GR 110318; (August, 1996) (Digest)
G.R. No. 110318 August 28, 1996
COLUMBIA PICTURES, INC., et al., petitioners, vs. COURT OF APPEALS, SUNSHINE HOME VIDEO, INC. and DANILO A. PELINDARIO, respondents.
FACTS
Petitioners, foreign corporations owning copyrights to motion pictures, filed a complaint for violation of intellectual property laws against Sunshine Home Video, Inc. and its owner, Danilo A. Pelindario. After surveillance, NBI agents applied for a search warrant. The application was supported by affidavits and depositions, including that of Atty. Rico V. Domingo, petitioners’ attorney-in-fact. The Regional Trial Court issued Search Warrant No. 87-053, leading to the seizure of alleged pirated video tapes and equipment from the respondents’ premises. Subsequently, the trial court granted the respondents’ motion for reconsideration and quashed the search warrant, ruling that the master tapes of the copyrighted films were never presented during the application proceedings. The Court of Appeals affirmed this order.
ISSUE
The primary issues were: (1) Whether the petitioners, as foreign corporations, had the legal capacity to sue and seek a search warrant in the Philippines; and (2) Whether the search warrant was validly issued despite the non-presentation of the master tapes of the copyrighted films during the application proceedings.
RULING
The Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals. On the procedural issue, the Court held that the petitioners had the legal personality to institute the action. The ownership of a copyright, or an exclusive right to distribute, constitutes a right of property and a right of action. A foreign corporation can sue for infringement of its rights in the Philippines even without a license to do business, as the suit is based on an isolated transaction to protect its intellectual property, not an act of engaging in business. On the substantive issue, the Court ruled that the search warrant was validly issued. Probable cause for its issuance requires facts and circumstances that would lead a reasonably prudent man to believe an offense has been committed and the objects sought are in the place to be searched. The presentation of the master tapes is not a mandatory requirement. The affidavits and depositions of the NBI agents and the attorney-in-fact, detailing the surveillance and the acquisition of pirated tapes, sufficiently established probable cause. The quashal of the warrant based solely on the non-presentation of the master tapes was erroneous. The Court reinstated Search Warrant No. 87-053.