Ilao-Oreta v. Sps Ronquillo /ESCRA

SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED VOLUME 535 06/11/2019, 1)51 AM
VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 633

Ilao-Oreta vs. Ronquillo
*
G.R. No. 172406. October 11, 2007.
CONCEPCION ILAO-ORETA, petitioner, vs. SPOUSES

EVA MARIE and BENEDICTO NOEL RONQUILLO,
respondents.
Actions; Negligence; Damages; Words and Phrases; „Gross

negligence‰ implies a want or absence of or failure to exercise slight
care or diligence, or the entire absence of care.·„Gross negligence‰
implies a want or absence of or failure to exercise slight care or
diligence, or the entire absence of care. It evinces a thoughtless
disregard of consequences without exerting any effort to avoid
them. It is characterized by want of even slight care, acting or
omitting to act in a situation where there is a duty to act, not
inadvertently but willfully and intentionally with a conscious
indifference to consequences in so far as other persons may be
affected.
Marriage; Honeymoon; Judicial Notice; It is of common human

knowledge that excitement attends the preparations for the honey-
moon.·It bears noting that when she was scheduling the date of
her performance of the procedure, Dr. Ilao-Oreta had just gotten
married and was preparing for her honeymoon, and it is of common
human knowledge that excitement attends its preparations. Her
negligence could then be partly attributed to human frailty which
rules out its characterization as gross. The doctorÊs negligence not
being gross, the spouses are not entitled to recover moral damages.
Same; Same; Same; Evidence; The list of expenses cannot

replace receipts when they should have been issued as a matter of
course in business transactions, as in the case of purchase of
http://www.central.com.ph/sfsreader/session/0000016e3caae96fdaa49421003600fb002c009e/p/AQF491/?username=Guest Page 1 of 14
gasoline and of food.·The only piece of documentary evidence

supporting the food and fuel expenses is an unsigned listing. As the
fuel and food expenses are not adequately substantiated, they
cannot be included in the computation of the amount of actual
damages. So Premiere Development Bank v. Court of Appeals, 427
SCRA 686 (2004), instructs: x x x The list of expenses cannot
replace receipts when they should have been issued as a matter of
course in business transactions as in the case of purchase of
gasoline and of food.
_______________
* SECOND DIVISION.
634
634 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

PETITION for review on certiorari of a decision of the

Court of Appeals.
The facts are stated in the opinion of the Court.

Anselmo P. Sinjian III for petitioner.
Eliseo G. Lontok for respondents.
CARPIO-MORALES, J.:
Respondents, spouses Eva Marie Ronquillo (Eva Marie)

and Noel Benedicto (Noel) Ronquillo (the Ronquillo spouses
or the spouses), had not been blessed with a child despite
several years of marriage. They thus consulted petitioner,
Dr. Concepcion Ilao-Oreta (Dr. Ilao-Oreta), an obstetrician-
gynecologist-consultant at the St. LukeÊs Medical Center
where she was, at the time material to the case, the chief of
the Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Section.
Upon Dr. Ilao-OretaÊs advice, Eva Marie agreed to
undergo a laparoscopic procedure whereby a laparascope
would be inserted through the patientÊs abdominal wall to
get a direct view of her internal reproductive organ in order
to determine the real cause of her infertility.
The procedure was scheduled on April 5, 1999 at 2:00
p.m., to be performed by Dr. Ilao-Oreta. At around 7:00

a.m. of said date, Eva Marie, accompanied by her husband
Noel, checked in at the St. LukeÊs Medical Center and
underwent pre-operative procedures including the
administration of intravenous fluid and enema.
Dr. Ilao-Oreta did not arrive at the scheduled time for
the procedure, however, and no prior notice of its
cancellation was received. It turned out that the doctor was
on a return flight from Hawaii to, and arrived at 10:00 p.m.
of April 5, 1999 in, Manila.
635
VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 635

