Decision summaries
What each Supreme Court decision decided, in a sentence or two. Open one and use its Summary tab for the facts, issue and ruling in plain language or lawyer mode. These are study aids, not legal advice. Check the decision itself before you rely on it.
- G.R. 266047Apr 2024People of the Philippines v. Jeffrey Becaylas y Remon @ "Bella," Kier Rome de Leon y Alfonso @ "Mishe," and Justine Lumanlan y Sangalang @ "Chiee,"People who recruit and pimp a minor for sex are guilty of qualified trafficking in persons, and the child's agreement or awareness is no defense.
- G.R. 251824Apr 2024Peter B. Favila v. Commission on AuditA government board member who did not approve a disallowed benefit still has to return what he personally received, but not the whole amount disallowed.
- A.M. P-17-3768Apr 2024Office of the Court Administrator v. Ruel v. DelicanaA court employee can be punished administratively for sexually abusing a minor even if the criminal cases were dropped, because an administrative case needs only substantial evidence and the victim's desistance does not end it.
- A.M. MTJ-23-014Apr 2024(Formerly Jib Fpi No. 21-024-Mtj) Hon. Sharon Magayanes, Vice Executive Judge/presiding Judge, Branch 3, Municipal Trial Court in Cities , Calamba City, Laguna v. Hon. Leah Angeli B. Vasquez-Abad, Executive Judge/presiding Judge, Branch 1, Mtcc, Calamba City, Laguna a.m. No. Mtj-23-015 (Formerly Jib Fpi No. 21-032-Mtj) Judge Leah Angeli B. Vasquez-Abad Vs. Hon. Sharon M. Alamada-Magayanes, Presiding Judge, Ms. Rachel Worwor-Miguel, Clerk of Court III, and Ms. Beverly a. de Jesus, Court Stenographer II, All of Branch 3, Mtcc, Calamba City, Laguna a.m. No. Mtj-24-026 (Formerly Jib Fpi No. 21-033-Mtj) Hon. Leah Angeli B. Vasquez-Abad, Executive Judge/presiding Judge, Branch 1, Mtcc, Calamba City, Laguna, and Hon. Eric Ismael P. Sakkam, Presiding Judge, Branch 2, Mtcc, Calamba City, Laguna Vs. Hon. Sharon M. Alamada-Magayanes, Presiding Judge, Branch 3, Mtcc, Calamba City, Laguna a.m. No. Mtj-24-027 (Formerly Jib Fpi No. 21-042-Mtj) Judge Sharon a. Magayanes, Vice Executive Judge and Presiding Judge, Branch 3, Mtcc, Calamba City, Laguna Vs. Judge Ismael P. Sakkam, Presiding Judge, Branch 2, and Judge Leah Angeli B. Vasquez-Abad, Executive Judge and Presiding Judge, Branch 1, Both of the Mtcc, Calamba City, LagunaA judge who signed false payroll certifications and took a former driver's salary card was dismissed from the judiciary and disbarred, while a judge who made an honest procedural mistake was only admonished.
- G.R. 258269Apr 2024Jose Antonio Paulo I. Reyes v. Samsung Electronic Phils. Corp., Kevin Lee, Minsu Chu, and Silver FungoA probationary employee can be let go for failing the employer's reasonable standards, and for a managerial job, adequate performance of the job's duties is itself an implied standard.
- G.R. 265585Apr 2024Felix Nathaniel "Angel" Villanueva Manalo II v. People of the PhilippinesIf a court mistakenly reads the old charge at arraignment after the charge has been amended, the accused's plea to the old charge does not count, so there is no double jeopardy.
- G.R. 262603Apr 2024People of the Philippines v. Nelson Sia, Jr. y AculñaA killing can still be treachery (a sudden attack that gives the victim no chance to defend) even if police and other people are standing nearby, because what matters is whether the victim could defend himself.
- G.R. 267795Apr 2024People of the Philippines v. Jose P. Ragudo, JrA sudden attack is not automatically treacherous, so a killing cannot be called murder unless the prosecution clearly proves the attacker deliberately chose a method that left the victim defenseless.
