G.R. No. 119706. March 14, 1996. Philippine Airlines, Inc., Petitioner, vs. Court of APPEALS and GILDA C. MEJIA, Respondents
G.R. No. 119706. March 14, 1996. Philippine Airlines, Inc., Petitioner, vs. Court of APPEALS and GILDA C. MEJIA, Respondents
G.R. No. 119706. March 14, 1996. Philippine Airlines, Inc., Petitioner, vs. Court of APPEALS and GILDA C. MEJIA, Respondents
*
G.R. No. 119706. March 14, 1996.
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* SECOND DIVISION.
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the findings of the trial court in this case, especially with its full
affirmance by respondent Court of Appeals.
Same; Same; Same; Courts; Pesos and Principles; It will never
be known exactly how many man-hours went into the preparation,
litigation and adjudication of a simple dispute over an oven,
which the parties will no doubt insist they contested as a matter of
principle, though one thing is certain—as long as the first letter in
“principle” is somehow outplaced by the peso sign, the courts will
always have to resolve similar controversies although mutual
goodwill could have dispensed with judicial recourse.—On this
note, the case at bar goes into the annals of our jurisprudence
after six years and recedes into the memories of our legal
experience as just another inexplicable inevitability. We will
never know exactly how many man-hours went into the
preparation, litigation and adjudication of this simple dispute
over an oven, which the parties will no doubt insist they contested
as a matter of principle. One thing, however, is certain. As long as
the first letter in “principle” is somehow outplaced by the peso
sign, the courts will always have to resolve similar controversies
although mutual goodwill could have dispensed with judicial
recourse.
REGALADO, J.:
Defendant’s
3
counterclaim is hereby dismissed for lack of
merit.”
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55
over the case; that plaintiff has no valid cause of action against
defendant since it acted only in good faith and in compliance with
the requirements of the law, regulations, conventions and
contractual commitments; and that defendant had always
exercised the required diligence
4
in the selection, hiring and
supervision of its employees.”
________________
4 Ibid., 39.
56
1990 (Exh. ‘6’ also Exh. ‘E’). During the investigations, plaintiff
failed to submit positive proof of the value of the cargo. Hence her
claim was denied.
“Also plaintiff’s claim was filed out of time under paragraph 12,
a(1) of the Air Waybill (Exh. ‘A,’ also Exh. ‘1’) which provides: ‘(a)
the person entitled to delivery must make a complaint to the
carrier in writing in case: (1) of visible damage to the goods,
immediately after discovery of the damage5 and at the latest
within 14 days from the receipt of the goods.”
_______________
5 Ibid., 47-48.
6 Ibid., 45.
7 L-24834, September 23, 1968, 25 SCRA 70.
57
employee to another th(e)n told to come back the next day, and
the next day, until she was referred to a certain Atty. Paco. When
they got tired and frustrated of coming without a settlement of
their claim in sight, they consulted a lawyer who demanded from
defendant on August 13, 1990 (Exh. ‘E,’ an[d] Exh. ‘6’).
“The conclusion that inescapably emerges from 8
the above
findings of fact is to concede it with credence. x x x.”
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11 Ibid., 62-64.
12 Ong Yiu vs. Court of Appeals, et al., L-40597, June 29, 1979, 91
SCRA 223; Servando, et al. vs. Philippine Steam Navigation, L-36481-2,
October 23, 1982, 117 SCRA 832; Sea Land Services, Inc. vs. Intermediate
Appellate Court, et al., G.R. No. 75118, August 31, 1987, 153 SCRA 552;
Pan American World Airways, Inc. vs. Intermediate Appellate Court, et
al., G.R. No. 70462, August 11, 1988, 164 SCRA 268; Citadel Lines, Inc.
vs. Court of Appeals, et al., G.R. No. 88092, April 25, 1990, 184 SCRA 544;
Magellan Manufacturing Marketing Corporation vs. Court of Appeals, et
al., G.R. No. 95529, August 22, 1991, 201 SCRA 102; Saludo, Jr. vs. Court
of Appeals, et al., G.R. No. 95536, March 23, 1992, 207 SCRA 498; Pan
American World Airways, Inc. vs. Rapadas, et al., G.R. No. 60673, May 19,
1992, 209 SCRA 67.
