Case Summary (G.R. No. 199480)
Antecedent Facts
On February 9, 2006, the Regional Director of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) recommended the criminal prosecution of Tess S. Valeriano, President of Capital Insurance & Surety Co., Inc., for failure to pay various internal revenue taxes. This recommendation was related to substantial tax obligations that violated several sections of the 1997 NIRC. Following the recommendation, Assistant City Prosecutor Suwerte L. Ofrecio-Gonzales filed an Information against Valeriano on July 9, 2009, for these violations. The CTA first requested confirmation that the prosecution had the written approval of the BIR Commissioner, which was not provided.
CTA Dismissals and Appeals
Due to the absence of the required approval document, the CTA Special First Division dismissed the case on November 23, 2009, citing failure to prosecute. Subsequent motions by the BIR, which later submitted a photocopy of an alleged approval from the BIR Commissioner, were insufficient as the copy was poorly readable, leading to the reaffirmation of dismissal by the CTA on June 1, 2010. The petitioner contended that the failure of the Prosecutor to comply was not a fault of the government.
Court of Tax Appeals En Banc Proceedings
Following these events, a petition for review was filed with the CTA en banc, which encountered difficulties in serving documents to Valeriano, resulting in no response from her. The CTA en banc eventually denied the petition on November 18, 2011, asserting that the petitioner had failed to comply with prior orders. The court affirmed the dismissals while modifying the order to make it without prejudice.
Supreme Court's Ruling
The Supreme Court analyzed the required compliance with Section 220 of the NIRC, which mandates the Commissioner’s approval for initiating criminal actions regarding tax violations. It highlighted that while a recommendation from the Regional Director had been submitted, it did not meet this requirement. The inadequacy of the supposedly submitted approval, which was not clearly legible, was a major factor in the court's conclusions.
Despite the lapses by the prosecutorial team, the Court emphasized the necessity for the governmen
...continue readingCase Syllabus (G.R. No. 199480)
Case Overview
- This case involves a Petition for Review on Certiorari filed by the People of the Philippines (petitioner) against Tess S. Valeriano (respondent).
- The petition challenges the Decision of the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) en banc dated November 18, 2011, which upheld the dismissal of criminal charges against Valeriano.
- The dismissal was based on the failure of the petitioner to comply with procedural requirements in filing the criminal case.
Antecedent Facts
- On February 9, 2006, the Regional Director of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) recommended criminal prosecution against Valeriano for failure to pay internal revenue tax obligations related to her corporation, Capital Insurance & Surety Co., Inc.
- The alleged tax obligations included deficiencies in Income Tax, Value Added Tax (VAT), Expanded Withholding Tax (EWT), and Documentary Stamp Tax (DST), totaling over P50 million.
- An Information was filed with the CTA on July 9, 2009, by Assistant City Prosecutor Suwerte L. Ofrecio-Gonzales.
- The CTA First Division required proof of written approval from the BIR Commissioner for the prosecution, as mandated by Section 220 of the 1997 National Internal