What is the effect of presumption? Diesel Construction vs. UPSI Property,  549 SCRA 12 FACTS Diesel, as Contractor, and UPSI, as Owner, entered into a Construction Agreement (Agreement) for the interior architectural construction works for the 14th to 16th floors of the UPSI BuildingDiesel requested for extension owing to the following causes or delaying factors: (1) manual hauling of materials from the 14th to 16th floors; (2) delayed supply of marble; (3) various change orders; and (4) delay in the installation of shower assembly. UPSI disapproved of the desired extensions. Diesel filed a complaint before the CIAC, praying that UPSI be compelled to pay the unpaid balance of the contract price, plus damages and attorney's fees. In an answer with counterclaim, UPSI denied liability, accused Diesel of abandoning a project yet to be finished. CIAC ordered UPSI to pay Diesel the total amount of PhP 4,027,861.60, broken down as follows: PhP 3,661,692.60, representing the unpaid bal...

MCLAUHIN VS. CA ,ET AL.,  G.R. NO. 57552, OCTO. 10 1986 FACTS In 1977, Luisa F. McLaughlin and Ramon Flores entered into a contract of conditional sale of real property. When Flores failed to pay the balance due in May 1977, McLaughlin filed a complaint for rescission of the deed of conditional sale in 1979. The parties submitted a compromise agreement in 1979, which provided for the payment of the balance in two equal installments in 1980, with an additional agreement for Flores to pay P1,000 monthly rental beginning in December 1979. The compromise agreement also stated that if Flores failed to comply with his obligations, McLaughlin would be entitled to the issuance of a writ of execution rescinding the deed of conditional sale, and in such eventuality, Flores would forfeit all payments made as liquidated damages. When Flores failed to pay the balance due on October 31, 1980, McLaughlin refused his tendered payment on November 3, 1980. Whether private respondent remains liab...

PEOPLE VS. PARAGSA  G.R. NO. L-44060, JULY 20, 1978 FACTS Benben Paragsa was charged with the rape of a 12 ½ year old girl, Mirasol Magallanes.  The information alleged that victim was alone in her house when the Benben entered, intimidated her with a hunting knife, forced her to lie in bed and there they had intercourse.  The deed was interrupted when her aunt Lita, knocked on the door of victim’s house. Incidentally, Aunt Lita testified that she had seen the accused exiting the house when she came knocking.  The victim did not reveal what happened to her until 6 days after the incident.  Accused interposed the “Sweetheart defense”.  Defense claims in effect that there was no force or intimidation involved and that what Aunt Lita saw was not the aftermath of a rape, but was rather consensual sexual intercourse.  Accused also presented witnesses claiming that they were indeed sweethearts. The CFI convicted Benben. ...

PEOPLE VS. REYES,  G.R. NO. 178300, MARCH 17, 2009 FACTS Accused appellants were found guilty of kidnapping with ransom. On 26 July 1999, appellant Arnaldo surrendered to the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF) at Camp Crame, Quezon City. Thereupon, appellant Arnaldo, with the assistance of Atty. Uminga, executed a written extra-judicial confession narrating his participation in the incident. Appellant Arnaldo identified appellants Reyes and Flores, Pataray and a certain Tata and Akey as his co-participants in the incident. Appellant Arnaldo also described the physical features of his cohorts and revealed their whereabouts. On 26 July 1999, appellant Arnaldo surrendered to the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF) at Camp Crame, Quezon City. Thereupon, appellant Arnaldo, with the assistance of Atty. Uminga, executed a written extra-judicial confession narrating his participation in the incident. Appellant Arnaldo identified appellants Reye...

PEOPLE VS. BRGY. CAPT. TONY TOMAS ETC.  G.R. NO. 192251, FEBRUARY 16, 2011 FACTS T hree accused were indicted for murder on July 21, 2006, for allegedly shooting Estrella Doctor Casco on July 19, 2006. During the incident, the accused without warning, shot the victim twice and continued to shoot her three more times while she was on the ground, resulting in her death. The victim's mother and caretakers were present during the shooting. The three accused fled towards the house of one of them after the shooting. The prosecution presented a detailed version of the events that led to the victim's death, including the testimonies of witnesses, an autopsy report, and the police investigation. Whether the negative findings of the paraffin test concusively show that a person did not fire a gun. HELD No. Time and again this Court had reiterated that “even negative findings of the paraffin test do not conclusively show that a person did not fire a gun,” and that “a paraffin test h...

PEOPLE VS. ALEGRE, ET AL.,  L-30423, NOV. 7, 1976 FACTS The case involves the death of Adelina Sajo y Maravilla, whose body was found in her home. Melecio Cudillan was caught pawning a bracelet taken from the victim and confessed to his participation in the killing and robbery. In his extrajudicial confessions, he implicated several other individuals, including Jesus Medalla and Mario Comayas, who denied any involvement in the crime. During the trial, Melecio repudiated his confessions as products of compulsion and duress, and appellants argued that the lower court erred in using his confessions as evidence against them and in concluding from their alleged silence an admission of guilt. The case also involved the testimony of an inmate who claimed that the appellants admitted to him their participation in the crime. Whether the extrajudicial confessions of Melecio Cudillan can be used as evidence and are not competent proof against appellants Ramiro Alegre and Jesus Medalla. ...

