4 Madarang Et Al v. Spouses Morales
4 Madarang Et Al v. Spouses Morales
4 Madarang Et Al v. Spouses Morales
Facts:
Issue:
Ruling:
No, because under the Rules of Court and case law,the party must file it within 60 days
from notice of the judgment and within six (6) months after the judgment or final order was
entered; otherwise, the petition shall be dismissed outright. The double period required under
Section 3, Rule 38 is jurisdictional and should be strictly complied with.
Here, on January 29, 2010, Madarang et al’s counsel received a copy of the decision,
the period to appeal shall be counted from that date. Thus, the decision became final on
February 13, 2010, which is 15 days after January 29, 2010.
Therefore, Madarang et al had until August 12, 2010, to file a Petition for Relief, which is
six (6) months from February 13, 2010. However, they filed their Petition for Relief on
September 24, 2010, which is beyond six (6) months from finality of judgment.
Lastly, noted further that if the Petition for Relief is filed on the ground of excusable
negligence of counsel, the party must show that their counsel’s negligence could not have
been prevented using ordinary diligence and prudence.
Here, the mere allegation that there is excusable negligence simply because counsel
was 80 years old is a prejudicial slur to senior citizens.