G.R. No. L-19118 June 16, 1965
MARIANO A. ALBERT, plaintiff-appellant, vs. UNIVERSITY PUBLISHING CO., INC., defendant-appellee.

FACTS

Plaintiff Mariano A. Albert sued University Publishing Co., Inc. for breach of contract. This Court awarded him P15,000.00 as damages in a prior case (L-9300, April 18, 1958). When the Court of First Instance of Manila issued an order of execution on July 22, 1961, Albert reported that no such entity as University Publishing Co., Inc. existed, attaching a Securities and Exchange Commission certification dated July 31, 1961, stating its records did not show the registration of University Publishing Co., Inc. as a corporation or partnership. Albert prayed that Jose M. Aruego, who acted for the company, be held liable. University Publishing Co., Inc., through Aruego’s law firm, did not present any registration documents to counter the certification but merely argued Aruego was not a formal party. The lower court denied Albert’s request, leading to this appeal on the issue of corporate existence. Only after this Court promulgated a decision on January 30, 1965, holding Aruego personally liable, did University Publishing Co., Inc. move for reconsideration and seek leave to present original registration papers (Certificate of Registration, Articles of Incorporation, By-Laws, and a Certificate of Reconstitution of Records) to prove it was incorporated on August 7, 1936.

ISSUE

Whether the defendant-appellee’s motion for reconsideration and leave to present original registration papers not included in the trial court records should be granted.

RULING

The motion for reconsideration and for leave to file original papers not in the record is denied. The Court ruled that the original papers could not be considered at this stage. The defendant-appellee chose to withhold the vital registration documents when the issue of corporate existence was squarely presented before the lower court, despite having possession and control of them. It speculated on a favorable decision based on the technicality that Jose M. Aruego was not a formal party. The certification of non-registration from the SEC formed part of the record, and based on that record, the Court correctly deemed University Publishing Co., Inc. unregistered and held Aruego personally liable. The proffered papers are not admissible as “newly discovered evidence” under Rule 59, as they could have been presented with due diligence earlier. The provision of Rule 48, Section 7, invoked by movant, applies only to original papers already of record in the lower court. For purposes of this case, decided on the record as submitted, the defendant-appellee is deemed unregistered, and the decision stands.