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Republic of the Philippines SUPREME COURT Manila A.M. No. 12-8-8-SC JUDICIAL AFFIDAVIT RULE Whereas, case congestion and delays plague most courts in cities, given the huge volume of cases filed each year and the slow and cumbersome adversarial syste1n that the judiciary has in place; Whereas, about 40 postponements; of criminal cases are dismissed annually owing to the fact that complainants simply give up con1ing to court after repeated

Whereas, few foreign businessmen ma!e long"term investments in the Philippines because its courts are unable to provide ample and speedy protection to their investments, !eeping its people poor; Whereas, in order to reduce the time needed for completing the testimonies of witnesses in cases under litigation, on #ebruary $1, $01$ the %upreme &ourt approved for piloting by trial courts in 'ue(on &ity the compulsory use of judicial affidavits in place of the direct testimonies of witnesses; Whereas, it is reported that such piloting has )uic!ly resulted in reducing by about two"thirds the time used for presenting the testimonies of witnesses, thus speeding up the hearing and adjudication of cases; Whereas, the %upreme &ourt &ommittee on the Revision of the Rules of &ourt, headed by %enior *ssociate +ustice *ntonio ,- &arpio, and the %ub" &ommittee on the Revision of the Rules on &ivil Procedure, headed by *ssociate +ustice Roberto *- *bad, have recommended for adoption a +udicial *ffidavit Rule that will replicate nationwide the success of the 'ue(on &ity e.perience in the use of judicial affidavits; and Whereas, the %upreme &ourt /n 0anc finds merit in the recommendation; NOW, THEREFORE, the %upreme &ourt /n 0anc hereby issues and promulgates the following1 Sectio 1. Scope. " 2a3 ,his Rule shall apply to all actions, proceedings, and incidents re)uiring the reception of evidence before1 213 ,he Metropolitan ,rial &ourts, the Municipal ,rial &ourts in &ities, the Municipal ,rial &ourts, the Municipal &ircuit ,rial &ourts, and the %hari4 a &ircuit &ourts but shall not apply to small claims cases under *-M- 05"5"6"%&; 2$3 ,he Regional ,rial &ourts and the %hari4a 7istrict &ourts; 283 ,he %andiganbayan, the &ourt of ,a. *ppeals, the &ourt of *ppeals, and the %hari4a *ppellate &ourts; 243 ,he investigating officers and bodies authori(ed by the %upreme &ourt to receive evidence, including the 9ntegrated 0ar of the Philippine 290P3; and 2:3 ,he special courts and )uasi"judicial bodies, whose rules of procedure are subject to disapproval of the %upreme &ourt, insofar as their e.isting rules of procedure contravene the provisions of this Rule-1 2b3 #or the purpose of brevity, the above courts, )uasi"judicial bodies, or investigating officers shall be uniformly referred to here as the ;court-; Sectio 2. Submission of Judicial Affidavits and Exhibits in lieu of direct testimonies. " 2a3 ,he parties shall file with the court and serve on the adverse party, personally or by licensed courier service, not later than five days before pre"trial or preliminary conference or the scheduled hearing with respect to motions and incidents, the following1 213 ,he judicial affidavits of their witnesses, which shall ta!e the place of such witnesses4 direct testimonies; and 2$3 ,he parties4 docun1entary or object evidence, if any, which shall be attached to the judicial affidavits and mar!ed as /.hibits *, 0, &, and so on in the case of the complainant or the plaintiff, and as /.hibits 1, $, 8, and so on in the case of the respondent or the defendant2b3 %hould a party or a witness desire to !eep the original document or object evidence in his possession, he may, after the same has been identified, mar!ed as e.hibit, and authenticated, warrant in his judicial affidavit that the copy or reproduction attached to such affidavit is a faithful copy or reproduction of that original- 9n addition, the party or witness shall bring the original document or object evidence for comparison during the preliminary conference with the attached copy, reproduction, or pictures, failing which the latter shall not be admitted-

