GR 58910; (February, 1989) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-58910 February 8, 1989
THE ROBERT DOLLAR COMPANY, Acting through its legal counsel, RODOLFO D. DELA CRUZ, petitioner, vs. THE HON. JUAN C. TUVERA and HON. JOAQUIN T. VENUS, JR., Presidential & Deputy Presidential Executive Assistants; the HON. CESAR E. A. VIRATA, Minister of Finance; and the HON. RAMON J. FAROLAN, Acting Commissioner of Customs, respondents.
FACTS
This case involves an “Urgent Motion for Execution of Special Judgment” filed by petitioner Robert Dollar Company. The motion sought to compel the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) to hold in trust insurance proceeds amounting to P2,079,784.00 claimed by the Bureau of Customs for a fire-gutted building. The building was the subject of a prior valuation ordered by O.P. Decisions Nos. 1483 and 2926, affirmed by the Supreme Court in 1983. The petitioner alleged that the three-man valuation committee mandated by O.P. Decision No. 2926 to determine the fair market value of the improvements had never been properly constituted.
The Solicitor General, representing the respondents, informed the Court that a Valuation Committee had indeed been created pursuant to a Commission on Audit (COA) Office Order. This Committee, composed of five members (including a representative from the Robert Dollar Company) instead of three, submitted a report dated May 2, 1984, fixing the fair market value of the improvements at P210,000.00 as of March 30, 1967—the date they were turned over to the Bureau of Customs. The petitioner objected, arguing the Committee was improperly constituted and that the valuation was based merely on the City Assessor’s value.
ISSUE
The primary issue is whether the petitioner is entitled to the execution of a special judgment for the insurance proceeds, and if so, what is the correct valuation of the improvements for which it should be compensated.
RULING
The Supreme Court granted the Urgent Motion but awarded the petitioner only the sum of P210,000.00 with legal interest at 6% per annum from March 30, 1967, until fully paid. The Court upheld the validity and findings of the five-member Valuation Committee. It reasoned that the Committee was the body specifically tasked with the valuation undertaking, and its determination must be respected. The expansion from a three-man to a five-man committee was deemed a mere procedural adjustment that did not prejudice the petitioner’s interests, especially since the petitioner was represented therein by its counsel, Atty. Conrado Ayuyao. Consequently, the petitioner was not deprived of due process.
The Court explicitly rejected the petitioner’s claim to the higher insurance claim amount, stating that to award it would be to supplant the Committee’s expert judgment. The valuation of P210,000.00 was found to be substantiated, notably being comparable to the petitioner’s own auditor’s assessment when converted using the 1967 exchange rate. The Resolution was declared final and immediately executory, with no motions for reconsideration to be entertained.