1
On May 18, 1999, the Ronquillo spouses filed a complaint
against Dr. Ilao-Oreta and the St. LukeÊs Medical Center
for breach of professional and service contract and for
damages before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Batangas
City. They prayed for the award of actual damages
including alleged loss of income of Noel while
accompanying his wife to the hospital, moral damages,
exemplary damages, the costs of litigation,
2
attorneyÊs fees,
and other available3
reliefs and remedies.
In her Answer, Dr. Ilao-Oreta gave her side of the case
as follows: She went on a honeymoon to Hawaii and was
scheduled to leave Hawaii at 3:00 p.m. of April 4, 1999 for
Manila. Aware that her trip from Hawaii to Manila would
take about 12 hours, inclusive of a stop-over at the Narita
Airport in Japan, she estimated that she would arrive in
Manila in the early morning of April 5, 1999. She thus
believed in utmost good faith that she would be back in
Manila in time for the scheduled conduct of the
laparoscopic procedure. She failed to consider the time
difference between
4
Hawaii and the Philip-pines, however.
In its Answer, the St. LukeÊs Medical Center contended
that the spouses have no cause of action against it since it
performed the pre-operative procedures without delay, and
any cause of action they have would be against Dr. Ilao-
Oreta. 5
By Decision of March 9, 2001, Branch 84 of the
Batangas RTC, finding that the failure of the doctor to

arrive on time was not intentional, awarded Eva Marie
only actual damages in the total amount of P9,939 and
costs of suit. It found no adequate proof that Noel had been
deprived of any job contract while attending to his wife in
the hospital.
_______________
1 Records, pp. 1-8.

2 Id., at p. 6.
3 Id., at pp. 28-32.
4 Id., at pp. 58-62.
5 Id., at pp. 263-264.
636

On appeal
6
by the spouses, the Court of Appeals, by
Decision 7of April 21, 2006, finding Dr. Ilao-Oreta grossly
negligent, modified the trial courtÊs decision as follows:
„WHEREFORE, the trial CourtÊs decision dated March 9, 2001 is

affirmed, subject to the modification that the amount of actual
damages, for which both defendants-appellees are jointly and
severally liable to plaintiffs-appellants, is increased to P16,069.40.
Furthermore, defendant-appellee Dr. Ilao-Oreta is also held liable
to pay plaintiff-appellants the following:
(a) P50,000.00 as moral damages;

(b) P25,000.00 as exemplary damages; and
(c) P20,000.00 as attorneyÊs fees.
8
SO ORDERED.‰ (Italics supplied)
9
Hence, the present Petition for Review of Dr. Ilao-Oreta
raising the following arguments:
THE COURT A QUO ERRED IN FINDING PETITIONER TO

HAVE ACTED WITH GROSS NEGLIGENCE AND AWARDING
10
MORAL DAMAGES TO RESPONDENTS.
THE COURT A QUO ERRED IN AWARDING EXEMPLARY

11
DAMAGES TO RESPONDENTS.
THE COURT A QUO [ERRED] IN AWARDING ATTORNEYÊS
12
FEES TO RESPONDENTS.
THE COURT A QUO ERRED IN INCREASING THE AWARD
13
OF ACTUAL DAMAGES IN FAVOR OF RESPONDENTS.
_______________
6 Penned by Court of Appeals Associate Justice Fernanda Lampas-

Peralta, with the concurrence of Associate Justices Josefina Guevarra-
Salonga and Sesinando E. Villon. CA Rollo, pp. 202-212.
7 Id., at pp. 208-210.
8 Id., at p. 211.
9 Rollo, pp. 8-23.
10 Id., at p. 11.
11 Id., at p. 18.
12 Ibid.
13 Id., at p. 20.
637
VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 637

