559 Phil. 438
PER CURIAM:
4. One of the cases assigned to Atty. Montemayor was Civil Case No. 17315 filed with the Regional Trial Court of Lingayen, Pangasinan, Branch 68, entitled "Rural Power Corporation vs. PANELCO I." After the trial court rendered a Decision adverse to PANELCO I, it was decided that the case be appealed to the Court of Appeals;In a Resolution dated September 4, 2002, the respondent was required to file his Comment on the administrative charges within ten (10) days from notice. He subsequently filed with this Court a Motion for Extension of Time to File his Comment; however, despite an extension of fifteen (15) days from the expiration of the original period given by the Court, respondent failed to file his Comment.
5. However, the Court of Appeals ordered the Dismissal of the appeal for the failure of Atty. Montemayor to serve and file the required number of copies within the time provided by the Rules of Court. (copy of the Writ of Execution in Civil Case No. 1715 attached as Annex "A");
6. In view of the dismissal of the appeal, the Decision of the trial court became final and executory, and the judgment award in the amount of Two Million One Hundred Seventy Nine Thousand Two Hundred Nine and 18/100 Pesos (P2,179,209.18) was paid by the complainant;
7. Another case assigned to Atty. Montemayor was the case of "Engineering and Construction Corporation of Asia (ECCO-ASIA) vs. PANELCO I," filed with the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City, Branch 83 as Civil Case No. Q-89-4242. Again, the decision was appealed by PANELCO I to the Court of Appeals, through Atty. Montemayor;
8. In a Resolution dated May 31, 2001, the Court of Appeals considered the appeal Abandoned due to the failure of Atty. Montemayor to serve and file the required Appellant's Brief despite the lapse of the two extensions of time granted. A copy of the said Resolution in C.A.-G.R. CV67614 is attached as Annex "B," as well as the Notice of Garnishment (Annex "B-1") and Writ of Execution (Annex "B-2");
9. Thus, the funds of PANELCO I deposited in banks were garnished until the judgment award was paid to the Plaintiff ECCO-ASIA, in the amount of Thirteen Million Eight Hundred Thirty Six Thousand Six Hundred Seventy Six and 25/100 Pesos (P13,836,676.25);
10. Sometime last year, Atty. Montemayor informed the undersigned (complainant) of the judgment of the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City, and that he had filed his appeal;
11. Upon receipt of the Notice of Garnishments on March 11, 2002, I (complainant) confronted Atty. Montemayor on the matter, and he uttered "napabayaan ko itong kaso...ano ang gagawin natin";
12. As a consequence of the negligence of Atty. Montemayor, the complainant was forced to settle with the Plaintiffs without the benefit of an approved time-table, and is presently in a dire financial situation, which has caused difficulty in meeting its monthly power bills with the National Power Corporation (NAPOCOR).[1]
The records also show that respondent Atty. Juan Ayar Montemayor did not even bother to answer the complaint nor present his defense, we are now constrained to impose sanctions on his gross negligence as counsel for complainant which resulted [in] the damage of PANELCO I. Considering further that the charges remain uncontroverted, it is recommended that Atty. Juan Ayar Montemayor be DISBARRED from the practice of law for Violation of the Code of Professional Responsibility.On March 12, 2005, the IBP Board of Governors passed CBD Resolution No. XVI-2005-68 adopting with modification the aforequoted Investigating Commissioner's Report and Recommendation, thus:
RESOLVED to ADOPT and APPROVE, as it is hereby ADOPTED and APPROVED, with modification, the Report and Recommendation of the Investigating Commissioner of the above-titled case, herein made part of this Resolution as Annex "A"; and, finding the recommendation fully supported by the evidence on record and the applicable laws and rules, and considering Respondent's gross negligence, as counsel for complainant which resulted [in] the damage of PANELCO I, Atty. Juan Ayar Montemayor is hereby SUSPENDED INDEFINITELY from the practice of law.[4]The only issue to be resolved in the instant case is whether or not respondent committed gross negligence or misconduct in mishandling complainant's cases on appeal, which eventually led to their dismissal, to the prejudice of the complainant.
CANON 12 - A LAWYER SHALL EXERT EVERY EFFORT AND CONSIDER IT HIS DUTY TO ASSIST IN THE SPEEDY AND EFFICIENT ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE.Manifestly, respondent has fallen short of the competence and diligence required of every member of the Bar in relation to his client. As counsel for complainant, respondent had the duty to present every remedy or defense authorized by law to protect his client. When he undertook his client's cause, he made a covenant that he will exert all efforts for its prosecution until its final conclusion. He should undertake the task with dedication and care, and if he should do no less, then he is not true to his lawyer's oath.[5]
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Rule 12.03 - A lawyer shall not, after obtaining extensions of time to file pleadings, memorandaor briefs, let the periodlapse without submitting the same or offering an explanation for his failure to do so.
CANON 17 -- A LAWYER OWES FIDELITY TO THE CAUSE OF HIS CLIENT AND HE SHALL BE MINDFUL OF THE TRUST AND CONFIDENCE REPOSED IN HIM.
CANON 18 - A LAWYER SHALL SERVE HIS CLIENT WITH COMPETENCE AND DILIGENCE.
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Rule 18.03 - A lawyer shall not neglect a legal matter entrusted to him and his negligence in connection therewith shall render him liable.
x x x x
CANON 19 - A LAWYER SHALL REPRESENT HIS CLIENT WITH ZEAL WITHIN THE BOUNDS OF THE LAW.
Once he agrees to take up the cause of a client, the lawyer owes fidelity to such cause and must always be mindful of the trust and confidence reposed in him. He must serve the client with competence and diligence, and champion the latter's cause with wholehearted fidelity, care, and devotion. Elsewise stated, he owes entire devotion to the interest of the client, warm zeal in the maintenance and defense of his client's rights, and the exertion of his utmost learning and ability to the end that nothing be taken or withheld from his client, save by the rules of law, legally applied. This simply means that his client is entitled to the benefit of any and every remedy and defense that is authorized by the law of the land he may expect his lawyer to assert every such remedy or defense. If much is demanded from an attorney, it is because the entrusted privilege to practice law carries with it the correlative duties not only to the client but also to the court, to the bar, and to the public. A lawyer who performs his duty with diligence and candor not only protects the interest of his client; he also serves the ends of justice, does honor to the bar, and helps maintain the respect of the community to the legal profession.[6]In Redentor S. Jardin v. Atty. Deogracias Villar, Jr.,[7] the Court also held that:
[T]he trust and confidence necessarily reposed by clients requires in the attorney a high standard and appreciation of his duty to his clients, his profession, the courts and the public. Every case a lawyer accepts deserves his full attention, diligence, skill and competence, regardless of its importance and whether he accepts it for a fee or free. Certainly, a member of the Bar who is worth his title cannot afford to practice the profession in a lackadaisical fashion. A lawyer's lethargy from the perspective of the Canons is both unprofessional and unethical.Thus, for inexcusable neglect of his professional obligations to the prejudice of his client's interests, the IBP Investigating Commissioner recommended the disbarment of respondent from the practice of law. The IBP Board of Governors, however, recommended that Atty. Juan Ayar Montemayor be suspended indefinitely from the practice of law.