Case ID: pr_7/html/0564-01.html
Source: Caselaw Access Project
Author: {"author": "Mr. Chief Justice QuiñoNes,", "license": "Public Domain", "url": "https://static.case.law/"}
Date Created: 2024-08-24T03:29:51.129683

The Society of the Servants of Mary v. The Liquidating Commission of the Former Diputación Provincial.
    Appeal from the District Court of San Juan.
    No. 1.
    Decided December 22, 1904.
    Obligations on the Dormer Diputación Provincial. — The people of Porto Rico having assumed all of the pending obligations of the former Diputación Provincial, is bound to comply with the provisions of the contracts executed by the said Diputación, and which, being valid, have the force of law between the contracting parties.
    Costs. — In "contentious-administrative” actions costs must be taxed against the party who carries on a litigation with notorious persistence (notoria temeri-
      
      dad), but if this cannot be said to have been the case with respect to either of the parties, no special imposition of costs should be made.
    STATEMENT OP THE CASE.
    This is a “contentious administrative” action prosecuted in the former District Court of San Juan by the Society of the Servants of Mary against the Liquidating Commission of the former Diputación Provincial, which by its decision refused payment to the said society of a subsidy or grant, for the months of October and November, 1898, for services rendered thereby in the “Hospital de la Concepción” of this city. The case is pending before us on an appeal taken by the Attorney General of Porto Eico from a judgment ren-by the said district court, which reads as follows:
    “In the city of San Juan, Porto Rico, on January 28, 1904, the oral and public hearing was had in this ‘contentions administrative’ proceeding, prosecuted by the Mother Superior of the Society of the Servants of Mary, as plaintiff, represented by Attorney Antonio Alvarez Nava y Lobo, against the Liquidating Commission of the former Diputación Provincial, defendant, represented by the Attorney General.
    “Antonio Alvarez Nava, in the name of the Society of the Servants of Mary, on November 3, 1901, took a ‘contentious administrative’ appeal from the decision rendered in the matter of a claim against the Diputación Provincial, attaching a copy of the said decision stating that the Governor of Porto Rico had forwarded the said claim to the District Court of San Juan for the purposes of paragraph 6 of General Order No. 84, series of 1900., and the court, having deemed the said appeal to have been taken, delivered to him the documents above mentioned, which were forwarded to this court.
    “Among the aforesaid documents there appears the claim of the Mother Superior of the aforesaid Society of the Servants of Mary, amounting to 83.33 pesos provincial money, which was the amount of the subsidy due the ‘ Hospital de la Concepción, ’ and of which the said society is in charge, for the months of October and November, 3898; and the decision of the. Liquidating Commission of the Diputación Provincial not being unanimous, each member submitted his individual opinion, and the documents relative to the claim, together with their separate opinions and the certificate with the signatures of the other commissioners were forwarded in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 4 of General Order No. 84, 1900, calling the attention of the Governor to paragraph 6 of the said General Order, and the same were referred to this court for the reasons aforesaid.
    “The appellant filed a complaint praying that the Treasurer be required to pay to the plaintiff $50, the amount of the subsidy, for October and November, 1898, together with legal interest and costs, and setting forth as facts that the Society of the Servants of Mary was in charge of the ‘Hospital de la Concepción/ subsidized by the Diputación Provincial in the sum of 500 pesos provincial money, according to the budget for 1897-1898, section 2, chapter 7 and articles 2 and 4; that the said amount was payable in monthly installments, the said institution having failed to pay 83.33 pesos, provincial money, for the months of October and November of the said year, the said amount being equivalent to $50; that a demand had been made upon the said commission at the proper time for the payment of the said amount, which demand was denied, the said commission having given notice of its decision, as stated in the first finding of fact. Articles 1 and 7 of the Law of ‘Contentious Administrative’ matters, paragraph 6, of General Order No. 84, 1900, and article 1091 of the Civil Code were cited as legal authority.
    “The Attorney General prays the court to dismiss the case, and in case no other complaint is filed by the plaintiff, that judgment be rendered in favor of the Treasurer of Porto Rico.- He sets up as facts that it is true that the claim was made, which is referred to in the foregoing findings of fact, amounting to $50 American gold, representing two monthly payments upon the annual credit from the Dipu-tación Provincial, which voted the said sum to the ‘Hospital de la Concepción/ under its charge; that the months referred to were the last months preceding the abolition of the Diputación Provincial and the claim was denied because there was not sufficient reason to believe that the said society had rendered the service during the said months to the hospital referred to, or to any other institution under the charge of the Diputación. As authority General Order No. 84 was cited, and also the fact that the claim was not made in such a manner as clearly to present the grounds of fact and of law upon which the same was based, it not being alleged that the said society rendered the service during the months of October and November, 1898, to the hospital. >
    “The stage of the proceedings for the introduction of evidence having been reached, the defendant did not introduce any evidence whatever^ and the plaintiff only introduced two witnesses, who testified that it is true that the Society of the Servants of Mary was in charge of the ‘Hospital de la Concepción’ and rendered service therein during the months of October and November, 1898.
    ‘ ‘ The term within which to introduce the evidence having expired, and an extract having been made and presented to the parties, no addition or amendment was asked to be made within the period fixed therefor, and the record was brought to the hearing with citation for judgment, the 26th of the present month being fixed, therefor. The counsel for the parties made such oral argument as they deemed proper.
    “The legal formalities have been complied with in this proceeding. Presiding Judge Juan Morera Martínez prepared the opinion.
    “It being set up in the complaint that the Society of Servants of Mary was in charge of the ‘ Hospital de la Concepción, ’ it is evident that the said society rendered service therein, as has been shown by the evidence, and this fact was further proved by the allegations of the plaintiff in the fourth legal ground.
    “The existence of the subsidy voted by the Diputación Provincial not having been denied, it being stated by the parties that the months to which the claim referred were the two months last preceding the abolition of the said Diputación, the claim is a just one and should be allowed.
    “In view of the provisions of General Order No. 84 of 1900, above cited, we adjudge that we should sustain and do sustain the ‘contentious-administrative’ complaint filed by the Society of the Servants of Mary; and it is hereby accordingly ordered that the Treasurer, as provided by paragraphs 5 and 6 of General Order No. 84, pay 'to the said society the sum of $50 claimed, with costs, and when this judgment becomes final a certified copy will be forwarded through the Governor of Porto Rico of the documents found at folios 3 and 10, which will be taken out for the purposes provided for by the said article.
    “Thus by this our decision finally adjudging do we pronounce, order and sign. Amendments. Communication referred to. Of. Show.. Interlineations. In. Certified. Separate. And those done in typewriting. They are saved. Juan Morera Martínez, Angel Gar-cía, José Tous Soto. Publication. The foregoing judgment was read and published by Presiding Judge Juan Morera Martínez, who prepared the judgment in this case in open court this 28th day of January, 1904. I certify: Luís Méndez Yaz. Tbis copy agrees with, the original, to which I refer, and in order to attach the same to the record herein, I issue this copy in San Juan, Porto Rico, on January 28, 1904. Luís Méndez Yaz. O. K. The presiding judge, Juan Morera Martínez. ’'
    From this judgment an appeal was taken by the Attorney General representing the People of Porto Eico which appeal was allowed, and the record having been sent up to this court, and the parties having been cited, they appeared and the proper procedure has been followed in the conduct of the appeal. A day was set for the hearing, which was duly had, the fiscal of this court being present and representing the Attorney General, and Attorney Antonio Alvarez Nava, counsel for the Society of the Servants of Mary, who respectively made such allegations as they deemed proper in support of their rights.
    