- G.R. 257871Apr 2024Hja Ferwina Jikiri Amilhamja, Anang Agang Hawang, Nenita Pino Aguil, Audie Sinco Janea, and Abdurasa Sariol Arasid,* v. Ombudsman-Mindanao, Field Investigation Unit, Represented by: Liwayway Sumagaysay-RondinaBids and awards committee members who broke procurement rules without corruption or deliberate intent were liable only for simple misconduct, while the college president who signed an unauthorized, over-budget contract was dismissed for gross neglect of duty.
- G.R. 232968Apr 2024Marina P. Clarete, Former Representative, First District of Misamis Occidental, 14th Congress v. Office of the Ombudsman and Field Investigation Unit – Mindanao Area Office, Office of the Ombudsman Arthur Cua Yap Vs. the Office of the Ombudsman and Field Investigation Unit – Mindanao Area Office Arthur Cua Yap Vs. Sandiganbayan (Third Division) and People of the PhilippinesThe Supreme Court dismissed former Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap's pork barrel cases because the Sandiganbayan wrongly ignored the Ombudsman's unjustified three-year delay and the Informations did not state any crime he committed.
- G.R. 250763Apr 2024Matthew Westfall v. Maria Carmela D. Locsin, Amy Leung, Noriko Ogawa, Gil-Hong Kim, Diwesh Sharan, Ramesh Subramaniam, Ken L. Chee, Bibiana Victoria G. Francisco, Takehiko Nakao, Toshio Oya, Makoto Kubota, Christopher Stephens, Ramit K. Nagpal, and Deborah StokesOfficials of the Asian Development Bank are immune from suit only for acts done in their official capacity, and remarks made in a confidential job-screening process were official acts, so the damages suit failed.
- G.R. 252739Apr 2024Xxx v. People of the PhilippinesA husband's marital infidelity that causes his wife mental and emotional anguish is a crime of psychological violence under the Anti-VAWC law (Republic Act No. 9262).
- G.R. 228357Apr 2024C.p. Reyes Hospital and Angeline M. Reyes v. Geraldine M. BarbosaA probationary employee who is illegally dismissed gets backwages up to the finality of the decision, just like a regular employee, and not only until the end of the probationary period.
- G.R. 270564Apr 2024Smartmatic Tim Corporation and Smartmatic Philippines, Inc. v. Commission on Elections En Banc, Eliseo Mijares Rio, Jr., Augusto Cadeliña Lagman, Franklin Fayloga Ysaac, and Leonardo Olivera OdoñoThe Commission on Elections cannot bar a company from election bidding on its own, outside the procedure in the Government Procurement Reform Act, even in the name of protecting election integrity.
- G.R. 242133Apr 2024Roselyn Agacid y Dejanio* v. People of the Philippines and Maria Alexandria Bisquerra y NuevaThe Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act can be used against a woman who abuses her female partner, because the law protects women victims and covers abuse by any person.
- A.M. RTJ-23-037Apr 2024Office of the Court Administrator v. Hon. Lorenzo F. Balo,* Former Presiding Judge, Branch 44, Regional Trial Court, Surallah, South CotabatoA judge who retires can still be disciplined for case delays found in a judicial audit that began before he retired, and sitting on 26 cases for many months is gross neglect of duty.
- G.R. 242362Apr 2024Leonora O. dela Cruz-Lanuza v. Alfredo M. Lanuza, Jr. and the Republic of the PhilippinesA spouse who abandons the family for decades, never supports the children and marries other people may be found psychologically incapacitated, and an expert does not have to examine that spouse in person.
- G.R. 229338Apr 2024Manila Peninsula Hotel, Inc. v. Commissioner of Internal RevenueHotel rooms and meals given to an international airline's pilots and cabin crew during layovers in the Philippines are VAT zero-rated, and BIR circulars that added extra conditions to the law are void.
- G.R. 254433Apr 2024Arlo Aluminum Co., Inc. v. Republic of the PhilippinesBecause a new law eased the rules for confirming land titles while this case was pending, the Supreme Court sent the land registration case back to the Court of Appeals so the applicant can present new evidence.
- G.R. 254186Apr 2024Solito C. Amores, Jr. v. Goldroute Maritime IncA seafarer who was sent home for reasons other than illness, and who then files for full disability benefits without finishing the company doctors' recommended tests, cannot claim those benefits.