GR 147417; (July, 2005) (Digest)
G.R. No. 147417 . July 8, 2005.
SPS. VICTOR & MILAGROS PEREZ and CRISTINA AGRAVIADOR AVISO, Petitioners, vs. ANTONIO HERMANO, Respondent.
FACTS
Petitioners filed a civil case for Enforcement of Contract and Damages against several parties, including respondent Antonio Hermano, before the RTC of Quezon City. On February 28, 2000, the trial court granted respondent’s motion to dismiss the complaint against him. Petitioners received the order on March 21, 2000, filed a motion for reconsideration on March 23, 2000, and received the denial of that motion on June 18, 2000. Subsequently, on August 17, 2000, petitioners filed a petition for certiorari under Rule 65 before the Court of Appeals, challenging the trial court’s orders.
The Court of Appeals dismissed the petition for being filed out of time. It computed the period from the receipt of the assailed order on March 21, 2000, noting that four days elapsed before the motion for reconsideration was filed. Counting from the receipt of the denial on June 18, 2000, the appellate court found that 63 days had elapsed by the filing date of August 17, 2000, exceeding the 60-day reglementary period under the amended Rule 65.
ISSUE
Whether the Court of Appeals erred in dismissing the petition for certiorari for being filed beyond the reglementary period.
RULING
Yes. The Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals, ruling that the petition was timely filed. The applicable rule was Section 4, Rule 65 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure, as amended by A.M. No. 00-2-03-SC, which took effect on September 1, 2000. This amendment provided that the 60-day period to file a petition for certiorari shall be counted from notice of the denial of a timely filed motion for reconsideration. The period is not interrupted by the filing of such a motion; it simply runs from the notice of denial.
Applying this rule, the 60-day period commenced on June 18, 2000, the date petitioners received notice of the denial of their motion for reconsideration. Counting from June 19, 2000, the filing on August 17, 2000, fell exactly on the 60th day. The Court clarified that the first day (June 19) is day one, and the last day (August 17) is day sixty, following the method of computation under Article 13 of the Civil Code. Therefore, the petition was filed within the reglementary period. The Court of Appeals’ erroneous computation, which included the days between the receipt of the order and the filing of the motion for reconsideration, constituted a reversible error.