Source: https://www.scribd.com/document/247515328/Sanders-v-Veridiano
Timestamp: 2019-04-23 14:59:55+00:00

Document:
Zambales, Olongapo City, ANTHONY M. ROSSI and RALPH L. WYERS, respondents.
need not detain us any longer than it already has.
where others not involved in the case could hear."
consequently. which was filed by the petitioner's new lawyers. This petition for certiorari. the allegation in the complaint was that the defendants had acted maliciously and in bad faith. Moore. Naval Station in Subic Bay was sent to the Chief of Naval Personnel explaining the change of the private respondent's employment status and requesting concurrence therewith. petitioner Moreau was declared in a default by the trial court in its order dated August 9. the motion was denied in an order dated March 8. By the same token. were denied by the respondent court on September 7. We return now to the basic question of whether the petitioners were acting officially or only in their private capacities when they did the acts for which the private respondents have sued them for damages. On the basis of these antecedent facts. before the start of the grievance hearings. It is stressed at the outset that the mere allegation that a government functionary is being sued in his personal capacity will not automatically remove him from the protection of the law of public officers and. the private respondent filed in the Court of First Instance of Olongapo City for damages against the herein petitioners on November 8. The motion to lift the default order on the ground that Moreau's failure to appear at the pre-trial conference was the result of some misunderstanding. 1977. . 8 The plaintiffs claimed that the letters contained libelous imputations that had exposed them to ridicule and caused them mental anguish and that the prejudgment of the grievance proceedings was an invasion of their personal and proprietary rights.B. The private respondents made it clear that the petitioners were being sued in their private or personal capacity.00 bond by the plaintiffs. the mere invocation of official character will not suffice to insulate him from suability and liability for an act imputed to him as a personal tort committed without or in excess of his authority. 9on the main ground that the petitioners had not presented any evidence that their acts were official in nature and not personal torts. on the contention that the above-narrated acts of the respondent court are tainted with grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack of jurisdiction. the petitioners argued that the acts complained of were performed by them in the discharge of their official duties and that. as in the present case. the doctrine of state immunity. 1977. moreover. if appropriate. and the motion for reconsideration of the denial of the motion to dismiss. These well-settled principles are applicable not only to the officers of the local state but also where the person sued in its courts pertains to the government of a foreign state. 1975. in a motion to dismiss filed under a special appearance. The letter did not carry his signature but was signed by W. prohibition and preliminary injunction was thereafter filed before this Court. Subsequently.S. against the properties of petitioner Moreau. After extensive written arguments between the parties. who allegedly was then about to leave the Philippines. 1977. Jr. "by direction. to make matters worse for the defendants. conditioned upon the filing of a P10.000.On November 7." presumably of Moreau. The same order issued a writ of preliminary attachment. 1976. the court had no jurisdiction over them under the doctrine of state immunity. a-letter (Annex "B" of the complaint) purportedly corning from petitioner Moreau as the commanding general of the U. However.
the other petitioner. Ruiz." where we sustained the order of the lower court granting a where we motion to dismiss a complaint against certain officers of the U. arguing that no such evidence was needed to substantiate their claim of jurisdictional immunity. not to say unfair to the defendant who is subjected to unnecessary and avoidable inconvenience. and certainly not personal. Disregarding for the nonce the question of its timeliness. The petitioners have objected. Almeda Lopez. for more information regarding the case of the private respondents. decided to proceed to trial to determine inter alia their precise character on the strength of the evidence to be submitted by the parties. Tizon. it is not necessary for the court to require them to belabor the point at a trial still to be conducted. The United States had also not waived its immunity from suit.S. performed by Moreau as the immediate superior of Sanders and directly answerable to Naval Personnel in matters involving the special services department of NAVSTA In fact. undoubtedly had supervision over its personnel. In these and several other cases 13 the Court found it redundant to prolong the other case proceedings after it had become clear that the suit could not prosper because the acts complained of were covered by the doctrine of state immunity. in United States of America v. armed forces also shown to be acting officially in the name of the American government. apparently finding that the complained acts were prima facie personal and tortious. . Thus. Only three years ago. 10 we held that a motion to dismiss a complaint against the commanding general of the Olongapo Naval Base should not have been denied because it had been sufficiently shown that the act for which he was being sued was done in his official capacity on behalf of the American government. There was nothing personal or private about it. In past cases. 1977. including the re-designation of the private respondents. including the private respondents.what he is claimed to have done was write the Chief of Naval Personnel for concurrence with the conversion of the private respondents' type of employment even before the grievance proceedings had even commenced. dismissal and other related matters. the letter dealt with the financial and budgetary problems of the department and contained recommendations for their solution.The respondent judge. as director of the special services department of NAVSTA. Pending resolution of this question. this Court has held that where the character of the act complained of can be determined from the pleadings exchanged between the parties before the trial. he still was within his rights in reacting to the hearing officer's criticism—in effect a direct attack against him—that Special Services was practicing "an autocratic form of supervision. Such a proceeding would be superfluous. Sanders. even in the absence of such request. discipline. 14 Moreover. this act is clearly official in nature. it appearing that the act complained of was governmental rather than proprietary. 12 we set aside the denial by the lower court of a motion to dismiss a complaint for damages filed against the United States and several of its officials. It was the reverse situation in Syquia v." As for Moreau. It is abundantly clear in the present case that the acts for which the petitioners are being called to account were performed by them in the discharge of their official duties. in Baer v. It is not disputed that the letter he had written was in fact a reply to a request from his superior. and had a hand in their employment. that has since then suspended the proceedings in this case in the courta quo. The United States had not given its consent to be sued. work assignments. we issued a temporary restraining order on September 26.
