557 Phil. 643
SANDOVAL-GUTIERREZ, J.:
There being no proof of service on the private respondents and the agency a quo as required under Sec. 13, Rule 13 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure and as the petition is not accompanied with copies of all pleadings (such as Joint Counter-Affidavit) and documents relevant and pertinent thereto.Petitioner timely filed a motion for reconsideration but the Court of Appeals in its Resolution of September 3, 2002 denied the same, thus:
WHEREFORE, this petition for certiorari is DISMISSED outright.
SO ORDERED.
x x xHence, the instant petition raising the sole issue of whether the Court of Appeals erred in dismissing the petition in CA-G.R. SP No. 63645 for petitioner's failure to comply with Section 13, Rule 13 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure, as amended.
An examination of the records shows that even in the said motion, petitioner still failed to attach the required affidavit of service of the petition. What was attached only was the affidavit of service of the motion (p. 68, rollo). Further, the petition is still fatally flawed because other relevant and pertinent documents, such as the joint counter-affidavit, were not appended to the motion as required under par. 3, Sec. 3, Rule 46 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure.
It cannot be overemphasized that procedural rules have their own wholesome rationale in the orderly administration of justice. Justice has to be administered according to the Rules in order to obviate arbitrariness, caprice, or whimsicality. (Republic v. Hernandez, 253 SCRA 509, 513).
WHEREFORE, the said Compliance with Motion for Reconsideration is DENIED, and the resolution dated March 29, 2001 STANDS.
SO ORDERED.
SEC. 13. Proof of service. - Proof of personal service shall consist of a written admission of the party served, or the official return of the server, or the affidavit of the party serving, containing a full statement of the date, place, and manner of service. If the service is by ordinary mail, proof thereof shall consist of an affidavit of the person mailing of facts showing compliance with section 7 of this Rule. If service is made by registered mail, proof shall be made by such affidavit and the registry receipt issued by the mailing office. The registry return card shall be filed immediately upon its receipt by the sender, or in lieu thereof the unclaimed letter together with the certified or sworn copy of the notice given by the postmaster to the addressee.There is no question that petitioner herein was remiss in complying with the foregoing Rule. In Cruz v. Court of Appeals,[4] we ruled that with respect to motions, proof of service is a mandatory requirement. We find no cogent reason why this dictum should not apply and with more reason to a petition for certiorari, in view of Section 3, Rule 46 which requires that the petition shall be filed "together with proof of service thereof." We agree with the Court of Appeals that the lack of proof of service is a fatal defect. The utter disregard of the Rule cannot be justified by harking to substantial justice and the policy of liberal construction of the Rules. Technical rules of procedure are not meant to frustrate the ends of justice. Rather, they serve to effect the proper and orderly disposition of cases and thus effectively prevent the clogging of court dockets.
SEC. 1. Petition for certiorari. -The foregoing Rule should be read in relation with Section 3, Rule 46, thus:
x x x
The petition shall be accompanied by a certified true copy of the judgment, order, or resolution subject thereof, copies of all pleadings and documents relevant and pertinent thereto, and a sworn certification of non-forum shopping as provided in the third paragraph of Section 3, Rule 46.
SEC. 3. Contents and filing of petition; effect of non-compliance with requirements. -Petitioner should have attached to his petition material portions of the record, such as the Joint Counter-Affidavit of respondents herein and other supporting documents. For without those supporting documents, petitioner's allegations in his petition in CA-G.R. SP No. 63645 are nothing but bare allegations.
x x x x x x x x x
It shall be filed in seven (7) clearly legible copies together with proof of service thereof on the respondent with the original copy intended for the court indicated as such by the petitioner, and shall be accompanied by a clearly legible duplicate original or certified true copy of the judgment, order, resolution, or ruling subject thereof, such material portions of the record as are referred to therein, and other documents relevant or pertinent thereto. x x x
x x x x x x x x x
The failure of the petitioner to comply with any of the foregoing requirements shall be sufficient ground for the dismissal of the petition.