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MADRIAGA VS CBC
GR NO. 192377. JULY 25, 2012
DOCTRINE:
Judicial power presupposes actual controversies, the very antithesis of mootness. Where there is no more live
subject of controversy, the Court ceases to have a reason to render any ruling or make any pronouncement.21
Courts generally decline jurisdiction on the ground of mootness save when, among others, a compelling
constitutional issue raised requires the formulation of controlling principles to guide the bench, the bar and the
public; or when the case is capable of repetition yet evading judicial review,22 which are not extant in this
case.
FACTS:
The spouses Rolando and Norma Trajano (Spouses Trajano) were the original registered owners of the
properties in dispute two residential properties located in Ibayo, Marilao, Bulacan, covered by TCT Nos.
114853(M) and 114854(M). Sometime in 1991, they agreed to sell the properties to the petitioners father,
Cesar Madriaga, Sr. (Madriaga, Sr.) for P1,300,000.00 payable on installment basis. Upon completion of
payment,4 Spouses Trajano executed in Madriaga, Sr.s favor a Deed of Absolute Sale.
Spouses Trajano, however, failed to deliver the lot titles, so Madriaga, Sr. sued for specific performance with
the RTC Branch 19 of Malolos City. The parties later entered into a compromise agreement, which the court
approved. On motion of Madriaga, Sr., the RTC issued a writ of execution on September 6, 1994, and several
properties of Spouses Trajano were levied upon, including the disputed properties. At the auction held on
February 22, 1995, Madriaga, Sr. was declared the winning bidder, and a certificate of sale was issued to him
on. After the lapse of the one-year redemption period, he was issued a final deed of sale. On January 27,
1997, he secured an ex parte writ of possession.
Meanwhile, on January 2, 1995, Spouses Trajano obtained a loan from China Bank in the amount of
P700,000.00, payable in one year and secured by a mortgage over the disputed properties. They defaulted on
their loan, and on October 20, 1997, China Bank foreclosed the mortgage and was declared the highest bidder
at the foreclosure sale.
China Bank ex parte petition for writ of possession was granted. Undeterred, the petitioner filed a Motion to
Quash/Abate the Writ of Possession, which was denied by the RTC in its Order stating that it was a ministerial
duty to issue the writ.
The RTC also noted that the petitioners motion had been mooted by the satisfaction of the writ on April 15,
2005, per the Sheriffs return.
CA ruled that the RTC did not commit grave abuse of discretion in denying Madriaga, Sr.s motion to quash or
abate the ex parte writ of possession for the reason that the motion had already been rendered moot and
academic after the writ was satisfied on April 15, 2005 with the physical removal of Madriaga, Sr. from the
premises.
ISSUE:
Whether or not the court is bound to rule on the petition despite the case being moot and academic
HELD:
NO. The trial court in its Order dated February 6, 2006 took note of the Sheriffs return stating that the writ of
possession it issued to China Bank had been satisfied on April 15, 2005 after the petitioner had been
successfully removed from the subject premises, prompting the court to declare that the petitioners Motion to
Quash/Abate the Writ of Possession has been rendered moot and academic.
Indeed, with the writ of possession having been served and satisfied, the said motions had ceased to present a
justiciable controversy, and a declaration thereon would be of no practical use or value.20
Judicial power presupposes actual controversies, the very antithesis of mootness. Where there is no more live
subject of controversy, the Court ceases to have a reason to render any ruling or make any pronouncement.21
Courts generally decline jurisdiction on the ground of mootness save when, among others, a compelling
constitutional issue raised requires the formulation of controlling principles to guide the bench, the bar and the
public; or when the case is capable of repetition yet evading judicial review,22 which are not extant in this
case.
PEOPLE VS GUTIERREZ
IN THE MATTER OF THE IBP MEMBERSHIP DUES DELINQUENCY OF ATTY. MARCIAL A. EDILLION
AC-1928. December 19, 1980
CRUZ, CHANINE
DOCTRINE:
Membership in the bar is a privilege burdened with conditions. Failure to abide by any of them entails the loss
of such privilege if the gravity thereof warrants such drastic move. Thereafter a sufficient time having elapsed
and after actuations evidencing that there was due contrition on the part of the transgressor, he may once
again be considered for the restoration of such a privilege; The IBP Board of Governors has the authority to
recommend to the Supreme Court the removal of a delinquent member's name from the Roll of Attorneys.
FACTS:
Atty. Marcial Edillon was dibarred due to non-payment of his IBP dues. He claimed that the provisions of Sec.
