GR 120553; (June, 1997) (Digest)
G.R. No. 120553 June 17, 1997
PHILTRANCO SERVICE ENTERPRISES, INC. and ROGACIONES MANILHIG, petitioners, vs. COURT OF APPEALS and HEIRS OF THE LATE RAMON ACUESTA, respondents.
FACTS
The heirs of Ramon A. Acuesta filed a damages suit against Philtranco Service Enterprises, Inc. and its driver, Rogaciones Manilhig, arising from a vehicular accident on March 24, 1990, in Calbayog City. The respondents alleged gross negligence, recklessness, and abandonment of the victim. Their evidence showed that in the early morning, the victim was riding his bicycle along Gomez Street. A Philtranco bus (No. 4025), driven by Manilhig, was being pushed by persons on Magsaysay Blvd. to jump-start its engine. As the engine started abruptly, the bus continued its motion, turned left onto Gomez Street, bumped the victim from behind, ran over him, and proceeded without stopping. A police sergeant who witnessed the event had to jump onto the bus to order the driver to stop. The petitioners, in their Answer, presented a different version, claiming the victim suddenly swerved left while overtaking tricycles, causing the accident, and that the driver moved away from the scene out of fear of being mobbed, intending to report to the police. The petitioners were unable to present their evidence because their counsel failed to appear at the scheduled hearings on March 30 and 31, 1992, despite notice. The trial court deemed them to have waived their right to present evidence and declared the case submitted for decision. The trial court ruled in favor of the respondents, awarding substantial damages. The Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s decision. The petitioners appealed to the Supreme Court.
ISSUE
1. Whether the petitioners were denied due process and waived their right to present evidence.
2. Whether petitioner Philtranco can be held solidarily liable and if it can invoke the defense of diligence of a good father of a family.
3. Whether the awards of damages were proper and/or excessive.
RULING
1. No, the petitioners were not denied due process. They were given an opportunity to present their defense but waived it through the failure of their counsel to appear at the scheduled hearings without any motion for postponement. The trial court acted within its discretion.
2. Yes, petitioner Philtranco is solidarily liable with its driver under Articles 2180 and 2194 of the Civil Code. The defense of having exercised the diligence of a good father of a family in the selection and supervision of employees is unavailing because the negligence of the driver, Manilhig, was gross. The act of jump-starting a bus in a busy city street, especially at a turn, constitutes reckless imprudence.
3. The awards of damages were modified. The Supreme Court affirmed the liability but reduced the amounts: (a) Death indemnity from P200,000 to P50,000; (b) Moral damages from P1 million to P50,000; (c) Exemplary damages from P500,000 to P50,000; and (d) Attorney’s fees from P50,000 to P25,000. The award for actual damages (P55,615.72) was sustained as uncontested. The reductions were made because the awards were excessive compared to prevailing jurisprudence at the time, and attorney’s fees were adjusted to a reasonable amount.