59
________________
60
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1966, 17 SCRA 606; Qua Chee Gan vs. Law Union and Rock Insurance
Co., Ltd., etc., 98 Phil. 85 (1955); Fieldmen’s Insurance Co., Inc. vs. Court
of Appeals, et al., supra; Sweet Lines, Inc. vs. Teves, etc., et al., L-37750,
May 19, 1978, 83 SCRA 361; Angeles vs. Calasanz, L-42283, March 18,
1985, 135 SCRA 323; BPI Credit Corporation vs. Court of Appeals, et al.,
G.R. No. 96755, December 1, 1991, 204 SCRA 601; Maersk Line vs. Court
of Appeals, et al., G.R. No. 94761, May 17, 1993, 222 SCRA 108.
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62
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16 Rollo, 26-31.
17 Ibid., 80-81.
18 Ibid., 64-65.
63
xxx
“Q Did you declare the value of the shipment?
A No. I was advised not to.
Q Who advised you?
21
A At the PAL Air Cargo.”
the condition
22
and manner of packing prior to acceptance for
shipment, as well as during the preparation of the air
waybill by PAL’s
_______________
19 St. Paul Fire & Marine Insurance Co. vs. Macondray & Co., L-27796,
March 25, 1976, 70 SCRA 122, 126. See also Sea Land Services, Inc. vs.
Intermediate Appellate Court, et al., supra; Pan American World Airways,
Inc. vs. Intermediate Appellate Court, et al., supra; Citadel Lines, Inc. vs.
Court of Appeals, et al., supra.
20 Sweet Lines, Inc. vs. Teves, supra; Pan American World Airways,
Inc. vs. Rapadas, et al., supra.
21 TSN, February 13, 1992, 40.
22 Ibid., id., 17.
64
Acceptance
23
Personnel based on information supplied by the
shipper, and to reject the cargo if the contents or the
packing did not meet the company’s required specifications.
Certainly, PAL could not have been otherwise prevailed
upon to merely accept the cargo.
While Vicente Villaruz, officer-in-charge of the PAL
Import Section at the time of incident, posited that there
may have
24
been inadequate and improper packing of the
cargo, which by itself could be a ground for refusing
carriage of the goods presented for shipment, he
nonetheless admitted on cross-examination that private
respondent’s cargo was accepted by PAL in its San
Francisco office:
“ATTY. VINCO
So that, be that as it may, my particular concern is
that, it is the PAL personnel that accepts the baggage?
WITNESS
Yes, sir.
ATTY. VINCO
Also, if he comes from abroad like in this particular
case, it is the PAL personnel who accepts the baggage?
WITNESS
Yes, sir.
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ATTY. VINCO
And the PAL personnel may or may not accept the
baggage?
WITNESS
Yes, sir.
ATTY. VINCO
According to what is stated as in the acceptance of the
cargo, it is to the best interest of the airlines, that is, he
want(s) also that the airlines would be free from any lia
bility. Could that be one of the grounds for not admitting
a baggage?
WITNESS
Safety is number one (1)
x x x
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65
ATTY. VINCO
So, this baggage was accepted and admitted in San
Francisco?
WITNESS
Yes, sir.
ATTY. VINCO
And you could not show any document to the Court that
would suggest that this baggage was denied admittance
by your office at San Francisco?
WITNESS
No, I cannot show.
ATTY. VINCO
Now, can you show any document that would suggest
that there was insufficient pac(k)aging on this particular
baggage from abroad?
WITNESS
25
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No, sir.”
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66
colod City
28
on the very same afternoon of the day of her
arrival. As instructed, Concepcion Diño promptly
proceeded to PAL’s Import Section the next day to claim
the oven. Upon discovering that the glass door was broken,
she immediately
29
filed a claim by way of the baggage freight
claim on which30
was duly annotated the damage sustained
by the oven. Her testimony relates what took place
thereafter:
“ATTY. VINCO
So, after that inspection, what did you do?
WITNESS
After that annotation placed by Mr. Villaruz, I went
home and I followed it up the next day with the Clerk of
PAL cargo office.
ATTY. VINCO
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ATTY. VINCO
So, what did you do, did you make a report or did you
tell Atty. Paco of your scouting around for a possible
replacement?
WITNESS
I did call him back at his office. I made a telephone
call.
ATTY. VINCO
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And what answer did Atty. Paco make after you have
reported back to him?
