479 Phil. 819
AUSTRIA-MARTINEZ, J.:
WHEREFORE, and based on the foregoing considerations, finding the motion of the plaintiff to be meritorious, the same is hereby GRANTED. Defendants are hereby ordered to remit to the plaintiff PESALA the total undeducted amount of P44,488,716.41 which corresponds to pay periods from September 1997 to February 15, 1998, and to cause the deductions in full in the succeeding pay periods in accordance with the deduction advice of the plaintiff.[2]PESALA moved for the issuance of a writ of execution to collect the said amount from PAL which was denied by the trial court on the ground that the order sought to be executed was merely an interlocutory order and not yet final and executory. Subsequently, on December 4, 1998, the trial court issued an Order stating:
At today’s hearing, Atty. Emmanuel Peña, defendants’ counsel, and defendant Atty. Jose Blanco assured the Court that: 1) PAL will regularly remit to PESALA the full amount per pay period that is due to the latter; and (2) PAL will likewise pay PESALA the balance on the previously undeducted amount of P44,488,716.41 by January 1999 (details on the payment were manifested by Atty. Blanco in open Court). [3]The Order, dated March 11, 1998, requiring PAL to remit the amount of P44,488,716.41 to PESALA, elevated by PAL to the Court of Appeals through a petition for certiorari,[4] was denied. Entry of judgment was made on May 14, 1999.
….Make effective the above-stated Orders of this Honorable Court and that you cause Philippine Airlines, Inc., Jose C. Blanco, and Avelino Zapanta as representatives of PAL to implement/enforce the Orders dated March 11, 1998 and December 4, 1998 particularly for said defendants to immediately remit to the plaintiff PESALA the total amount of P44,488,716.41 which corresponds to pay period from September 1997 to February 15, 1998.[6]On December 11, 2002, respondent sheriff served the writ of execution on PAL through its Legal Department.[7] On the same day, respondent sheriff served notices of garnishment[8] on PAL’s depository banks, to wit: Allied Banking Corporation, Chase Manhattan Bank, China Banking Corporation, Equitable-PCI Bank, and Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation.
As of to date you have not delivered the garnished money of Php44,488,176.41 despite the two (2) Orders of Delivery of Money dated December 16 and 27, 2002 served upon you by the undersigned. Since you have failed/refused to deliver the same within ten (10) days limit as prescribed by the Rules of Court, the undersigned will not lift the garnishment to the other depository banks of the defendants. Final demand is being requested for your compliance. Immediate lifting of garnishment on the other banks will be made after delivery of the garnished money. Your disobedience in the delivery of the money per writ of execution and garnishment is contemptuous of the Orders of the Court.[13]In his complaint, Ceniza claims that respondent did not furnish them with copies of the order granting PESALA’s motion for execution pending appeal and the writ of execution in violation of Section 2, Rule 13 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure which provides that if any party appeared by counsel, service shall be made upon his counsel. He avers that the sheriff’s act of ordering the Allied and the Chase Manhattan Banks to deliver the money would mean a total amount of P88,977,432.82, which is in excess of the amount ordered by the writ to be collected from PAL; that the sheriff’s act of unusual and excessive haste in collecting the amounts in excess of P44,488,716.41 is proof of his corrupt motive in the execution of the appealed decision and his malicious intent to cause material damage and prejudice to PAL; that his refusal to lift the garnishment of PAL’s deposit in excess of P44,488,716.41 shows his malicious intent to give PESALA unwarranted benefits, advantage, and preference in violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
Sec. 2 Filing and service, defined – Filing is the act of presenting the pleading or other paper to the clerk of court.While it is true that the Order dated December 10, 2002 and the writ of execution dated December 11, 2002 were served on PAL’s legal department and not to counsel, the latter, however, obtained from the court a copy of the same on December 12, 2002. And on the basis of said copy, counsel was able to file motions to reconsider the order granting execution pending appeal, to quash the writ of execution, and to lift notices of garnishment issued by the respondent.[14] The filing of such motions indicate that counsel was already informed of the court orders, and the fact that he had obtained copies of the orders serve as a substantial compliance with the requirement of the notice of orders. In the case of City of Laoag vs. Public Service Commission,[15] where counsel for the petitioner actually obtained a copy of the decision of the Commission from its Secretary, and on the basis of said copy, he was able to prepare the motion for reconsideration. The Court ruled that the copy of the decision obtained by counsel serves as a substantial compliance with the requirement of notice of judgment.
Service is the act of providing a party with a copy of the pleading or paper concerned. If any party has appeared by counsel, service upon him shall be made upon his counsel or one of them, unless service upon the party himself is ordered by the court. Where one counsel appears for several parties, he shall only be entitled to one copy of any paper served upon him by the opposite side.