„Gross negligence‰ implies a want or absence of or failure

to exercise slight care or diligence, or the entire absence of
care. It evinces a thoughtless disregard of consequences
14
without exerting any effort to avoid them. It is
characterized by want of even slight care, acting or
omitting to act in a situation where there is a duty to act,
not inadvertently but willfully and intentionally with a
conscious indifference to15 consequences in so far as other
persons may be affected.
The records show that before leaving for Hawaii, Dr.
Ilao-Oreta left an admitting order with her secretary for
one of the spouses to pick up, apprised Eva Marie of the
necessary preparations for the procedure, and instructed 16
the hospital staff to perform pre-operative treatments.
These acts of the doctor reflect an earnest intention to
perform the procedure on the day and time scheduled.
The records also show that on realizing that she missed
the scheduled procedure, Dr. Ilao-Oreta, upon arrival in

Manila, immediately sought to rectify the same, thus:
[ATTY SINJIAN] Q: So, can you tell us the reason why

you
missed that operation?
[DR. ILAO-ORETA] A: When I scheduled her for the
surgery,
I looked at my ticket and so I was to leave Hawaii
on
April 4 at around 4:00 oÊclock in the afternoon, so I
was
computing 12 hours of travel including stop-over,
then
probably I would be in Manila early morning of
April 5, then
I have so much time and I can easily do the case at
2:00
oÊclock, you know it skipped my mind the change in
time.
Q: So when you arrived at 10:00 [PM] in Manila, what did
you do?
_______________
14 Phil. Aeolus Automotive United Corporation v. National Labor

Relations Commission, 387 Phil. 250, 263; 331 SCRA 237, 247 (2000).
15 De la Victoria v. Mongaya, 404 Phil. 609, 619-620; 352 SCRA 12, 20
(2001).
16 TSN, April 10, 2000, p. 25; TSN, June 26, 2000, p. 20; Records, pp.
229, 232-253, 262.
638

A: I called immediately the hospital and I talked with the

nurses, I asked about the patient, Mrs. Ronquillo, and
they told me that she has already left at around 7:00.
Q: And after calling the hospital, what happened?
A: I wanted to call the plaintiffs, but I didnÊt have their

number at that time, so in the morning I went to my
office early at 8:00 and looked for her chart, because
her telephone number was written in the chart. So, I
called them right away.
Q: Were you able to contact them?
A: I was able to reach Mr. Ronquillo.
Q: In the course of your conversation, what did you tell
Mr. Ronquillo?
A: I apologized to him, I said I was sorry about the time
that I missed the surgery, and I told him that I can do
the case right that same day without Mrs. Ronquillo
having to undergo another [b]arium enema.
Q: What else did you tell him, if any?
A: I asked him whether I can talk with Mrs. Ronquillo
because I wanted to apologize to her personally.
Q: And what did he say?
A: I could hear on the background that Mrs. Ronquillo
was shouting angrily that she didnÊt want to talk to
me, and that she didnÊt want re-scheduling of the
surgery . . .
ATTY LONTOK: May we move, your Honor, for the
striking
out of the answer, this is purely hearsay.
COURT: Remain on the record.
WITNESS [DR. ILAO-ORETA]: . . . and then Mr.
Ronquillo
told me „IÊm sorry, Dra., we cannot reschedule the
sur- 17
gery.‰ (Italics supplied)
Noel admitted that indeed Dr. Ilao-Oreta 18 called him up

after she arrived in Manila as related by her.
_______________
17 TSN, June 26, 2000, pp. 21-23.

18 TSN, February 7, 2000, pp. 11-12; TSN, April 10, 2000, pp. 40-41.
639
VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 639

