G.R. No. 157867 December 15, 2009
METROPOLITAN BANK & TRUST COMPANY, Petitioner, vs. HON. SALVADOR ABAD SANTOS, Presiding Judge, RTC, Br. 65, Makati City and MANFRED JACOB DE KONING, Respondents.

FACTS

Respondent Manfred Jacob De Koning obtained a loan from petitioner Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company (Metrobank), secured by a real estate mortgage over a condominium unit. Due to De Koning’s failure to pay, Metrobank extrajudicially foreclosed the mortgage, emerged as the highest bidder at the auction, and, after the redemption period lapsed, filed an ex parte petition for a writ of possession with the Regional Trial Court (RTC). De Koning opposed the petition, filing a motion to dismiss on the ground that Metrobank’s petition contained a false certification against forum shopping. He argued that the petition failed to disclose two pending cases he had previously filed: a civil case before the RTC questioning Metrobank’s right to foreclose, and a petition for certiorari before the Court of Appeals arising from that RTC case. The RTC dismissed Metrobank’s petition, a decision affirmed by the Court of Appeals, both holding that the petition for a writ of possession is an initiatory pleading asserting a claim, thus requiring a certification against forum shopping under Section 5, Rule 7 of the Rules of Court. Metrobank elevated the case to the Supreme Court via a petition for review on certiorari.

ISSUE

Whether a petition for the issuance of a writ of possession in an extrajudicial foreclosure sale is an “initiatory pleading asserting a claim” that requires a certification against forum shopping under Section 5, Rule 7 of the Rules of Court.

RULING

No. The Supreme Court granted Metrobank’s petition and reversed the decisions of the lower courts. The Court ruled that a petition for a writ of possession filed pursuant to Section 7 of Act No. 3135 (the law governing extrajudicial foreclosure sales) is not an initiatory pleading that asserts a claim for relief. It is a mere incident in the transfer of title, a continuation of the foreclosure process, and an ex parte proceeding that is summary in nature. The purchaser’s right to possession is a ministerial consequence of the foreclosure sale and the issuance of the final certificate of sale. Since such a petition is not an initiatory pleading, the requirement of a certification against forum shopping does not apply. The Court further held that the ex parte nature of the proceeding meant De Koning was not entitled to notice as a matter of right, and the lower courts should not have entertained his motion to dismiss. The RTC’s order of dismissal was a patent legal error, justifying Metrobank’s resort to a petition for certiorari before the Court of Appeals.