PEOPLE VS. VALERIO, JR.,  L-4116, FEBRUARY 25, 1982 FACTS The case revolves around a plot of murder of an eight-year old boy for insurance. On July 31, 1975, the trial Court, disbelieving the respective alibi of VALERIO and ELEPAÑO convicted them. The evidence for the prosecution as against VALERIO consisted mainly in the testimony of self- confessed and convicted accused Amador Castro, who described the details of the morbid scheme, as well as the testimonies of Dr. Pedro Romero, Herminigildo Solar, Dr. Prospero Cabanayan and Generoso Dangca. On April 25, 1973, Amador Castro executed another Statement before NBI agent Libit, Dulog and Pagdonsolan. Therein Amador Castro related essentially the same details he testified to in open Court, categorically implicating accused VALERIO. In said Statement, Castro narrated that sometime in November 1972, VALERIO proposed the insurance on the boy Castro had picked up at the Pantranco bus, who would be killed later so that they could ...

THE PEOPLE VS NIERRA G.R. No. L-32624 February 12, 1980 FACTS Felicisimo Doblen, Vicente Rojas and the spouses Paciano Nierra and Gaudencia Nierra appealed from the decision of the CFI convicting them of murder. Gaspar Misa, who pleaded guilty to the murder charge, was also sentenced to death. Juliana Gadugdug-Nierra and Paciano Nierra, her brother-in-law, were business competitors. In order to monopolize those businesses in the locality, Paciano conceived the idea of killing his competitor, Juliana. For that purpose, Felicisimo Doblen, a cousin-in-law of Paciano, introduced him to Gaspar Misa, a convicted murderer who had escaped from prison. Misa, in the presence of Gaudencia Garrido-Nierra, the wife of Paciano, agreed to kill Juliana in consideration of Php 3,000. Misa asked his friend Vicente Rojas to act as lookout on the night of the killing. Misa killed Juliana by firing a gun into her mouth. However, Paciano only gave him Php 400 instead of Php 3,000.  When Misa was inter...

PEOPLE VS. SERRANO ET AL,  105 PHIL 531 FACTS Domingo Cadiang, Santiago Yumul, and Filemon Cenzon were found guilty of murder in Criminal Case No. 1262 by the Court of First Instance of Pampanga. They were part of a group led by Cenon Serrano alias Piping who planned to kill Pablo Navarro for his supposed involvement in urging people to testify on the Maliwalu massacre to Senator Pablo Angeles David. The group waited for Navarro at several locations and eventually lured him to a drinking spree where they made him drunk before taking him to a remote location. There, Navarro was tied up and shot to death by the group, with Cenon Serrano alias Piping being the one who gave the order to tie Navarro's hands with a rope. The other defendants were found guilty along with their co-defendants who did not appeal and were sentenced to suffer reclusion perpetua and pay indemnity and their proportionate share in the costs. In addition to the verdict for the death of Simplicio Manguerra, the...

PEOPLE VS. CONSTANCIO Y BACUNGAY G.R. No. 206226, April 04, 2016 FACTS This is an appeal from the decision of the CA which affirmed the decision of the RTC, finding Nieves Constancio and Ernesto Berry guilty of the crime of Rape with Homicide. "AAA" was raped and killed by Constancio, Berry, and others. "AAA's" body was then placed inside the trunk of her car. Adarna, a tricycle driver, saw Berry, Constancio, and their other companions, throw something over a bridge which turned out to be "AAA's body upon investigation by the authorities. During the custodial investigation, Berry executed an extrajudicial confession which was embodied in a Sinumpaang Salaysay.  At the trial, however, Berry denounced the Sinumpaang Salaysay as false, and claimed that he was coerced into signing the same. For his part, Constancio contended that he was in Baguio at the time of the commission of the crime. Both Constancio and Berry denied the charges against them. These...

SAN MIGUEL VS. KALALO,  G.R. No. 185522, June 13, 2012 FACTS Kalalo had been a dealer of beer products since 1998. She had a credit overdraft arrangement with petitioner SMC whereby, prior to the delivery of beer products.In time, respondent’s business grew and the number of beer products delivered to her by SMC increased from 200 to 4,000 cases a week. Because of the increased volume of deliveries, it became very difficult for her to follow and keep track of the transactions. Thus, she requested regular statements of account from petitioner, but it failed to comply. In 2000, SMC’s agent required Kalalo to issue several postdated checks to cope with the probable increase in orders during the busy Christmas season, without informing her of the breakdown of the balance. She complied with the request; but after making several cash payments and returning a number of empty beer bottles and cases, she noticed that she still owed petitioner a substantial amount. She then insisted that ...

EL VARADERO DE MANILA VS. INSULAR LUMBER  G.R. No. 21911, September 15, 1924 FACTS El Varadero de Manila completed certain repairs on a lighter, which is the property of the Insular Lumber Company. The work was performed pursuant to no express agreement, but with the implicit understanding that the price would be as low as, or lower than, could be secured from any other company. The Insular Lumber Company being of the opinion that the bill as presented by El Varadero de Manila was grossly exorbitant, the matter was taken to the CFI. El Varadero de Manila was able to secure judgment against the Insular Lumber Company, in the amount of P5,310.70. Still dissatisfied at the amount, the plaintiff now appeals. Whether the rule of exclusion of compromise negotiations does not apply where there is no denial of liability, and the only questions discussed relate to the amount to be paid. HELD. Yes. The general rule is that an offer of compromise is inadmissible. Where, however, the...