10 of Rule 139-A of the Rules of Court is unconstitutional as he is being compelled, as a precondition in
maintaining his good standing as a lawyer, to pay and settle his dues to the IBP. Petitioner stubbornly insisted
his take and refused to admit full competence of the court in this matter. But after some time in realization, his
recalcitrance and defiance were gone in his subsequent communication with the court. He appealed that his
health, advanced age, and concern to his former clients welfare be considered in his prayer so that he can
again practice law.
ISSUE:
Whether or not Atty. Edillon should be reinstated as member of the bar?
RULING:
YES. Admission to the bar is a privilege burdened with condition. Failure to abide entails loss of such privilege.
When the Edillon entered upon the legal profession, his practice of law and his exercise of the said profession,
which affect the society at large, were (and are) subject to the power of the body politic to require him to
conform to such regulations as might be established by the proper authorities for the common good, even to
the extent of interfering with some of his liberties. If he did not wish to submit himself to such reasonable
interference and regulation, he should not have clothed the public with an interest in his concerns. To compel a
lawyer to be a member of the Integrated Bar is not violative of his constitutional freedom to associate. Bar
integration does not compel the lawyer to associate with anyone. He is free to attend or not attend the
meetings of his Integrated Bar Chapter or vote or refuse to vote in its elections as he chooses. The only
compulsion to which he is subjected is the payment of annual dues. The Supreme Court, in order to further the
States legitimate interest in elevating the quality of professional legal services, may require that the cost of
improving the profession in this fashion be shared by the subjects and beneficiaries of the regulatory program
the lawyers. Such compulsion is justified as an exercise of the police power of the State. The right to
practice law before the courts of this country should be and is a matter subject to regulation and inquiry. And, if
the power to impose the fee as a regulatory measure is recognize, then a penalty designed to enforce its
payment, which penalty may be avoided altogether by payment, is not void as unreasonable or arbitrary.
Considered in addition was the two (2) years Atty. Edillon was barred to practice law, and the dictum of Justice
Malcolm in Villavicencio v. Lukban that the power to discipline, especially if amounting to disbarment, should
be exercised in a preservative and not on the vindictive principle. After contrition on the part of the petitioner,
the court finds reinstatement in order.
MARBURY VS MADISON
Caveat: No full case found. Taken from different internet sites.
DOCTRINE:
The Supreme Court has the authority to review acts of Congress and determine whether they are
unconstitutional and therefore void.
A Law repugnant to the Constitution is void. C.J Marshal (alam niyo naman mahilig sa quotable quotes
ang lolo niyo)
The Constitution of the United States, was not made to fit us like a strait jacket. In its elasticity lies its chief
greatness. Woodrow Wilson
This case established the principle of judicial review, an important addition to the system of checks and
balances created to prevent any one branch of the Federal Government from becoming too powerful. The
document shown here bears the marks of the Capitol fire of 1898.
FACTS:
On his last day in office, President John Adams named forty-two justices of the peace and sixteen new circuit
court justices for the District of Columbia under the Organic Act. The Organic Act was an attempt by the
Federalists to take control of the federal judiciary before Thomas Jefferson took office.
The commissions were signed by President Adams and sealed by acting Secretary of State John Marshall
(who later became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and author of this opinion), but they were not delivered
before the expiration of Adamss term as president. Thomas Jefferson refused to honor the commissions,
claiming that they were invalid because they had not been delivered by the end of Adamss term.
William Marbury (P) was an intended recipient of an appointment as justice of the peace. Marbury applied
directly to the Supreme Court of the United States for a writ of mandamus to compel Jeffersons Secretary of
State, James Madison (D), to deliver the commissions. The Judiciary Act of 1789 had granted the Supreme
Court original jurisdiction to issue writs of mandamus to any courts appointed, or persons holding office,
under the authority of the United States.
ISSUES:
Does Marbury have a right to the commission?
Does the law grant Marbury a remedy?
Does the Supreme Court have the authority to review acts of Congress and determine whether they are
unconstitutional and therefore void?
Can Congress expand the scope of the Supreme Courts original jurisdiction beyond what is specified in Article
III of the Constitution?
Does the Supreme Court have original jurisdiction to issue writs of mandamus?
RULING: (Marshall)
Yes. Marbury has a right to the commission. The order granting the commission takes effect when the
Executives constitutional power of appointment has been exercised, and the power has been exercised when
the last act required from the person possessing the power has been performed. The grant of the commission
to Marbury became effective when signed by President Adams.