The evidence then shows that Dr. Ilao-Oreta, who had

traveled more than twice to the United States where she
obtained a fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and
Infertility was indeed negligent when she scheduled to
perform professional service at 2:00 p.m. on April 5, 1999
without considering the time difference between the
Philippines and Hawaii.
The doctorÊs act did not, however, reflect gross
negligence as defined above. Her argument that
„Although petitioner failed to take into consideration the time

difference between the Philippines and Hawaii, the situation then
did not present any clear and apparent harm or injury that even a
careless person may perceive. Unlike in situations where the
Supreme Court had found gross negligence to exist, petitioner could
not have been conscious of any foreseeable danger that may occur
since she actually believed that she would make it to the operation
that was elective in nature, the only purpose of which was to
determine the real cause of infertility and not to treat and cure a life
threatening disease. Thus, in merely fixing the date of her
appointment with respondent Eva Marie Ronquillo, petitioner was
not in the pursuit or performance of conduct which any ordinary
19
person may deem to probably and naturally result in injury,‰
(Underscoring in original)
thus persuades.
It bears noting that when she was scheduling the date of
her performance of the procedure, Dr. Ilao-Oreta had just 20
gotten married and was preparing for her honeymoon,
and it is of common human knowledge that excitement
attends its preparations. Her negligence could then be
partly attributed to human frailty which rules out its
characterization as gross.
The doctorÊs negligence not being gross, the spouses are
not entitled to recover moral damages.
_______________
19 Rollo, pp. 13-14.
20 TSN, February 7, 2000, pp. 2-5; TSN, April 10, 2000, pp. 17-21;
TSN, June 26, 2000, pp. 16-20; TSN, July 12, 2000, pp. 4-6, 21.
640

Neither are the spouses entitled to recover exemplary

damages in the absence of a showing that Dr. Ilao-Oreta
acted in a wanton,21 fraudulent, reckless, oppressive or
malevolent manner, nor to award of attorneyÊs fees as,
contrary to the finding of the Court of Appeals that the
spouses „were compelled 22
to litigate and incur expenses to
protect their inter-est,‰ the records show that they did not
exert enough efforts to settle the matter before going to
court. Eva Marie herself testified:
ATTY. SINJIAN:
Q: IsnÊt it true that before instituting this present case,
you did not make any demand on Dr. Ilao-Oreta
regarding the claims which you have allegedly
incurred, because of the failed laparoscopic surgery
operation?
A EVA MARIE]: I will tell the truth. Dr. Augusto Reyes
of St. LukeÊs . . .
Q: But did you demand?
A: No, I did not demand because⁄
ATTY. SINJIAN: That will be all, your Honor.
ATTY. LONTOK: The witness is still explaining.
WITNESS: IÊm explaining first. Dr. Augusto Reyes told me
that he will hold the meeting for me and Dr. Oreta
to set-
tle things and reimburse all the money that I spent
from
the hospital, and he even suggested Dr. Oreta to
person-
ally talk to me.
ATTY. SINJIAN:
Q: So it was to Dr. Augusto Reyes that you talked?

A: Yes.
Q: But you did not demand anything or write to Dr. Oreta?
A: No.
_______________
21 CIVIL CODE, Article 2232: „In contracts and quasi-contracts, the

court may award exemplary damages if the defendant acted in a wanton,
fraudulent, reckless, oppressive, or malevolent manner.‰
22 CA Rollo, p. 211.
641
VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 641

Q: Before instituting this case?

23
A: No. (Italics supplied)
Finally, Dr. Ilao-OretaÊs prayer for the reduction of actual

damages is well-taken. Article 2201 of the Civil Code
provides:
„In contracts and quasi-contracts, the damages for which the obligor
who acted in good faith is liable shall be those which are the natural
and probable consequences of the breach of the obligation, and
which the parties have foreseen or could have reasonably foreseen
at the time the obligation was constituted.‰
In fixing the amount of actual damages, the Court of

Appeals and the trial court included expenses which the
spouses incurred prior to April 5, 241999 when the breach of
contract complained of occurred. The Court of Appeals
also included the alleged P300 spent on fuel consumption
from the spousesÊ residence at San Pascual, Batangas to
the St. LukeÊs Medical Center in Quezon City and the
alleged P500 spent on food in the hospital canteen, both of
which25 are unsubstantiated by independent or competent
proof. The only piece of documentary evidence supporting
26
the food and fuel expenses is an unsigned listing. As the
fuel and food expenses are not adequately substantiated,
they cannot be included in the computation of the amount
of actual damages.
27
So Premiere Development Bank v. Court
of Appeals instructs:
_______________
23 TSN, May 16, 2000, pp. 9-10.

