GR L 2031; (May, 1949) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-2031; May 30, 1949
HERMOGENES C. LIM, petitioner, vs. RESTITUTO L. CALAGUAS and LEONOR ALCARAZ, respondents.
FACTS
Petitioner Hermogenes C. Lim executed a notarial document (Exhibit A) transferring title to one-half of a residential lot and house in Meycauayan, Bulacan, to respondents, with a right to repurchase within one year. Lim contended the instrument was a loan secured by a mortgage, not a true pacto de retro sale. Both the Court of First Instance of Bulacan and the Court of Appeals ruled it was a valid pacto de retro sale. Lim petitioned for review, citing circumstances like inadequate price, his continued possession, payment of taxes, partial payments accepted, and the use of the word “sanglaan” (pledge/mortgage) by respondent Alcaraz in a letter, to prove an equitable mortgage.
ISSUE
Whether the transaction embodied in Exhibit A is a pacto de retro sale or an equitable mortgage.
RULING
The Supreme Court dismissed the petition, affirming the Court of Appeals’ decision. The Court held that the determination of whether a transaction is a pacto de retro sale or a mortgage, when it requires the evaluation of extraneous evidence and the credibility of witnesses to ascertain the parties’ real intention, is a question of fact. Under the rules, factual findings of the Court of Appeals are final and conclusive. The Court found no reason to reverse the appellate court’s conclusion that the evidence was insufficient to clearly and convincingly prove the transaction was a mortgage disguised as a sale. The circumstances cited by Lim were either found insignificant by the Court of Appeals or were compatible with a true pacto de retro sale.
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