Yes. The law grants Marbury a remedy. The very essence of civil liberty certainly consists in the right of every
individual to claim the protection of the laws whenever he receives an injury. One of the first duties of
government is to afford that protection. Where a specific duty is assigned by law, and individual rights depend
upon the performance of that duty, the individual who considers himself injured has a right to resort to the law
for a remedy. The President, by signing the commission, appointed Marbury a justice of the peace in the
District of Columbia. The seal of the United States, affixed thereto by the Secretary of State, is conclusive
testimony of the verity of the signature, and of the completion of the appointment. Having this legal right to the
office, he has a consequent right to the commission, a refusal to deliver which is a plain violation of that right
for which the laws of the country afford him a remedy.
Yes. The Supreme Court has the authority to review acts of Congress and determine whether they are
unconstitutional and therefore void. It is emphatically the duty of the Judicial Department to say what the law is.
Those who apply the rule to particular cases must, of necessity, expound and interpret the rule. If two laws
conflict with each other, the Court must decide on the operation of each. If courts are to regard the
Constitution, and the Constitution is superior to any ordinary act of the legislature, the Constitution, and not
such ordinary act, must govern the case to which they both apply.
No. Congress cannot expand the scope of the Supreme Courts original jurisdiction beyond what is specified in
Article III of the Constitution. The Constitution states that the Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction in
all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, and those in which a state shall be a
party. In all other cases, the Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction. If it had been intended to leave
it in the discretion of the Legislature to apportion the judicial power between the Supreme and inferior courts
according to the will of that body, this section is mere surplusage and is entirely without meaning. If Congress
remains at liberty to give this court appellate jurisdiction where the Constitution has declared their jurisdiction
shall be original, and original jurisdiction where the Constitution has declared it shall be appellate, the
distribution of jurisdiction made in the Constitution, is form without substance.
No. The Supreme Court does not have original jurisdiction to issue writs of mandamus. To enable this court
then to issue a mandamus, it must be shown to be an exercise of appellate jurisdiction, or to be necessary to
enable them to exercise appellate jurisdiction. It is the essential criterion of appellate jurisdiction that it revises
and corrects the proceedings in a cause already instituted, and does not create that case. Although, therefore,
a mandamus may be directed to courts, yet to issue such a writ to an officer for the delivery of a paper is, in
effect, the same as to sustain an original action for that paper, and is therefore a matter of original jurisdiction.
NB: When James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay wrote a defense of the Constitution in The
Federalist, they explained their judgment that a strong national government must have built-in restraints: You
must first enable government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself. The
writers of the Constitution had given the executive and legislative branches powers that would limit each other
as well as the judiciary branch. The Constitution gave Congress the power to impeach and remove officials,
including judges or the President himself. The President was given the veto power to restrain Congress and
the authority to appoint members of the Supreme Court with the advice and consent of the Senate. In this
intricate system, the role of the Supreme Court had not been defined. It therefore fell to a strong Chief Justice
like Marshall to complete the triangular structure of checks and balances by establishing the principle of judicial
review. Although no other law was declared unconstitutional until the Dred Scott decision of 1857, the role of
the Supreme Court to invalidate Federal and state laws that are contrary to the Constitution has never been
seriously challenged.
DOCTRINE:
Article VIII, Section 15 of the 1987 Constitution mandates that "all cases or matters filed after the effectivity of
the Constitution must be decided or resolved within twenty-four months from date of submission for the SC,
and, unless reduced by the SC, twelve months for all collegiate courts, and three months for all other courts."
FACTS: Hebron was the complainant in Criminal Case for falsification of public document which he filed
against one Aladin Simundac (Simundac) relative to the latters application for free patent over a property
situated in Carmona, Cavite. When Simundacs motion to suspend proceedings was denied by the Municipal
Trial Court (MTC) of Carmona, Cavite where the criminal case was pending, Simundac filed with the Regional
Trial Court (RTC) of Bacoor, Cavite a petition for certiorari with prayer for issuance of temporary restraining
order (TRO) and writ of preliminary injunction, and raffled to RTC presided by respondent Judge Garcia.
Hebron filed a motion for Judge Garcias inhibition, citing his perceived bias and partiality of Judge Garcia, who
had earlier dismissed Civil Case No. BCV-2005-94 also filed by Hebron against Simundac.
