Title
Salazar vs. Felias
Case
G.R. No. 213972
Decision Date
Feb 5, 2018
Heirs of Nivera won ownership of disputed land; heirs of Lastimosa failed to overturn final judgment, lacking proof of family home exemption or due process violation.
execution of final judgment
annulment of judgment
appeal
A

Case Summary (G.R. No. 60077)

Procedural History — Trial Court Judgment

On March 16, 2004, the Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 55, Alaminos, Pangasinan, rendered judgment declaring the Heirs of Nivera as absolute owners of the subject parcels, ordering the Heirs of Lastimosa to vacate and surrender possession, and awarding actual damages, attorney’s fees, litigation expenses, and costs. The Heirs of Lastimosa did not appeal that RTC decision.

Substitution of Parties and Alleged Non‑Impleading

Romualdo Lastimosa died on March 3, 1997. On July 6, 1998, the Heirs of Lastimosa filed a Motion for Substitution naming Felisa and their children as substituted defendants. Petitioner Felicitas later claimed she was not impleaded in the RTC proceedings and asserted deprivation of due process by reason of that omission.

Petition for Annulment of Judgment — CA and Supreme Court Rulings

Felicitas, together with Recto and Rizalina, filed a Petition for Annulment of Judgment before the Court of Appeals (CA), alleging deprivation of due process. The CA dismissed the petition, reasoning that the omission to implead Felicitas was attributable to the defendants’ failure to include her in their substitution motion and that the RTC had acquired jurisdiction over the original defendants such that the outcome bound their heirs. The Supreme Court affirmed the CA decision on June 3, 2009, and the ruling became final.

Motions Regarding Execution and Demolition

The Heirs of Lastimosa filed an Urgent Motion to Order the Sheriff to Desist from Making Demolition (April 24, 2010), arguing among other things that the property could not be executed because Felicitas had an unpartitioned aliquot share. The Heirs of Nivera filed a Motion for Execution and Demolition (May 28, 2010) relying on the finality of the RTC judgment. On July 9, 2010, the RTC granted the motion for execution and demolition and denied the motion to desist, ordering the issuance of a writ of execution and demolition.

CA Appeal from the RTC Order

The Heirs of Lastimosa appealed the RTC’s execution order to the CA. On December 6, 2013, the CA dismissed the appeal on the grounds that: (i) the appellants used the wrong remedy (appeal rather than a petition for certiorari under Rule 65); (ii) the issue of Felicitas’ non‑inclusion was already res judicata, having been finally settled in CA-G.R. SP No. 95592 and affirmed by the Supreme Court; and (iii) execution was proper because the RTC judgment had attained finality. The CA affirmed the RTC order.

Supreme Court Petition and Issues Presented

Felicitas filed a petition for review on certiorari under Rule 45 seeking reversal of the CA decision. The central issue before the Supreme Court was whether the CA erred in ordering execution of the RTC decision, specifically whether (a) the writ of execution was issued against the wrong party because Felicitas had not been impleaded and therefore the judgment could not bind her, and (b) the subject property was exempt from execution as the family home under Article 155 of the Family Code.

Parties’ Main Contentions

Petitioner’s contentions: she was not impleaded in the RTC suit and thus was deprived of due process and cannot be bound by the judgment; the property is her family home and therefore exempt from execution under Article 155 of the Family Code. Respondents’ contentions: the petition is a dilatory maneuver to delay enforcement; the non‑impleading issue has been finally resolved against Felicitas; Felicitas failed to produce evidence to establish the family‑home exemption and even admitted residence in Muñoz, Nueva Ecija; the subject property belonged to the Heirs of Nivera since the 1950s.

Legal Principles on Finality and Execution of Judgments

The Court reaffirmed the settled rule that a final and executory judgment is immutable and may not be altered except in narrowly defined circumstances (void judgments, clerical corrections, nunc pro tunc entries). A final judgment becomes the law of the case and the ordinary course does not allow its modification. The Court reiterated that a writ of execution on a final and executory judgment ordinarily must be enforced and parties cannot raise new issues of fact or law to resist execution, except in enumerated exceptions.

Enumerated Exceptions to Enforcing Execution

The Court cited recognized exceptions permitting refusal or modification of execution: where (i) the writ varies the judgment; (ii) there is a change in the parties’ situation making execution inequitable; (iii) execution is sought against property exempt from execution; (iv) the controversy has been submitted to arbitration; (v) the terms of the judgment are unclear; or (vi) the writ was improvidently issued, defective in substance, issued against the wrong party, or the judgment debt has been paid or satisfied, or the writ was issued without authority.

Analysis — Non‑Impleading and Res Judicata

The Court held that the issue whether Felicitas was deprive d of due process by non‑impleading had already been finally adjudicated. The CA had squarely ruled on that point and assigned fault to the defendants for failing to include Felicitas in the substitution motion; that CA ruling was affirmed by the Supreme Court in 2009. Consequently, the non‑impleading contention is barred by res judicata and cannot be relitigated to resist execution. As an heir of the original defendants, Felicitas is bound by the judgment rendered against her predecessors‑in‑interest.

Analysis — Family Home Exemption and Burden of Proof

On the family‑home exemption, the Court emphasized that

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