Facts:

• The case involves a dispute over possession and ownership of a parcel of land in Santolan, Pasig.
• The respondents, spouses Jose and Miguela Lomotan, purchased the land in 1975 and had it subdivided in 1996.
• The land was already occupied by the petitioners, Ernesto Cruz, Lucia Nicio, and Guillermo Coquilla, who refused to leave and even prevented the construction of a perimeter fence by the Lomotans.
• The Lomotans filed a petition for injunction to enjoin the petitioners from obstructing the construction of the fence.
• At the same time, they also filed an unlawful detainer case against the petitioners.
• The petitioners moved to dismiss the injunction case, arguing that the issue of possession is interlinked with the issue of ownership in the ejectment case.
• The motion was denied, and the MTC ruled in favor of the Lomotans in the ejectment case.
• The petitioners appealed to the RTC, but the case was raffled off to the court hearing the injunction case.
• The petitioners then went to the Court of Appeals, which found the Lomotans guilty of forum shopping.
• The injunction case was dismissed, but the MTC's decision in favor of the Lomotans was affirmed.
• The petitioners argued that the ejectment case should also be dismissed.

Issue:

• (Unlock)

Ruling:

• The MTC can determine the matter of ownership in ejectment cases for the sole purpose of resolving the issue of possession.
• The dismissal of the injunction ca...(Unlock)

Ratio:

• In ejectment cases, the MTC can determine the matter of ownership for the sole purpose of resolving the issue of possession. Dismissing both cases would r...continue reading