St. Dominic Corp. v. Intermediate Appellate Court, 235 Phil. 582, 595 (1987).
51Rollo (G.R. No. 211649), p. 23.
52 Supra note 39.
53 Entitled "STRENGTHENING THE SECURITY OF TENURE OF TENANT-TILLERS IN NON-RICE/CORN PRODUCING PRIVATE AGRICULTURAL LANDS" (October 21, 1976).
54 See footnote 56 in China Banking Corp. v. Spouses Lozada, supra note 39 at 479.
See also Republic Act No. 3844, otherwise known as the Agricultural Land Reform Code, which similarly provides that "[t]he agricultural lessee shall be entitled to security of tenure on his landholding and cannot be ejected therefrom unless authorized by the Court for causes" under Section 36 thereof, that does not include sale of the land.
55 De Leon, Hector S. and De Leon, Hector Jr. M., Comments and Cases on Sales and Lease, 2011 Edition, p. 622.
56 Entitled "AMENDING AND CODIFYING THE LAWS RELATIVE TO REGISTRATION OF PROPERTY AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES" (June 11, 1978).
57 Supra note 50 at 596.
58 Supra note 33.
59 Supra note 33, at 455 and 459.
60 See Spouses Sy v. Hon. Discaya, 260 Phil. 401, 407 (1990).