WITNESS
They told me that they were going to process the claim
based on the price that I gave them but there was no
definite result.
ATTY. VINCO
How many times did you go and see Atty. Paco
regarding the claim of your sister?
WITNESS
I made one personal visit and several follow-up calls.
With Atty. Paco, I made one phone call but I made
several phone calls with his secretary or the clerk at PAL
cargo office and I was trying to locate him but 31
unfortunately, he was always out of his office.”
**
PAL claims processor, Rodolfo Pandes, confirmed having 32
received the baggage freight claim on January 30, 1990
and the referral to and extended pendency of the private
respondent’s claim with the office of Atty. Paco, to wit:
“ATTY. VINCO:
Q And you did instruct the claimant to see the Claim
Officer of the company, right?
WITNESS:
A Yes, sir.
ATTY. VINCO:
Q And the Claim Officer happened to be Atty. Paco?
WITNESS:
A Yes, sir.
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69
ATTY. VINCO:
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_______________
36 Cathay Pacific Airways, Inc. vs. Court of Appeals, et al., supra; Luna,
et al. vs. Court of Appeals, et al., G.R. Nos. 100374-75, November 27, 1992,
216 SCRA 107.
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37 Santos III vs. Northwest Airlines, et al., G.R. No. 101538, June 23,
1992, 210 SCRA 256.
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“As to the last assigned error, a perusal of the facts and law of the
case reveals that the lower court’s award of moral and exemplary
damages, attorney’s fees and costs of suit to plaintiff-appellee is in
accordance with current laws and jurisprudence on the matter.
Indeed, aside from the fact that defendant-appellant acted in bad
faith in breaching the contract and in denying plaintiff’s valid
claim for damages, plaintiff-appellee underwent profound
distress, sleep-less nights, and anxiety upon knowledge of her
damaged microwave oven in possession of defendant-appellant,
entitling her to the award of moral and exemplary damages
(Cathay Pacific Airways, Ltd. vs. C.A., supra; Arts. 2219 & 2221,
New Civil Code), and certainly plaintiff-appellant’s unjust refusal
to comply with her valid demand for payment, thereby also
entitling
41
her to reasonable attorney’s fees [Art. 2208 (2) and (11),
id.].”
ATTY. VINCO
So that, you now claim, Mr. Witness, that from the
time the cargo was unloaded from the plane until the
time it reaches the Customs counter where it was
inspected, all
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41 Rollo, 44-45
42 TSN, August 14, 1992, 4-18.
73
the way, it was the PAL personnel who did all these
things?
WITNESS
Yes, however, there is also what we call the Customs
storekeeper and the Customs guard along with the cargo.
ATTY. VINCO
You made mention about a locator?
WITNESS
Yes, sir.
ATTY. VINCO
This locator, is he an employee of the PAL or the
Customs?
WITNESS
43
He is a PAL employee.”
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45
which by itself justifies the present award of damages.
The equally unexplained and inordinate delay in acting on
the claim upon referral thereof to the claims officer, Atty.
Paco, and the noncommittal responses to private
respondent’s entreaties for settlement of her claim for
damages belies petitioner’s pretension that there was no
bad faith on its part. This unprofessional indifference of
PAL’s personnel despite full and actual knowledge of the
damage to private respon-dent’s cargo, just to be
exculpated from liability on pure technicality and
bureaucratic subterfuge, smacks of willful misconduct and
insensitivity
46
to a passenger’s plight tantamount to bad
faith and renders unquestionable petitioner’s liability for
damages. In sum, there is no reason to disturb the findings
of the trial court in this case, especially with its full
affirmance by respondent Court of Appeals.
On this note, the case at bar goes into the annals of our
jurisprudence after six years and recedes into the
memories of our legal experience as just another
inexplicable inevitability. We will never know exactly how
many man-hours went into the preparation, litigation and
adjudication of this simple dispute over an oven, which the
parties will no doubt insist they contested as a matter of
principle. One thing, however, is certain. As long as the
first letter in “principle” is somehow outplaced by the peso
sign, the courts will always have to resolve similar
controversies although mutual goodwill could have
dispensed with judicial recourse.
IN VIEW OF ALL OF THE FOREGOING, the assailed
judgment of respondent Court of Appeals is AFFIRMED in
toto.
SO ORDERED.
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