24 Rollo, pp. 21-22; CA Rollo, p. 210; Records, pp. 162-166, 171, 198,
205, 264; TSN, December 6, 1999, pp. 18-21; TSN, June 26, 2000, pp. 7-
16.
25 Records, p. 190. Vide Article 2199, Civil Code: „Except as provided
by law or stipulation, one is entitled to an adequate compensation only
for such pecuniary loss suffered by him as he has duly proved. x x x‰
26 Id., at p. 190.
27 G.R. No. 159352, April 14, 2004, 427 SCRA 686.
642

„In the instant case, the actual damages were proven through the
sole testimony of Themistocles Ruguero, the vice president for
administration of Panacor. In his testimony, the witness affirmed
that Panacor incurred losses, specifically, in terms of training and
seminars, leasehold acquisition, procurement of vehicles and office
equipment without, however, adducing receipts to substantiate the
same. The documentary evidence marked as Exhibit „W,‰ which was
an ordinary private writing allegedly itemizing the capital
expenditures and losses from the failed operation of Panacor, was
not testified to by any witness to ascertain the veracity of its
content. Although the lower court fixed the sum of P4,520,000.00 as
the total expenditures incurred by Panacor, it failed to show how
and in what manner the same were substantiated by the claimant
with reasonable certainty. Hence, the claim for actual damages
should be received with extreme caution since it is only based on
bare assertion without support from independent evidence.
PremiereÊs failure to prove actual expenditure consequently
conduces to a failure of its claim. In determining actual damages,
the court cannot rely on mere assertions, speculations, conjectures

or guesswork but must depend on competent proof and on the best
28
evidence obtainable regarding the actual amount of loss.‰ (Italics
supplied)
The list of expenses cannot replace receipts when they

should have been
29
issued as a matter of course in business
transac-tions as in the case of purchase of gasoline and of
food.
The documented claim for hospital and medical expenses
of the spouses is detailed in the Statement of Account
issued by the hospital, the pertinent entries of which read:
xxxx
GROSS HOSPITAL CHARGES 2,416.50
4/5/1999 1699460 DEPOSIT–OFFICIAL
RECEIPT (5,000.00)
(5,000.00)
__________
_______________
28 Id., at pp. 698-699.

29 People v. Matore, 436 Phil. 421, 433; 387 SCRA 603, 614 (2002).
643
VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 643

4/5/1999 SECOND 0284893 UNUSED MED (65.55)

0439534
FLOOR HINOX 500 MG
CAP
SECOND 0284894 UNUSED MED (62.25)
0439893
FLOOR PHENERGAN 2
ML
50MG (127.80)
______
30
BALANCE DUE (2,711.30)
As extrapolated from the above-quoted entries in the

Statement of Account, P2,288.70 (the gross hospital
charges of P2,416.50 less the unused medicine in the 31
amount of P127.80) was debited from the P5,000 deposit
to thus leave a balance of the deposit in the amount of
P2,711.30, which the trial court erroneously denominated
as „confinement fee.‰ The remaining balance of P2,711.30
was the amount refundable to the spouses.
Following
32
Eastern Shipping Lines, Inc. v. Court of Ap-
peals, this Court awards interest on the actual damages
to be paid by Dr. Ilao-Oreta at the rate of 6% per annum
from the time of the filing of the complaint on May 18,
1999, and at 12% per annum from the finality of this
judgment until its satisfaction.
WHEREFORE, the petition is GRANTED. The decision
appealed from is MODIFIED in that
1) The award to respondents-spouses Noel and Eva

