364 Phil. 602
MENDOZA, J.:
This is in compliance with the memorandum with regards to the letter complaint of Mr. Daniel Cruz concerning his allegation as to the loss of the records of Civil Case No. 4186 of which he is the plaintiff.Submitted to the Court together with the comment was the following certification[2] of Branch Clerk Cristobal V. Fernandez of the RTC, Branch 38, Lingayen, Pangasinan stating:
It is true that when he came to the office to file his Notice of Appeal said records could not be found. But three (3) days after exerting effort to locate said records, it was found together with other records supposed to be heard on said date. Said records was transmitted to the RTC for the purpose of appeal as evidenced by a Certification issued by the Branch Clerk of Court Atty. Cristobal V. Fernandez of RTC Branch 38 of Lingayen, Pangasinan, hereto attached.
IN VIEW OF THIE FOREGOING, we respectfully pray that the complaint against us be dismissed with the firm resolve that we shall exert best efforts to avoid this oversight in the future.
EVALUATION: Chapter II of the Manual for Clerks of Court provides the general functions and duties of Clerks of Court, one of which is the safekeeping of court records, to wit:The Court finds the report of the Court Administrator to be well taken. As officers of the Court, respondents are expected to discharge their duty of safekeeping court records with diligence, efficiency and professionalism.3. Duties.-Similarly, Section 7, Rule 136 of the Rules of Court imposes same responsibility upon the clerks of court.
a. Safekeeping of Property. - The Clerks of Court shall safety keep all records, papers, files, exhibits and public property, committed to their charge, including the library of the Court, and the seals and furniture belonging to their office.
In addition, the clerk of court of a single sala court like MTC Lingayen, Pangasinan serves as the administrative officer of the court, subject to the control and supervision of the presiding judge and at the same time she has the control and supervision over all court records, exhibits, documents, properties and supplies(Section B, Chapter- Manual for Clerks of Court).
The case record was not lost but we would like to stress the importance of diligence and efficiency in the discharge of one's functions. In the instant administrative case, the records of Civil Case No. 4186 cannot be located, not until after three (3) days from the filing of the notice of appeal because they were inadvertently forwarded to the RTC with other records. This fact reflects an inefficient and disorderly system of keeping case records. There is much to be desired in the manner the Clerk of Court keeps records in her custody. The performance of the duties mandated by law was not properly observed.
The respondent staff assistant, who has the duty to check and review exhibits and other documents to be attached to records on appeal and to discharge such other duties as may be assigned by the presiding judge or the clerk of court (Chapter II, Section B, Manual for Clerks of Court) was himself remiss in the performance of his functions. Considering that he has the task to attach pleadings filed by parties to the records of the case, there is no justification for him not to locate said record.
RECOMMENDATION: Respectfully submitted for the consideration of the Honorable Court with the recommendation that respondents Carmen Tantay, Clerk of Court and Rodolfo Vinluan II, Staff Assistant of MTC Lingayen, Pangasinan be REPRIMANDED with stern warning that a repetition of the same will be dealt with more severely.