GR 38095; (October, 1932) (Digest)
G.R. No. 38095; October 17, 1932
MARIA PALISOC, ET AL., petitioners, vs. DIEGO LOCSIN, Judge of First Instance of Pangasinan, and MARGARITA MANZON, ET AL., respondents.
FACTS
Petitioners Maria Palisoc et al. filed a petition for relief under section 513 of the Code of Civil Procedure, seeking to set aside an order/decision of the respondent judge dated June 6, 1932. In that order, petitioners were declared in default for failure to appear at a hearing in a land registration case, and a prior decision adjudicating the land to respondents was declared in full force. Petitioners claimed lack of notice of the trial. They had two attorneys of record: Bernabe Aquino and Alejandro de Guzman. Aquino received notice on May 20, 1932. Notice was also sent to De Guzman by registered mail to his address of record in Dagupan; it was forwarded to Manila, where multiple postal notices were sent to his office between May 25 and May 30. De Guzman did not claim the letter until June 14. Neither attorney appeared at the June 6 hearing. Petitioners had also previously filed a motion in the trial court to set aside the default, which was denied after a hearing.
ISSUE
Whether the petition for relief under section 513 of the Code of Civil Procedure should be granted to set aside the default judgment due to alleged lack of notice to petitioners’ attorneys.
RULING
No. The petition is denied. First, notice to attorney Aquino was valid and binding on petitioners; his becoming provincial governor did not automatically terminate his representation or prohibit him from practicing law. Second, notice to attorney De Guzman was properly sent to his address of record, and the postal notices sent to his Manila office provided ample time to claim the letter; his failure to do so was his own fault and does not justify relief. Third, a petition under section 513 is not available because the trial court was still in session and had already denied petitioners’ motion for relief; petitioners’ remedy was to appeal that denial, not to seek relief directly from the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court’s jurisdiction under section 513 depends on the lack of a remedy in the trial court, which was not present here.
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