G.R. No. 47762; June 10, 1941
SILVERIO MORCO, plaintiff-appellant, vs. SALVADOR MUÑOZ, defendant-appellee.

FACTS

The plaintiff-appellant, Silverio Morco, appealed a judgment from the justice of the peace court of Camalig, Albay. The Court of First Instance of Albay dismissed his appeal because his appeal bond was filed after the expiration of the statutory 15-day period from notice of judgment. The plaintiff-appellant admitted he received notice of the justice of the peace court’s judgment on February 15, 1939. Within the legal period, he filed the notice of appeal and the certificate of deposit for the docketing fee. However, he did not file the required appeal bond until March 14, 1939. The Court of Appeals certified the case to the Supreme Court as it involves a pure question of law.

ISSUE

Whether the Court of First Instance correctly dismissed the appeal for not being perfected on time due to the late filing of the appeal bond.

RULING

Yes, the Court of First Instance correctly dismissed the appeal. According to Section 76 of Act No. 190, as amended by Acts Nos. 1627 and 3615, an appeal in civil cases must be perfected within fifteen days after notification of the judgment. Perfection requires: (a) filing a notice of appeal, (b) delivering a certificate of deposit for the appellate court docketing fee (or the fee itself in Manila), and (c) giving an appeal bond. The law clearly requires all these acts, including the filing of the bond, to be completed within the 15-day period. Since the appellant filed his appeal bond on March 14, 1939, which was the 27th day from the February 15 notice, the appeal was not duly perfected. The appellant’s contention that procedural laws should be “humanized” and that his failure was due to an innocent mistake was rejected. The Supreme Court affirmed the principle that ignorance of the law excuses no one from compliance. The order of dismissal was affirmed, with costs against the appellant.