Complainant contends that by garnishing the bank deposits of PAL in all its depository banks, respondent caused material damage and injury in its operation. We, however, are not convinced that respondent should be faulted for the damage or injury suffered by PAL. Records show that respondent issued Notices of Garnishment to the following banks, all dated December 11, 2002:We agree with OCA that there is no substantial evidence to warrant a finding of a violation of R.A. No. 3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act) by the respondent.At the time when respondent levied upon the bank deposits of PAL with the above-listed banks, he had no personal knowledge whether there was a sufficient amount of deposit in any or all of the said banks which could satisfy the full amount of the judgment debt. When the Senior Manager of Allied banking Corporation informed respondent, thru a letter dated 12 December 2002, that PAL had an account with them which was sufficient to cover the amount stated in the notice of garnishment, respondent issued an “Order of Delivery of Money” to Allied Bank dated December 16, 2002, demanding from the said bank the payment and/or delivery of the amount stated in the garnishment (Annex “5” of Comment). As the first demand was ignored by Allied Bank, respondent issued another Order (Final Order of Delivery of Money) dated December 27, 2002, containing the same subject but to no avail. With the second demand having the same fate as the first, respondent wrote a letter addressed to the President of Allied Bank dated January 14, 2003, demanding payment from the said bank with a warning that the garnishment issued to the other banks will not be lifted until it obliges.
- Allied Banking Corporation;
- Chase Manhattan Bank;
- China Banking Corporation;
- Equitable-PCI Bank; and
- Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation.
The continued inaction on the part of Allied Bank unreasonably delayed the full implementation of the subject writ. Despite several demands for payment by herein respondent, the bank failed and refused to heed said demand for reason(s) only known to it. Under Rule 39, Section 9 (c) of the Revised Rules of Civil Procedure, the garnishee is obligated to deliver directly to the judgment oblige the garnished amount in cash or in certified bank check issued in the name of the judgment oblige within ten (10) working days from service of notice on said garnishee requiring such delivery. Clearly then, should the Allied Bank only comply with what had been ordered of it to perform, the garnishment of PAL’s account in the other banks would have been lifted immediately, thus, avoiding the damage or injury claimed to be suffered by PAL. Respondent herein had reason to suspect that PAL could be behind the continued inaction of Allied Bank.[16]
SEC. 9. Execution of judgments for money, how enforced – (a) immediate payment on demand – The officer shall enforce an execution of a judgment for money by demanding from the judgment obligor the immediate payment of the full amount stated in the writ of execution and all lawful fees. . . .Based on the foregoing, the sheriff is required to first make a demand of the obligor the immediate payment of the full amount stated in the writ of execution before a levy can be made. In the instant case, respondent had shown that he caused the service of the writ of execution pending appeal upon PAL thru its legal department on December 11, 2002 at 3:25 p.m. Records will show that while PAL received the copy of the writ on December 11, 2002, its depository banks received copies of the writ as well as notices of garnishment on the same day at an earlier time than PAL received the writ of execution as shown by the stamped receipt[17] thereon, thus, China Bank at 2:32 p.m., JPMorgan Chase Bank at 2:48 p.m., Hongkong and Shanghai Bank at 2:54 p.m., and Allied Banking Corporation at 3:20 p.m. Notably, respondent did not observe the procedure mandated under the Rules of Court that he should first make a demand of the obligor the immediate payment of the full amount stated in the writ of execution. In fact, the evidence of the respondent showing the time when PAL’s depository banks received copies of writ and notices of garnishment indubitably shows that he did not give any of the officers of PAL, impleaded as defendants, the opportunity to pay the judgment debt. Thus, he is remiss in his duty in the manner of executing the money judgment for which he should be administratively liable. Commendable is the expeditious execution of the writ; however, it should not be done at the expense of depriving the obligor the chance to pay the judgment debt.
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(b) Satisfaction by levy – If the judgment obligor cannot pay all or part of the obligation in cash, certified bank check or other mode of payment acceptable to the judgment obligee, the officer shall levy upon the properties of the judgment obligor of every kind and nature whatsoever which may be disposed of for value and not otherwise exempt from execution giving the latter the option to immediately choose which property or part thereof may be levied upon, sufficient to satisfy the judgment. If the judgment obligor does not exercise the option, the officer shall first levy on the personal properties, if any, and then on the real properties if the personal properties are insufficient to answer for the judgment.
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(c) Garnishment of debts and credits – The officer may levy on debts due the judgment obligor and other credits, including bank deposits, financial interests, royalties, commissions and other personal property not capable of manual delivery in the possession or control of third parties. Levy shall be made by serving notice upon the person owing such debts or having in his possession or control such credits to which the judgment obligor is entitled. The garnishment shall cover only such amount as will satisfy the judgment and all lawful fees.
The garnishee shall make a written report to the court within five (5) days from service of the notice of garnishment stating whether or not the judgment obligor has sufficient funds or credits to satisfy the amount of the judgment. If not, the report shall state how much funds or credits the garnishee holds for the judgment obligor. The garnished amount in cash, or certified bank check issued issued in the name of the judgment obligee, shall be delivered directly to the judgment obligee within ten (10) working days from service of notice on said garnishee requiring such delivery, except the lawful fees which shall be paid directly to the court.
In the event there are two or more garnishees holding deposits or credits sufficient to satisfy the judgment, the judgment obligor, if available, shall have the right to indicate the garnishee or garnishees who shall be required to deliver the amount due; otherwise, the choice shall be made by the judgment oblige.