Facts:
Silvestre Tiu, petitioner, was sued in the Regional Trial Court of Oroquieta City, Branch 14, by
Daniel Middleton and Remedios P. Middleton in an action for recovery of ownership and possession of real property, accounting and damages. The trial court issued a Notice of Pre-trial Conference warning that "witnesses whose names and addresses are not submitted at the pre-trial may not be allowed to testify at the trial," and petitioner filed a Pre-trial Brief stating he would present six witnesses but without naming them or stating synopses of their testimonies as required by the
1997 Rules of Court. The court thereafter issued a Pre-trial Order reciting that "the defendant will present six witnesses" and scheduling hearing dates, without directing that unnamed witnesses be barred. At trial, petitioner called his aunt,
Antonia Tiu, as his first witness, whereupon respondents objected under
Section 6, Rule 18 of the 1997 Rules of Court for failure to disclose her name and the substance of her testimony in the pre-trial brief; the trial court sustained the objection and issued two Orders dated August 3, 1998, excluding the witness and denying reconsideration. Petitioner invoked this Court by petition treated as a petition for certiorari under
Rule 65, secured a Temporary Restraining Order, and sought review of the legality of the exclusion.
Issues:
Whether a trial court may exclude a witness whose name and the synopsis of whose testimony were not disclosed in the pre-trial brief. Whether a pre-trial order that permits unnamed witnesses to be presented, and that is not modified before trial, may be altered during trial to bar such witnesses without the consent of the parties affected. Whether exclusion of an unnamed witness in the circumstances of this case violated due process.
Ruling:
Ratio:
Doctrine: