G.R. No. 31025 , August 15, 1929
FRANCISCO GUTIERREZ, ET AL. vs. JUAN CARPIO

FACTS

The plaintiffs (Gutierrez, et al.) and the defendant (Carpio) entered into a compromise agreement on July 13, 1928, concerning a civil case. The agreement stipulated that the plaintiffs could repurchase a certain parcel of land within one month from that date. If they failed to do so, ownership would vest irrevocably in the defendant. On August 13, 1928, the plaintiffs tendered payment for the repurchase using a check. The defendant refused the tender, contending that the one-month period had already expired and that payment by check was invalid. The trial court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, holding that the tender was timely and valid. The defendant appealed.

ISSUE

1. Whether the plaintiffs’ tender of payment was made within the stipulated one-month period.
2. Whether the tender of payment by check was legally sufficient.

RULING

1. Yes, the tender was timely. The Supreme Court applied Section 13 of the Administrative Code, which modified Article 7 of the Civil Code, to define “month” as a calendar month. In computing the period, the day from which the time is reckoned (July 13) is excluded. Therefore, the one-month period began on July 14 and ended at the close of August 13. Since the tender was made on August 13, it was within the stipulated period.

2. Yes, the tender by check was legally sufficient under the circumstances. While payment by check does not per se constitute valid payment (under the Negotiable Instruments Law and the Civil Code), the defendant had consented to this mode of payment. The testimony of plaintiff Felipe Gutierrez, which the Court found credible based on the circumstances, established that the defendant agreed on August 12 to accept payment by check and even indicated that the plaintiffs could return home as a result. The defendant was thus estopped from later rejecting the check, as his prior consent had induced the plaintiffs to act on that belief. Consequently, the tender was effective.

The Court modified the trial court’s judgment. It ordered that the plaintiffs may, within ten days from the finality of the decision, repurchase the land by delivering the sum of P14,643.43 in Philippine currency (coin or paper money) to the defendant at his residence in Santa Rita, Pampanga. The judgment was affirmed in all other respects, with costs against the appellant.