A hearing on Simundacs application for injunctive writ was conducted by Judge Garcia on April 16, 2009,
when he issued a Temporary Restraining Order and/or Writ of Preliminary Injunction. Now, Atty. Frolin
Remonquillo filed a Motion to Inhibit. Atty. Bingle B. Talatala, counsel for the petitioner, moved that she be
given ten (10) days to file her comment. Atty. Remonquillo prayed that he be given the same number of days
within which to file his reply, if necessary. After which, the incident is submitted for resolution. Both parties
agreed to maintain the status quo until this Court could have resolved the incident.
On June 2, 2009, Judge Garcia set for June 8, 2009 another hearing on the application for TRO. Come June 8,
2009, he issued an Order that states, "by agreement of the parties, let them be given time to file their
respective position papers." On September 18, 2009, he finally issued his Order granting Simundacs
application for preliminary injunction, which led to the suspension of the proceedings in Criminal Case No.
CC-07-43. He denied in the same Order Hebrons motion for inhibition.
Against the foregoing antecedents, Hebron filed the administrative complaint with the OCA, claiming that: (1)
Judge Garcia "distorted the facts" to justify his issuance of the writ of preliminary injunction; (2) neither Hebron
nor hiscounsel could have agreed on June 8, 2009 to file a position paper on Simundacs application for
injunctive writ, since they were both absent during the hearing on said date; (3) Judge Garcia was guilty of
"ignorance of the rule and jurisprudence" for ordering the issuance of a writ of preliminary injunction without
first conducting a hearing thereon; (4) Judge Garcia had ignored existing jurisprudence, making his rulings
"beyond the permissible margin oferror" and (5) Judge Garcia should have recused himself from Civil Case No.
BSC No. 2009-02, given his bias and partiality in favor of Simundac.
Motion for Reconsideration (MFR) of the order of Judge Garcia were filed and submitted for resolution and
hearing was set. But no hearing happened. A second MFR was filed and the same was set for hearing.
Up to the present, after the lapse of one (1) year, nine (9) months and fourteen (14) days, no notice of
resolution on our Motion for Reconsideration was sent to his counsel or tocomplainant. Any motion, regardless
of whether the motions were frivolous or dilatory, and not germane to the pending case respondent judge
should have resolved the same citing the facts and the law on which the order was based within the time
prescribed by the rules (Aries vs. Beldia, 476 SCRA 298).
OCA recommended that Judge Garcia be administratively liable for the delay. However, before acting upon
OCAs report, complainant withdrew his complaint.
ISSUE:
WON Respondent Judge is liable for the delay in resolving the MFR
HELD:
YES. Hebrons withdrawal of his complaint against Judge Garcia does not necessarily warrant its dismissal. In
Bayaca v. Ramos we explained:
We have repeatedly ruled in a number of cases that mere desistance or recantation by the complainant does
not necessarily result in the dismissal of an administrative complaint against any member of the bench. The
withdrawal of complaints cannot divest the Court of its jurisdiction nor strip it of its power to determine the
veracity of the charges made and to discipline, such as the results of its investigation may warrant, an erring
respondent. Administrative actions cannot depend on the will or pleasure of the complainant who may, for
reasons of his own, condone what may be detestable. Neither can the Court be bound by the unilateral act of
the complainant in a matter relating to its disciplinary power. The Courts interest in the affairs of the judiciary is
of paramount concern. x x x. Given this doctrine, the Court has resolved to allow the administrative case to
proceed, especially after taking due consideration of the nature of the offense which, per the evaluation of the
OCA, had been committed by Judge Garcia.
The Court fully agrees with the OCAs report that Judge Garcia cannot be held administratively liable for the
alleged wrongful rulings that he made in the Civil Case. Time and again, we have ruled that the errors
attributed to judges pertaining to the exercise of their adjudicative functions should be assailed in judicial
proceedings instead of in an administrative case.
Even assuming arguendo that respondent Judge made an erroneous interpretation of the law, the matter is
judicial in nature. Well-entrenched is the rule that a partys remedy, if prejudiced by the orders of a judge given
in the course of a trial, is the proper reviewing court, and not with the OCA by means of an administrative
complaint. As a matter of policy, in the absence of fraud, dishonesty or corruption, the acts of a judge in his
judicial capacity are not subject to disciplinary action even though such acts are erroneous. The Court has to
be shown acts or conduct of the judge clearly indicative of arbitrariness or prejudice before the latter can be
branded the stigma of being biased and partial. To hold otherwise would be to render judicial office untenable,
for no one called upon to try the facts or interpret the law in the process of administering justice can be
infallible in his judgment.