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,his is without prejudice to the introduction of secondary evidence in place of the original when allowed by e.isting rulesSectio !. Contents of judicial Affidavit. " * judicial affidavit shall be prepared in the language !nown to the witness and, if not in /nglish or #ilipino, accompanied by a translation in /nglish or #ilipino, and shall contain the following1 2a3 ,he name, age, residence or business address, and occupation of the witness; 2b3 ,he name and address of the lawyer who conducts or supervises the e.amination of the witness and the place where the e.amination is being held; 2c3 * statement that the witness is answering the )uestions as!ed of him, fully conscious that he does so under oath, and that he may face criminal liability for false testimony or perjury; 2d3 'uestions as!ed of the witness and his corresponding answers, consecutively numbered, that1 213 %how the circumstances under which the witness ac)uired the facts upon which he testifies; 2$3 /licit from him those facts which are relevant to the issues that the case presents; and 283 9dentify the attached documentary and object evidence and establish their authenticity in accordance with the Rules of &ourt; 2e3 ,he signature of the witness over his printed name; and 2f3 * jurat with the signature of the notary public who administers the oath or an officer who is authori(ed by law to administer the sameSectio ". Sworn attestation of the lawyer. " 2a3 ,he judicial affidavit shall contain a sworn attestation at the end, e.ecuted by the lawyer who conducted or supervised the e.amination of the witness, to the effect that1 213 <e faithfully recorded or caused to be recorded the )uestions he as!ed and the corresponding answers that the witness gave; and 2$3 =either he nor any other person then present or assisting him coached the witness regarding the latter4s answers2b3 * false attestation shall subject the lawyer mentioned to disciplinary action, including disbarmentSectio #. Subpoena. " 9f the government employee or official, or the re)uested witness, who is neither the witness of the adverse party nor a hostile witness, unjustifiably declines to e.ecute a judicial affidavit or refuses without just cause to ma!e the relevant boo!s, documents, or other things under his control available for copying, authentication, and eventual production in court, the re)uesting party may avail himself of the issuance of a subpoena ad testificandum or duces tecum under Rule $1 of the Rules of &ourt- ,he rules governing the issuance of a subpoena to the witness in this case shall be the same as when ta!ing his deposition e.cept that the ta!ing of a judicial affidavit shal1 be understood to be ex parteSectio $. ffer of and objections to testimony in judicial affidavit. " ,he party presenting the judicial affidavit of his witness in place of direct testimony shall state the purpose of such testimony at the start of the presentation of the witness- ,he adverse party may move to dis)ualify the witness or to stri!e out his affidavit or any of the answers found in it on ground of inadmissibility- ,he court shall promptly rule on the motion and, if granted, shall cause the mar!ing of any e.cluded answer by placing it in brac!ets under the initials of an authori(ed court personnel, without prejudice to a tender of e.cluded evidence under %ection 40 of Rule 18$ of the Rules of &ourtSectio %. Examination of the witness on his judicial affidavit. " ,he adverse party shall have the right to cross"e.amine the witness on his judicial affidavit and on the e.hibits attached to the same- ,he party who presents the witness may also e.amine him as on re"direct- 9n every case, the court shall ta!e active part in e.amining the witness to determine his credibility as well as the truth of his testimony and to elicit the answers that it needs for resolving the issuesSectio 8. ral offer of and objections to exhibits. " 2a3 >pon the termination of the testimony of his last witness, a party shall immediately ma!e an oral offer of evidence of his documentary or object e.hibits, piece by piece, in their chronological order, stating the purpose or purposes for which he offers the particular e.hibit2b3 *fter each piece of e.hibit is offered, the adverse party shall state the legal ground for his objection, if any, to its admission, and the court shall immediately ma!e its ruling respecting that e.hibit2c3 %ince the documentary or object e.hibits form part of the judicial affidavits that describe and authenticate them, it is sufficient that such e.hibits are simply cited by their mar!ings during the offers, the objections, and the rulings, dispensing with the description of each e.hibit-