      Mr. Bossy, Fiscal, for appellant..
    
      Mr. Antonio Alvarez Nava, for respondent.
   Mr. Chief Justice QuiñoNes,

after stating the foregoing facts, delivered the opinion of the court.

We accept the findings of fact contained in the judgment appealed from.

It not having been denied by counsel for the defendant that the subsidy was granted by the former Diputación Provincial in favor of the “Hospital de la Concepción” of this city, under the direction of the Society of the Servants of Mary, and it appearing from the evidence taken in those proceedings that the said society really did render the services in said charitable institution during the months of October and November of the year 1898, The People of Porto Eico, having assumed the pending obligations of the former Diputación Provincial, is bound to pay to the Society of the Servants of Mary the two monthly installments of the subsidy which the said former Diputación Provincial failed to pay in due time in compliance with the contract entered into by the said society and the Diputación Provincial, which contract has the force of law between the contracting parties.

In accordance with Article 63 of the “Contentions Administrative” Law of September 13, 1888, costs should be taxed against the party who carries on a litigation with notorious persistence (notoria temeridad), under which provision The People of Porto Eico does not come in this case, because it has confined itself to the objection that there is.insufficient evidence to show that the Society of the Servants of Mary rendered the service in the “Hospital de la Concepción” during the two months to which reference is made in the complaint.

In view of the provisions of Article 1091 of the old Civil Code which are applicable to the case at bar, General Order No. 84, of April 18,1900, and article cited of the “Contentious Administrative” Law of September 13, 1888, we adjudge that we should affirm, and do affirm, the judgment appealed from and rendered on January 28, last, by the former District Court of San Juan, without special imposition of costs in either instance.

Affirmed.

Justices Hernández, Figueras, and Wolf concurred.

Mr. Justice MacLeary took no part in the decision of this case.