However, Judge Garcias undue delay in resolving Hebrons motion for reconsideration is a wrong of a different
nature which warrants a different treatment. Article VIII, Section 15 of the 1987 Constitution mandates that "all
cases or matters filed after the effectivity of the Constitution must be decided or resolved within twenty-four
months from date of submission for the SC, and, unless reduced by the SC, twelve months for all collegiate
courts, and three months for all other courts." In relation thereto, SC Administrative Circular No. 13-87 provides
that "judges shall observe scrupulously the periods prescribed by Article VIII, Section 15 of the Constitution for
the adjudication and resolution of all cases or matters submitted in their courts. Thus, all cases or matters must
be decided or resolved within twelve months from date of submission by all lower collegiate courts while all
other lower courts are given a period of three months to do so."
Judge Garcia failed to meet this three-month deadline. He explained his delay by saying that "the Motion for
Reconsideration was inadvertently not acted upon by the Court for an unreasonable length of time," because it
noticed its pendency only when it conducted an inventory of its cases in July 2011. Unfortunately for Judge
Garcia, such poor excuse merits no weight for his exoneration from the charge. It, in fact, demonstrates
serious errors in Judge Garcias performance of his duties and the management of his court. For such error,
even Judge Garcia has admitted that the delay in resolving the motion to reconsider has dragged on for an
"unreasonable length of time."19Furthermore, we observe that he should have been prompted to take
immediate action by the two motions to resolve that were filed by Hebron, yet even these two motions
remained unacted upon.
To the Court, the volume of Judge Garcias pending cases did not justify the delay. The failure to decide cases
and other matters within the reglementary period of ninety (90) days constitutes gross inefficiency and warrants
the imposition of administrative sanction against the erring judge. This is not only a blatant transgression of the
Constitution but also of the Code of Judicial Conduct, which enshrines the significant duty of magistrates to
decide cases promptly.
He was ordered to pay fine of 2000php and sternly warned that repetition of the same will be dealt more
severely.
RE: CASES SUBMITTED FOR DECISION BEFORE HON. TEOFILO D. BALUMA, FORMER JUDGE
BRANCH 1, RTC, TAGBILARAN CITY, BOHOL
A.M. No. RTJ-13-2355 September 2, 2013
DOCTRINE:
Article VIII, Section 15(1) of the 1987 Constitution provides that lower courts have three months within which to
decide cases or resolve matters submitted to them for resolution. Moreover, Canon 3, Rule 3.05 of the Code of
Judicial Conduct enjoins judges to dispose of their business promptly and decide cases within the required
period.
FACTS:
The matter involves the request for clearance of Judge Teofilo D. Baluma in support of his application or his
retirement/gratuity benefits under RA 910, as a amended. Judge Baluma availed of optional retirement on July
22, 2011. According to the Certification of Juan J. Lumanas, OIC, RTC Branch 1, there were 23 cases
submitted for decision/resolution left undecided by Judge Baluma. All 23 cases were already beyond the
reglementary period for decision when Judge Baluma retired. The same cases were also the subject of a
Memorandum from the OCA where Judge Baluma was required to explain why he failed to act upon the cases.
The processing of Judge Balumas clearance was put on hold pending clearance with the OCA.
Meanwhile, Judge Balumas son, Atty. Cristifil D. Baluma, averred that his father was suffering from depression
and requested for the early release of Judge Balumas retirement pay and other benefits. He also asked that if
any amount needs to be withheld, Judge Balumas health condition should be taken into consideration.
The OCA recommended that Judge Baluma be fined Php 46,000.00 for gross inefficiency for failure to decide
his pending 23 cases, but that the value of his terminal leave be released.
ISSUE:
WON Judge Baluma should be fined?
HELD:
NO. The Supreme Court modified the penalty and fined Judge Baluma only in the amount of Php 20,000.00.
While the Constitution and the Code of Judicial Conduct enjoins judges to conclude their businesses promptly,
the high court is not unaware of the heavy caseload of trial courts. The fines imposed on each judge may vary,
depending on the number of cases left unresolved, plus the presence of aggravating or mitigating
circumstances, such as the damage suffered by the parties as a result of the delay, and the health and age of
the judge. Considering that Judge Baluma only left 23 cases despite his failure to explain nor express remorse
for his offense, but that he is also suffering from depression and this is his first infraction, the Court lowered the
fine recommended and imposed.