G.R. No. 2026: September 13, 1905
ALEJANDRO A. SANTOS, plaintiff-appellant, vs. ANGEL LIMUCO, ET AL., defendants-appellees.
FACTS: Plaintiff Alejandro A. Santos filed an action for forcible entry and detainer in the justice of the peace court of Manila on September 28, 1901, before the new Code of Procedure took effect. Judgment was rendered in his favor on October 29, 1901, after the new code’s effectivity. Defendants appealed to the Court of First Instance. The plaintiff later moved to dismiss this appeal, but the court denied the motion. The defendants filed a pleading that was both a demurrer and an answer, objecting that the plaintiff improperly joined multiple causes of action in one complaint, as the defendants occupied separate tracts of land under separate contracts. The Court of First Instance ultimately dismissed the action on this ground of misjoinder.
ISSUE
Whether the Court of First Instance erred (1) in denying the plaintiff’s motion to dismiss the defendants’ appeal from the justice of the peace court, and (2) in dismissing the action due to a misjoinder of causes of action.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the Court of First Instance. On the first issue, the plaintiff’s motion to dismiss the appeal was filed too late, as he had previously participated in proceedings on the demurrer without objecting to the appeal’s admission. On the second issue, the Court held that a plaintiff cannot join in one forcible entry action multiple defendants who possess separate tracts under distinct contracts. The defendants properly raised this objection in their demurrer and answer. The authorities cited by the plaintiff regarding consolidation of actions were inapplicable, as there was only one action from its inception, not multiple actions consolidated later.