G.R. No. 143557; June 25, 2004
University of Immaculate Concepcion and Sister Maria Jacinta De Belen, RVM, petitioners, vs. Secretary of Labor and Employment, Engineer Yolibelle S. Avinante and Estelita B. Pulido, respondents.

FACTS

Respondent DOLE Labor and Employment Officer Yolibelle Avinante, pursuant to Article 128 of the Labor Code, sent notices to petitioner University requesting inspection of employment records and proof of 13th-month pay compliance. After the petitioner filed a motion to enjoin the inspection, Avinante proceeded but was refused access to the records. She then issued a Notice of Inspection Results detailing alleged labor violations. The Regional Director subsequently issued an Order finding the petitioner liable and directing restitution to 193 employees. The petitioner’s appeal to the DOLE Secretary resulted in a modified Order dated May 2, 1997, reducing the liability to underpayment of allowances for 15 employees.
The petitioner received the Secretary’s Order on May 15, 1997, filed a motion for reconsideration on May 19, which was denied on April 23, 1998 (received May 5, 1998). The petitioner then filed a second motion for reconsideration on May 20, 1998, which the DOLE noted without action as a prohibited pleading. The petitioner eventually filed a petition for certiorari with the Supreme Court on May 13, 1999, which was referred to the Court of Appeals.

ISSUE

Whether the petition for certiorari filed by the petitioners was filed within the reglementary period.

RULING

No, the petition was filed out of time. The Court of Appeals correctly dismissed the petition for certiorari for being late. Under Section 4, Rule 65 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure, a special civil action for certiorari must be filed within sixty (60) days from notice of the judgment, order, or resolution. A timely motion for reconsideration interrupts this period. The reglementary period resumes upon notice of the denial, and the remaining period, but not less than five days, is allowed for filing the petition.
The petitioners received the DOLE Secretary’s Order on May 15, 1997. Their first motion for reconsideration, filed on May 19, 1997, was timely and thus interrupted the 60-day period. Upon receipt of the denial on May 5, 1998, they had the remaining balance of the original 60-day period to file certiorari. Since they used 4 days before filing their first motion, they had 56 days left from May 5, 1998, or until June 30, 1998. Their second motion for reconsideration, being a prohibited pleading and a mere reiteration of previous arguments (pro forma), did not toll the running of the period. Their petition filed on May 13, 1999, was therefore filed almost a year beyond the deadline. The Supreme Court affirmed the appellate court’s dismissal, emphasizing the mandatory and jurisdictional nature of the reglementary period for filing petitions for certiorari.