GR L 3507; (April, 1951) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-3507; April 20, 1951
MAXIMO REYES, petitioner-appellant, vs. ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF MANILA, ET AL., respondents-appellees.
FACTS
On December 24, 1948, the Municipal Court of Manila declared petitioner-appellant Maximo Reyes in default and rendered a decision against him in favor of respondent-appellee Roman Catholic Archbishop of Manila. Reyes filed a motion to lift the order of default on December 27, 1948, which was denied on December 29, 1948. On January 4, 1949, Reyes received a copy of the Municipal Court’s decision. On January 6, 1949, he filed an exception and notice of appeal, which was given due course. However, upon motion of the appellee, the Court of First Instance of Manila dismissed Reyes’s appeal on March 14, 1949, on the ground that he had no right to appeal. After the denial of his motion for reconsideration, Reyes filed a petition for relief from the judgment under Rule 38 of the Rules of Court on May 17, 1949. The appellee moved to dismiss the petition for relief as it was filed beyond the 60-day reglementary period. The Court of First Instance initially denied the motion to dismiss but, upon reconsideration, dismissed the petition for relief on August 29, 1949. Reyes appealed this order of dismissal.
ISSUE
Whether the petition for relief was filed within the reglementary period prescribed under Section 3 of Rule 38 of the Rules of Court.
RULING
No. The petition for relief was filed beyond the reglementary period. Under Section 3 of Rule 38, a petition for relief must be filed within sixty days after the petitioner learns of the judgment, order, or other proceeding to be set aside, and not more than six months after such judgment or order was entered or proceeding was taken. Reyes learned of the Municipal Court’s decision on January 4, 1949, but filed his petition for relief on May 17, 1949, which is 133 days later, exceeding the 60-day period by 73 days. The Court rejected Reyes’s contention that the period during which his appeal was pending (from January 6, 1949, to May 10, 1949) should be deducted, as a defendant declared in default has no right to appeal from a judgment on the merits, making his appeal ineffectual. The Court also noted that the decision of the Municipal Court became final, at the latest, on January 19, 1949 (15 days after Reyes received notice on January 4, 1949). Therefore, the order dismissing the petition for relief was affirmed.