Case Digest (G.R. No. 81969)
Facts:
Jocelyn Rulona-Al Awadhi v. Hon. Abdulmajld J. Astih and Nabil Al-Awadhi, G.R. No. 81969, September 26, 1988, Supreme Court First Division, Grino‑Aquino, J., writing for the Court.Petitioner Jocelyn Rulona‑Al Awadhi (a Filipino nurse and Roman Catholic) and respondent Nabil Al‑Awadhi (a Kuwaiti national and Muslim) were married in Kuwait on August 1, 1981 and have three minor children: Abdul Wahab Nabil (5), Adare Nabil (3), and Sabihab Al Abdullah Nabil (6 months). The petitioner and the children resided in Sta. Cruz, Calape, Bohol; the private respondent resided in Tagbilaran City, Bohol.
On August 25, 1987 petitioner filed an action for support and guardianship of the children in the Regional Trial Court, Branch 2, Tagbilaran City (Civil Case No. 4170). The RTC appointed petitioner guardian of the children by order dated August 25, 1987, and the husband filed a motion in that same action seeking joint parental authority. Without awaiting disposition there, the husband filed on November 4, 1987 a separate petition for custody and guardianship in the Fourth Sharia District Court, Marawi City, which was docketed as Special Proceeding No. 011‑87.
After being summoned in Marawi, petitioner moved to dismiss the Sharia petition on grounds of lack of jurisdiction over the parties and subject matter, pendency of another action between the same parties, and improper venue. The Fourth Sharia District Court denied the motion on November 20, 1987, invoking Section 13 of the Special Rules of Procedure in the Sharia Courts which disallows motions to dismiss. Petitioner’s motion for reconsideration was denied on January 12, 1988. Only the Sharia District Judge filed a Comment in the ensuing Supreme Court petition; the private respondent filed none.
Petitioner sought relief by filing a petition for review on certiorari wi...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Did the Fourth Sharia District Court have jurisdiction over the parties and the subject matter of Special Proceeding No. 011‑87?
- Can the Sharia court’s Special Rules (Section 13) barring motions to dismiss prevent dismissal for lack of jurisdiction when jurisdictional defects are patent on the face of the petition?
- Did the prior assumption of jurisdiction by the Regional Trial Court, Branch 2, Tagbilaran City, preclude the Sharia court from proceeding w...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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