788 Phil. 483
VELASCO JR., J.:
Section 48. Appeal from decision of auditors. Any person aggrieved by the decision of an auditor of any government agency in the settlement of an account or claim may within six months from receipt of a copy of the decision appeal in writing to the Commission.According to the COA, DCWD received a copy of the NDs as follows:
After receiving the above NDs, the DCWD purportedly endorsed the same to a certain Atty. Ric Luna, their private retainer, for appropriate action in an undated latter.[11] However, it appears that Atty. Luna only appealed ND DCWD 2007-011 dated March 20, 2007. Such appeal was later denied by the RLAO in Decision No. 2008-04 dated January 20, 2008. DCWD claims that Atty. Luna also failed to move for the reconsideration of the RLAO Decision. Thus, all the NDs became final and executory, the six (6) month period for the other NDs having expired.[12]
Notice of Disallowance Date ReceivedND 2007-001 (2006) to 004 (2006) September 10, 2007 ND DCWD 2008-001 to 004 January 8, 2008 ND DCWD 2007-011 June 18, 2007
WHEREFORE, the foregoing premises considered, the instant petition is hereby DISMISSED for having been filed out of time. Accordingly, Commission on Audit Regional Office IX Decision No. 2012-11 dated February 2, 2012 sustaining Notice of Disallowance (ND) Nos. 2007-001 (2006) to 2007-004 (2006), all dated September 3, 2007 and DCWD-2008-001 to 2008-004, all dated January 8, 2008; and Regional Legal and Adjudication Office IX Decision No. 2008-04 dated January 20, 2008, sustaining ND dated March 20, 2007, on the payment of various benefits to the officials and employees of Dipolog City Water District Minoag, Dipolog City, in the total amount of P4,751,987.71, are final and executory.[16]Hence, the instant petition.
While it is true that the client is bound by the mistakes of his counsel, the application of this general rule should not be applied if it would result in serious injustice or when negligence of the counsel was so great that the party was prejudiced and prevented from fairly presenting his case.In support of his contention, petitioner cites Villa Rhecar Bus v. De la Cruz,[17] where the Court ruled:
It is unfortunate that the lawyer of the petitioner neglected his responsibilities to his client. This negligence ultimately resulted in a judgment adverse to the client. Be that as it may, such mistake binds the client, the herein petitioner. As a general rule, a client is bound by the mistakes of his counsel. Only when the application of the general rule would result in serious injustice should an exception thereto be called for. Under the circumstances obtaining in this case, no undue prejudice against the petitioner has been satisfactorily demonstrated. At most, there is only an unsupported claim that the petitioner had been prejudiced by the negligence of its counsel, without an explanation to that effect.Petitioner also cites People v. Manzanilla,[18] wherein it is stated that:
Moreover, the petitioner retained the services of counsel of its choice. It should, as far as this suit is concerned, bear the consequences of its faulty option. After all, in the application of the principle of due process, what is sought to be safeguarded against is not the lack of previous notice but the denial of the opportunity to be heard. The question is not whether the petitioner succeeded in defending its interest but whether the petitioner had the opportunity to present its side. Notice to counsel is notice to the client. The proposal of the petitioner to the effect that the Labor Arbiter should be required to send a separate notice to the client should not be taken seriously. Otherwise, the provisions of the Civil Code on Agency as well as Section 23, Rule 138 of the Rules of Court 12 will be put to naught. (emphasis supplied)
Incompetency or negligence of defendant's counsel. — A new trial may be granted where the incompetency of counsel is so great that defendant is prejudiced and prevented from fairly presenting his defense, and a new trial sometimes is granted because of some serious error on the part of such attorney in the conduct of the case. But a new trial does not necessarily follow either the attorney's incompetency or his neglect. This latter rule has been applied to the failure of defendant's counsel to introduce certain evidence, to his failure to summon witnesses, to his failure to except to a ruling or an instruction, to his negligence resulting in defendant's failure to make a statement to the court, to submission of the case . . . without argument. . . . (16 C. J., 1145.) (emphasis supplied)Petitioner, thus, posits the view that he cannot be faulted for the negligence of his counsel inasmuch as he had already endorsed the same to him.
Nothing is more settled than the rule that the negligence and mistakes of counsel are binding on the client. Otherwise, there would never be an end to a suit, so long as counsel could allege its own fault or negligence to support the client's case and obtain remedies and reliefs already lost by the operation of law.More succinct is the recent Almendras, Jr. v. Almendras,[20] where the Court categorically stated:
The rationale for this rule is reiterated in the recent case Bejarasco v. People:The general rule is that a client is bound by the counsel's acts, including even mistakes in the realm of procedural technique. The rationale for the rule is that a counsel, once retained, holds the implied authority to do all acts necessary or, at least, incidental to the prosecution and management of the suit in behalf of his client, such that any act or omission by counsel within the scope of the authority is regarded, in the eyes of the law, as the act or omission of the client himself.In Tan v. Court of Appeals, the Court explained:
It is the client's duty to be in contact with his lawyer from time to time in order to be informed of the progress and developments of his case; hence, to merely rely on the bare reassurances of his lawyer that everything is being taken care of is not enough. (Emphasis supplied.)As clients, petitioners should have maintained contact with their counsel from time to time, and informed themselves of the progress of their case, thereby exercising that standard of care "which an ordinarily prudent man bestows upon his business." (emphasis supplied)
Settled is the rule that a client is bound by the mistakes of his counsel. The only exception is when the negligence of the counsel is so gross, reckless and inexcusable that the client is deprived of his day in court. In such instance, the remedy is to reopen the case and allow the party who was denied his day in court to adduce evidence. However, perusing the case at bar, we find no reason to depart from the general rule.To reiterate, the only interaction between DCWD and its counsel, Atty. Luna, as stated in the petition itself, was the alleged undated endorsement letter of the NDs. No follow-ups were apparently made as to the progress of the appeals to the NDs during the six (6)-month appeal period—all because petitioner thought that Atty. Luna had taken the appropriate action thereon. Worse, it was only after the lapse of twenty-three (23) months from receipt of the NDs that petitioner was able to file its appeal. Verily, petitioner cannot escape liability for negligence of his counsel.
Petitioner was given several opportunities to present his evidence or to clarify his medical constraints in court, but he did not do so, despite knowing full well that he had a pending case in court. For petitioner to feign and repeatedly insist upon a lack of awareness of the progress of an important litigation is to unmask a penchant for the ludicrous.
Although he rightfully expected counsel to amply protect his interest, he cannot just sit back, relax and await the outcome of the case. In keeping with the normal course of events, he should have taken the initiative "of making the proper inquiries from his counsel and the trial court as to the status of his case." For his failure to do so, he has only himself to blame. The Court cannot allow petitioner the exception to the general rule just because his counsel admitted having no knowledge of his medical condition. To do so will set a dangerous precedent of never-ending suits, so long as lawyers could allege their own fault or negligence to support the client's case and obtain remedies and reliefs already lost by the operation of law. (emphasis supplied)