Marie Ronquillo of actual damages is REDUCED to
P2,288.70, to bear interest at a rate of 6% per
annum from the time of the filing of the complaint
on May 18, 1999 and, upon finality of this
judgment, at the rate of 12% per annum until
satisfaction; and
2) The award of moral and exemplary damages and
at-torneyÊs fees is DELETED.
_______________
30 Records, p. 175.
31 Id., at p. 176.
32 G.R. No. 97412, July 12, 1994, 234 SCRA 78, 95-97.
644

People vs. Navarro
SO ORDERED.
Quisumbing (Chairperson), Carpio, Tinga and

Velasco, Jr., JJ., concur.
Petition granted, judgment modified.
Notes.·Negligence is a relative or comparative, not an

absolute, term and its application depends upon the
situation of the parties and the degree of care and vigilance
which the circumstances reasonably require. (Adzuara vs.
Court of Appeals, 301 SCRA 657 [1999])
In determining whether or not a bank acted negligently,
the constant test is·„Did the defendant in doing the
negligent act use that reasonable care and caution which
an ordinarily prudent person would have used in the same
situation?‰ (United Coconut Planters Bank vs. Ramos, 415
SCRA 596 [2003])
··o0o··
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED VOLUME 535 06/11/2019, 1)51 AM

VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 633

CONCEPCION ILAO-ORETA, petitioner, vs. SPOUSES

Actions; Negligence; Damages; Words and Phrases; „Gross

Marriage; Honeymoon; Judicial Notice; It is of common human

Same; Same; Same; Evidence; The list of expenses cannot

gasoline and of food.·The only piece of documentary evidence

634 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

PETITION for review on certiorari of a decision of the

The facts are stated in the opinion of the Court.

Respondents, spouses Eva Marie Ronquillo (Eva Marie)

p.m., to be performed by Dr. Ilao-Oreta. At around 7:00

VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 635

Batangas RTC, finding that the failure of the doctor to

1 Records, pp. 1-8.

636 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

„WHEREFORE, the trial CourtÊs decision dated March 9, 2001 is

(a) P50,000.00 as moral damages;

THE COURT A QUO ERRED IN FINDING PETITIONER TO

THE COURT A QUO ERRED IN AWARDING EXEMPLARY

6 Penned by Court of Appeals Associate Justice Fernanda Lampas-

VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 637

„Gross negligence‰ implies a want or absence of or failure

the scheduled procedure, Dr. Ilao-Oreta, upon arrival in

[ATTY SINJIAN] Q: So, can you tell us the reason why

14 Phil. Aeolus Automotive United Corporation v. National Labor

638 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

A: I called immediately the hospital and I talked with the

A: I wanted to call the plaintiffs, but I didnÊt have their

Noel admitted that indeed Dr. Ilao-Oreta 18 called him up

17 TSN, June 26, 2000, pp. 21-23.

VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 639

The evidence then shows that Dr. Ilao-Oreta, who had

„Although petitioner failed to take into consideration the time

19 Rollo, pp. 13-14.

640 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

Neither are the spouses entitled to recover exemplary

Q: So it was to Dr. Augusto Reyes that you talked?

21 CIVIL CODE, Article 2232: „In contracts and quasi-contracts, the

VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 641

Q: Before instituting this case?

Finally, Dr. Ilao-OretaÊs prayer for the reduction of actual

In fixing the amount of actual damages, the Court of

23 TSN, May 16, 2000, pp. 9-10.

642 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

the court cannot rely on mere assertions, speculations, conjectures

The list of expenses cannot replace receipts when they

28 Id., at pp. 698-699.

VOL. 535, OCTOBER 11, 2007 643

4/5/1999 SECOND 0284893 UNUSED MED (65.55)

As extrapolated from the above-quoted entries in the

1) The award to respondents-spouses Noel and Eva

644 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

Quisumbing (Chairperson), Carpio, Tinga and

Petition granted, judgment modified.

Notes.·Negligence is a relative or comparative, not an

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