G.R. No. 1072, May 6, 1903
MANUEL ABELLO, plaintiff-appellant, vs. SEÑORA PAZ KOCK DE MONASTERIO, defendant-appellee.

FACTS:
On August 8, 1902, the Court of First Instance of Occidental Negros disallowed the will of Señora Josefa Montilla y Ianson, which had been presented for probate by the named executor. On August 12, 1902, an application for appeal was duly filed under Section 781 of the Code of Civil Procedure. The court admitted the appeal on August 16, 1902, ordering the transmission of a certified copy of the record to the Supreme Court, which was done on November 1, 1902. The order admitting the appeal did not mention the filing of an appeal bond, and none was filed by the appellant. The appellee moved to dismiss the appeal for this failure.

ISSUE:
Should the appeal be dismissed for the appellant’s failure to file an appeal bond?

RULING:
No. The Supreme Court, citing its prior ruling in Hernaez vs. Norris, held that where the lower court admits an appeal without fixing a time for filing the appeal bond, the appellant does not automatically lose the right to prosecute the appeal by failing to file the bond within twenty-one days from the entry of the order. Following the precedent, the Court ordered the appellant to file a bond, conditioned as provided in Sections 780 and 781 of the Code of Civil Procedure, in an amount and with sureties to the satisfaction of the lower court, within forty days from notification of this decision. Failure to comply would result in the dismissal of the appeal.