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Sectio &. Application of rule to criminal actions. " 2a3 ,his rule shall apply to all criminal actions1 213 ?here the ma.imum of the imposable penalty does not e.ceed si. years; 2$3 ?here the accused agrees to the use of judicial affidavits, irrespective of the penalty involved; or 283 ?ith respect to the civil aspect of the actions, whatever the penalties involved are2b3 ,he prosecution shall submit the judicial affidavits of its witnesses not later than five days before the pre"trial, serving copies if the same upon the accused- ,he complainant or public prosecutor shall attach to the affidavits such documentary or object evidence as he may have, mar!ing them as /.hibits *, 0, &, and so on- =o further judicial affidavit, documentary, or object evidence shall be admitted at the trial2c3 9f the accused desires to be heard on his defense after receipt of the judicial affidavits of the prosecution, he shall have the option to submit his judicial affidavit as well as those of his witnesses to the court within ten days from receipt of such affidavits and serve a copy of each on the public and private prosecutor, including his documentary and object evidence previously mar!ed as /.hibits 1, $, 8, and so on- ,hese affidavits shall serve as direct testimonies of the accused and his witnesses when they appear before the court to testifySectio 1'. Effect of non!compliance with the judicial Affidavit "ule. " 2a3 * party who fails to submit the re)uired judicial affidavits and e.hibits on time shall be deemed to have waived their submission- ,he court may, however, allow only once the late submission of the same provided, the delay is for a valid reason, would not unduly prejudice the opposing party, and the defaulting party pays a fine of not less than P 1,000-00 nor more than P :,000-00 at the discretion of the court2b3 ,he court shall not consider the affidavit of any witness who fails to appear at the scheduled hearing of the case as re)uired- &ounsel who fails to appear without valid cause despite notice shall be deemed to have waived his client4s right to confront by cross"e.amination the witnesses there present2c3 ,he court shall not admit as evidence judicial affidavits that do not conform to the content re)uirements of %ection 8 and the attestation re)uirement of %ection 4 above- ,he court may, however, allow only once the subse)uent submission of the compliant replacement affidavits before the hearing or trial provided the delay is for a valid reason and would not unduly prejudice the opposing party and provided further, that public or private counsel responsible for their preparation and submission pays a fine of not less than P 1,000-00 nor more than P :,000-00, at the discretion of the courtSectio 11. "epeal or modification of inconsistent rules. " ,he provisions of the Rules of &ourt and the rules of procedure governing investigating officers and bodies authori(ed by the %upreme &ourt to receive evidence are repealed or modified insofar as these are inconsistent with the provisions of this Rule-#$wphi# ,he rules of procedure governing %uasi!judicial bodies inconsistent herewith are hereby disapprovedSectio 12. Effectivity. " ,his rule shall ta!e effect on +anuary 1, $018 following its publication in two newspapers of general circulation not later than %eptember 1:, $01$- 9t shall also apply to e.isting casesManila, %eptember 4, $01$,his is Part : of 11 of the discussion on the J()ici*+ A,,i)*-it R(+e, so read the 9ntroduction first; %ee full te.t of *-M- =o- 1$"5"5"%&, approving the +udicial *ffidavit Rule@ ,he judicial affidavit shall contain the following1 1- ,he name, age, residence or business address, and occupation of the witness; $- ,he name and address of the lawyer who conducts or supervises the e.amination of the witness and the place where the e.amination is being held; 8- * statement that the witness is answering the )uestions as!ed of him, fully conscious that he does so under oath, and that he may face criminal liability for false testimony or perjury; 4- 'uestions as!ed of the witness and his corresponding answers, consecutively numbered, that1 2i3 %how the circumstances under which the witness ac)uired the facts upon which he testifies; 2ii3 /licit from him those facts which are relevant to the issues that the case presents; and

