Title
Flores vs. Duque
Case
A.C. No. 1199
Decision Date
Mar 18, 1983
Attorney Duque was admonished for poor judgment in handling a dismissed land ownership case, as he failed to formally notify the court of his clients' disinterest, though no misconduct was proven.
admonished
hearing date
dismissal of case

Case Summary (A.C. No. 1199)

Factual Background

The administrative complaint charged Attorney Duque with failing to notify his clients, Leoncio Flores and Gloria Peralta, of the hearing date set for July 1, 1971, and with failing to secure their presence at that hearing. Because both counsel and the parties did not appear, the trial court dismissed the case.

In his answer, Attorney Duque denied liability and placed in issue the truth of the allegations. He explained that the complainants’ father, Inocencio Peralta, was the person who engaged him to file a case for consolidation of ownership of a portion of land in the Court of First Instance of Nueva Vizcaya. Respondent stated that he asked Peralta to bring the complainants and their papers. During that conference, respondent was shown a deed of sale with right to repurchase. Based on this deed, he prepared the complaint and filed it in the Court of First Instance of Nueva Vizcaya on July 28, 1969, which was docketed as Civil Case No. 1758. A copy of the complaint had been attached to his answer as one of the annexes.

Respondent further narrated that, after the filing of the case, the complainants revealed—confirming information traced to Inocencio Peralta—that: (a) they were not in actual possession of the portion of land; (b) they did not enjoy the fruits or produce of the land; and (c) the repurchase price of P300.00 was not commensurate or was grossly inadequate for the land. Respondent claimed he told complainants that, given these circumstances, an action for redemption would not lie.

As to the complaint that he failed to notify the clients and failed to attend the hearing on July 1, 1971, Attorney Duque denied the charge and supplied a different account. He alleged that he did notify the complainants. He stated that the complainants later revealed that they had assigned their rights and interest to a third person named Choleng dela Cruz and had delivered to her the owner’s duplicate of Transfer Certificate of Title No. T-9890 of Catalina Acoba. Respondent added that the complainants told him that Catalina Acoba’s obligation had already been settled because Catalina Acoba had paid the loan. He further claimed that complainants told him to forget the case and also to forget his fees, and that they suggested the complaint be dismissed. Respondent stated that, with this information and attitude, he did not go to court on July 1, 1971, because he found it no longer necessary. He also added that he had no time to file a motion to dismiss, expecting the court to dismiss the case for lack of interest to prosecute, and believing that damages would thereby not be imposed.

Proceedings Before Investigation and Recommendation

The case was referred to the Solicitor General for investigation, report, and recommendation. After such investigation, the Solicitor General posed three questions to resolve the complaint: first, whether respondent notified his clients of the hearing on July 1, 1971; second, whether respondent was negligent in not attending the hearing; and third, whether respondent notified the clients of the dismissal of the case.

The Solicitor General’s report inclined to accept respondent’s position that he indeed notified his clients of the July 1, 1971 hearing. The report treated respondent’s stated reason for non-appearance—specifically, that the obligation of Catalina Acoba had already been paid—as more credible. The report relied on the testimony of Catalina Acobe and exhibits submitted by respondent. It cited Exhibit '21' (the title to the property allegedly sold), Exhibit '23' (the writing evidencing the loan taken by the complainant from Soledad dela Cruz), and Exhibit '22' (the assignment of Soledad dela Cruz and of her rights and interest in Exhibit '23'), all shown to be already in the possession of Catalina Acoba.

The report reasoned that Catalina Acoba’s possession of these documents indicated that she had paid Soledad dela Cruz the amount owed by Leoncio Flores. The report linked this payment to the amount Catalina Acoba received from complainant Leoncio Flores under the sale with right to repurchase. It therefore reasoned that Catalina Acoba had gone to the complainants and informed them that she had paid the P300 to Soledad dela Cruz, and that it was by virtue of that payment that the case had been dismissed. The report acknowledged that Exhibit '23' was not the exact instrument executed by Catalina Acoba in favor of Leoncio Flores, because the instrument executed was a deed of sale with right to repurchase, but it treated the possession of Exhibit '23' as consistent with payment being made.

On this basis, the report concluded that respondent notified his clients of the hearing and that the complainants knew the case was dismissed on July 1, 1971. The Solicitor General recommended exoneration. Still, the report observed that respondent’s procedure in having the case dismissed was not correct in all respects. It noted that respondent admitted during the hearing that he had agreed with his client not to appear in court so that there would be no pronouncement on damages. It said respondent should have at least notified the trial court that the complainants were no longer interested in prosecuting the case, because that step would have prevented the administrative controversy from arising. The report, however, opined that while the mistake reflected poor judgment in the choice of alternative procedures, it was not so grave as to warrant disciplinary action.

The Parties' Contentions and Resolution of Credibility

The matter was ultimately decided by the Court on the basis of the evidentiary record and the Solicitor General’s report. The Court accepted the recommendation for exoneration but not in its entirety, explaining that exoneration was proper in line with the governing rule on administrative sanctions and evidentiary threshold. The Court also recognized, however, that respondent’s course of conduct reflected inadequate judgment in the handling of the case in court. Consequently, the Court dismissed the case while imposing an admonition rather than imposing disciplinary sanctions.

Legal Basis and Reasoning

The Court articulated the controlling standard for disbarment and suspension. Citing Justice Malcolm’s oft-quoted language, the Court held that the serious consequences of disbarment or suspension should follow only when there is a clear preponderance of evidence against the respondent. It emphasized that there is a presumption that the attorney is innocent of the charges and that the attorney performed duties as an officer of the court in accordance with the oath taken. The Court referenced decisions from Atienza v. Evangelista through Santos v. Panganiban, Jr., including the fact that Santos was promulgated on February 28, 1983.

Applying this standard, the Court accepted that the evidence did not establish, by clear preponderance, the charged misconduct of failing to notify and attend in a manner that would justify disciplinary action. T

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