for example. Fernando. There should be no question by now that such complaint cannot prosper unless the government sought to be held ultimately liable has given its consent to' be sued. It is clear that a public officer may be sued as such to compel him to do an act required by law. say. we have to conclude that the petitioners were. is that "there can be no legal right against the authority which makes the law on which the right depends. 21 or. as the doctrine of state immunity "cannot be used as an instrument for perpetrating an injustice. and within the scope of their authority. 16 In the case of foreign states. the appropriation of the necessary amount to cover the damages awarded. The case at bar. The government of the United States has not given its consent to be sued for the official acts of . as it was not responsible for the defendant's unauthorized act. 23 where the Court held that a bureau director could be sued for damages on a personal tort committed by him when he acted without or in excess of authority in forcibly taking private property without paying just compensation therefor although he did convert it into a public irrigation canal. to repeat. where we reiterate from our previous charters that the Philippines "adopts the generally accepted principles of international law as part of the law of the land. 18or to restrain a Cabinet member. as Holmes put it." 17 Our adherence to this precept is formally expressed in Article II. So we have ruled not only in Baer but in many other decisions where we upheld the doctrine of state immunity as applicable not only to our own government but also to foreign states sought to be subjected to the jurisdiction of our courts. nor could it be validly impleaded as a party defendant. We have also held that where the government itself has violated its own laws. the rule is derived from the principle of the sovereign equality of states which wisely admonishes that par in parem non habet imperium and that a contrary attitude would "unduly vex the peace of nations. comes under the rule and not under any of the recognized exceptions. and not the petitioners personally. legally speaking. Assuming that the trial can proceed and it is proved that the claimants have a right to the payment of damages. To be sure. in general. to secure a judgment that the officer impleaded may satisfy by himself without the government itself having to do a positive act to assist him. viz. This will require that government to perform an affirmative act to satisfy the judgment. as where. As they have acted on behalf of that government.Given the official character of the above-described letters. from enforcing a law claimed to be unconstitutional. there are a number of well-recognized exceptions. All this is not to say that in no case may a public officer be sued as such without the previous consent of the state. such award will have to be satisfied not by the petitioners in their personal capacities but by the United States government as their principal." 22 This case must also be distinguished from such decisions as Festejo v. 20 or the commissioner of internal revenue to refund tax over-payments from a fund already available for the purpose. the aggrieved party may directly implead the government even without first filing his claim with the Commission on Audit as normally required. being sued as officers of the United States government. of our Constitution. It was not necessary to secure the previous consent of the state. it is that government. Section 2. 19 or to compel the national treasurer to pay damages from an already appropriated assurance fund. thus making the action a suit against that government without its consent. that is responsible for their acts. 15 The practical justification for the doctrine. a register of deeds refuses to record a deed of sale.
the United States government has not decided to give its consent to be sued in our courts. Our Temporary restraining order of September 26. A final consideration is that since the questioned acts were done in the Olongapo Naval Base by the petitioners in the performance of their official duties and the private respondents are themselves American citizens. It seems the private respondents have overstated their case. it would seem only proper for the courts of this country to refrain from taking cognizance of this matter and to treat it as coming under the internal administration of the said base. as if they were arguing before a court of the United States. As it is the American government itself that will have to perform the affirmative act of appropriating the amount that may be adjudged for the private respondents. to. they can at best be invoked only to support our own jurisprudence. and not only from the United States but also from Spain and other countries from which we have derived some if not most of our own laws. We appreciate the assistance foreign decisions offer us.1977. particularly since we became independent in 1946. WHEREFORE. The private respondents must. 24 This. and September 7. the acts of the petitioners are protected by the presumption of good faith. is made PERMANENT. the letters come under the concept of privileged communications and are not punishable. and always with our own concept of law and justice. even under the law of public officers. SO ORDERED. 2077-O. is well settled . 1977. But we should not place undue and fawning reliance upon them and regard them as indispensable mental crutches without which we cannot come to our own decisions through the employment of our own endowments We live in a different ambience and must decide our own problems in the light of our own interests and needs. The Court finds that. the petition is GRANTED. Even assuming that our own laws are applicable. The Court is bemused by such attitude. The challenged orders dated March 8. The petitioners' counsel have submitted a memorandum replete with citations of American cases.the petitioners. While these decisions do have persuasive effect upon us.1977. which has not been overturned by the private respondents. are SET ASIDE. 25 Furthermore. . if they are still sominded. No costs. 26 let alone the fact that the resented remarks are not defamatory by our standards.. Even mistakes concededly committed by such public officers are not actionable as long as it is not shown that they were motivated by malice or gross negligence amounting to bad faith. August 9. applying now our own penal laws. which we have developed and enriched on the basis of our own persuasions as a people. of which they are all citizens and under whose jurisdiction the alleged offenses were committed.1977. and of our qualities and even idiosyncrasies as a people. pursue their claim against the petitioners in accordance with the laws of the United States. The respondent court is directed to DISMISS Civil Case No. who cannot satisfy any judgment that may be rendered against them. which therefore has not acquired the competence to act on the said claim. the complaint must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.
17 De Haber v. Grino-Aquiño and Medialdea. 87 Phil.26-34. Ruiz. Lim v. 5 Id. 17 QB 171. 27. 205 U. Nelson. Polybank. 7 Id. 9 Id.supra. Marvel Building Corp. Brownell. Philippine War Damage Commission. 27. 85 Phil. 91. Almeda Lopez.Narvasa. Footnotes 1 Rollo.. Concur. 11 84 Phil. Turner. 5. 4 Id. et al. Nelson. Johnson v. Philippine Alien Property Administration v. pp. pp... 16 Kawanakoa v. 8 Id. 12 136 SCRA 487.. 461. 4.90-94. v. pp. Lim v. Philippine War Damage Commission. McGranery. Parreño v.S. p. 344. 6 Id. . Castelo.. 319. 328. 91. 312. JJ. p. 10 57 SCRA 1. supra. v. 89 Phil. Queen of Portugal. 14 Rollo. pp. 791. supra. pp. 107 Phil. McGranery. supra. Parreño v. pp. 2. 35-40. 13 Lim v... 568. Register of Deeds. 349. Gancayco. 807all cited in Baer case.. 92 Phil. 18 Krivenko v. 15 Syquia v. 28. supra. Marvel Building Corp. 94 Phil. 5. 79 Phil. 26. 3 Id. 91. United States of America v. 2 Ibid.
. No. 12 SCRA 843. 853. L-42805. Godinez. Inc.. 1556. Revised Penal Code.S. 731. reiterating Ministerio v. 151 SCRA 472. 1. 124 SCRA 867. Bonifacio. 25 Cabungcal. Kintanar. Bustos. Court of First Instance of Cebu. v.19 Javellana v..G. 101 Phil. 24 Philippine Racing Club. Mindanao Realty Corp. 354. 20 Treasurer of the Philippines v. 43 SCRA 360. 6 SCRA 814. Commissioner of Internal Revenue. v.R. v. 36 Phil. 22 Amigable v. 1155. 2' 26 Art. et al. 37 Phil. 109 Phil. Executive Secretary. Pascual. Santos. v. par. et al. 11 SCRA 584.S. G. 40 SCRA 464. see also U. August 31. v. and Deano v. U. 50 SCRA 30: Ichong v. Cuenca. cited in Mabutol v. Court of Appeals. et al. Cordova. 1987. 21 National Development Company v. 23 50 O. Hernandez. 233.. et al.

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