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2iii3 9dentify the attached documentary and object evidence and establish their authenticity in accordance with the Rules of &ourt; :- ,he signature of the witness over his printed name; A- * jurat with the signature of the notary public who administers the oath or an officer who is authori(ed by law to administer the same6- *ttestation of the lawyerW.*t i/ * 0(1*t2 * jurat, which is different from an Bac!nowledgmentC as defined under the Rules on =otarial Practice, refers to an act in which an individual on a single occasion1 2a3 appears in person before the notary public and presents an instrument or document; 2b3 is personally !nown to the notary public or identified by the notary public through competent evidence of identity as defined by these Rules; 2c3 signs the instrument or document in the presence of the notary; and 2d3 ta!es an oath or affirmation before the notary public as to such instrument or document- 2Rule $, %ec- A of the $004 Rules on =otarial Practice, *-M- =o- 0$"5"18"%&3 9t is important to note the strict re)uirement that, in the e.ecution of the jurat, the re)uisite competent evidence of identity must include at least one current identification document issued by an official agency bearing the photograph and signature of the individual#or purposes of comparison, Bac!nowledgmentC refers to an act in which an individual on a single occasion1 2a3 appears in person before the notary public and presents an integrally complete instrument or document; 2b3 is attested to be personally !nown to the notary public or identified by the notary public through competent evidence of identity as defined by the notarial rules; and 2c3 represents to the notary public that the signature on the instrument or document was voluntarily affi.ed by him for the purposes stated in the instrument or document, declares that he has e.ecuted the instrument or document as his free and voluntary act and deed, and, if he acts in a particular representative capacity, that he has the authority to sign in that capacityW.*t i/ t.e /3o1 *tte/t*tio o, t.e +*34e12 Dne of the problems with the Rule is the fact that judges only have limited opportunity to observe the demeanor of the witnessesMoreover, even if lawyers briefed the witness, the oral answer given by the witness during direct e.amination is almost wholly dependent on the witness,his is no longer true under this Rule because the lawyer prepares the judicial affidavit which ta!es the place of the direct testimony,hus, it is now re)uired that the judicial affidavit shall contain a sworn attestation at the end, e.ecuted by the lawyer who conducted or supervised the e.amination of the witness, to the effect that1 1- <e faithfully recorded or caused to be recorded the )uestions he as!ed and the corresponding answers that the witness gave; and $- =either he nor any other person then present or assisting him coached the witness regarding the latterEs answers,o put teeth to this prohibition, the Rule provides that a false attestation shall subject the lawyer mentioned to disciplinary action, including disbarment,here is no re)uirement that the lawyer who prepared the judicial affidavit must be the one to present the witness in courtW.*t +* 5(*5e /.o(+) 6e (/e) i t.e *,,i)*-it2 * judicial affidavit shall be prepared in the language !nown to the witness and, if not in /nglish or #ilipino, accompanied by a translation in /nglish or #ilipinoA+/o 1e*) * ) )i/c(// t.e ,o++o3i 57 1- 9ntroduction to and discussion of the +udicial *ffidavit Rule $- /ffectivity and Purpose of the +udicial *ffidavit Rule 8- %cope of *pplication of the +udicial *ffidavit Rule 4- %ervice and filing of the +udicial *ffidavit :- Re)uired contents of a judicial affidavit under the +udicial *ffidavit Rule A- Dffer of ,estimony and Dbjections under the +udicial *ffidavit Rule

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6- 7ocumentary and Dbject /vidence under the +udicial *ffidavit Rule 5- &ross"e.amination and Re"7irect /.amination under the +udicial *ffidavit Rule F- Resort to subpoena under the +udicial *ffidavit Rule 10- #ormal offer of evidence under the +udicial *ffidavit Rule 11- /ffects

of =on"&ompliance with the +udicial *ffidavit Rule

Re+*te) Po/t/1

Resort to subpoena under the +udicial *ffidavit Rule 7ocumentary and Dbject /vidence under the +udicial *ffidavit Rule Dffer of ,estimony and Dbjections under the +udicial *ffidavit Rule