RULE 62 Interpleader

Nature of Interpleader: A remedy whereby a person who has property, real or personal, in his possession, or an obligation to render wholly or partially, without claiming any right to either, comes to court and asks that the persons who claim the said property or demand compliance with the obligation, be required to litigate among themselves in order to determine finally who is entitled to the same. Essence of an Interpleader: The essence of an interpleader, aside from disavowal of the interest in the property in litigation on the part of the petitioner, is the deposit of the property or funds in controversy with the court. Basis: It is a rule founded on justice and equity: that the plaintiff may not continue to benefit from the property or funds in litigation during the pendency of the suit at the e!pense of whoever will ultimately be decided as entitled thereto." Purpose of the remedy: This remedy is afforded to protect a person not against double liability but against double ve!ation in respect of one#s liability. (Beltran vs. Peoples Homesite G.R. No. L-25138, A ! st 28, 1"#"$ To compel conflicting claimants to interplead and litigate their several claims among themselves. Section 1 !hen interpleader proper Interpleader was found to be a proper action in an action of a lessee who does not know to whom to pay rentals due to conflicting claims on the property. (Pa!%alina&an vs. Ro'as, 1"(8$ In an action by a bank where the purchaser of a cashier#s check claims it was lost and another has presented it for payment. ()esina vs. *A+ 1"8#$ The sheriff being in doubt as to the priority of conflicting claims, he may properly bring an action of interpleader to determine the

respective rights of the claimants. (,--. ia vs. ,/eri00 G.R. No. L-22812, 34to5er 11, 1"2($ !hen is an Interpleader not proper" Improper in an action where one of the defendants had earlier sued the plaintiff and secured a judgment against him which has already become final. The action is barred by laches or unreasonable delay. (6a4% 6a4% Gol0 an' +o ntr- +l 5, *n4. vs. 6on, 1"2#$ A successful litigant cannot later be impleaded by his defeated adversary in an interpleader suit and be compelled to prove his claim anew against other adverse claimants, as that would in effect be a collateral attack upon the judgment. (s pra$ Improper in an action where defendants have conflicting claims against the plaintiff. (Beltran vs. PHH+, 1"#"$ Su#$ect matter: property whether personal or real an obligation to be rendered wholly or partially RE%UISI&ES: $. %onflicting claims upon the same subject matter are, or may be made against the plaintiff who claims no interest in the subject matter or an interest &in whole or in part' which is not disputed by the claimants. () *. There are two or more claimants to the fund or thing in dispute through separate and different interest. +. The claims must be adverse before relief can be granted and the parties sought to be interpleaded must be in a position to make effective claims. ,. The subject matter &fund, thing or duty' over which the parties assert adverse claims must be one and the same and derived from the same source. !ho must #rin' the action: A disinterested person who: has no claim of any right in the property or the obligation to be performed- or claims an interest, but which, in whole or in part, is not disputed by the conflicting claimants !ho are the defendants" Two or more persons who claims the property in the possession of the plaintiff- or

Two or more persons who consider themselves entitled to demand compliance with the obligation against the plaintiff.

!hat does the plaintiff as( the court to do" The plaintiff asks that the persons who claim the property or who consider themselves entitled to demand compliance with the obligation be required to litigate among themselves, in order to determine finally who is entitled to one or the other thing. !hen to file an interpleader: An action in interpleader should be filed within a reasonable time after a dispute has arisen without waiting to be sued by either of the contending claimants. (therwise he may be barred by laches or undue delay. Interpleader as proper remedy in search )arrant cases: .here personal property has been sei/ed under a search warrant, and it appears reasonably definite that the sei/ure will not be followed by the filing of any criminal action for the prosecution of the offenses in connection with which the warrant was issued, the public prosecutors having pronounced the absence of basis therefore, and there are, moreover, conflicting claims asserted over the sei/ed property, the appropriate remedy is the institution of an ordinary civil action by any interested party, or of a special civil action of interpleader by the 0overnment itself, that action being cogni/able not e!clusively by the court issuing the search warrant but by any other competent court to which it may be assigned by raffle. (7lasons 8nt. +orp. vs. Hon. +A, 155 ,+RA 18#, 34to5er 28, 1"82$ *istinction #et)een interpleader and inter+ention: IN&ERPLE,*ER IN&ER-EN&I.N An original action Ancilliary action 1resupposes that plaintiff has no 1roper in any of the four interest in the subject matter of situations: person having a' legal the action () has an interest interest in the matter in litigation, therein in whole or in part which is or b' success of either of the not disputed by the other parties parties, or c' an interest against both, or d' is so situated as to be adversely affected by a distribution or other disposition of property in the custody of the court or of an officer thereof. &)ule $2, 3ec.$' 4efendants are sued precisely to 4efendants are original parties to

interplead them Section 2. ORDER !hen the order issues

the pending suits

The court shall issue an order upon the filing of the complaint.

!hat the order contains

In the order, the court requires the conflicting claimants to interplead with one another. The court may also direct that the subject matter be paid or delivered to the court if the interests of justice so require.

It is necessary that there be a declaration to this effect before the defendants may litigate among themselves and file a complaint of interpleader. This procedure will do away with groundless suits, and will save the parties time, inconvenience, and unnecessary e!penses. (Pra9e'es Alvare:, et al. vs. ;/e +ommon&ealt/ o0 t/e P/il., #5 P/il. 312$ 5owever, it was held in a much later case that the (rder of the trial court requiring the parties to file their answers is to all intents and purposes an order to interplead, substantially and essentially and therefore in compliance with the provisions of )ule 6* of the )ules of %ourt. Section 3. SUMMONS .hat $. *. +. shall be served upon the conflicting claimants: 3ummons, together with %opy of the %omplaint %opy of the (rder

Section / 0.&I.N &. *IS0ISS !hen to file the motion and the effect of its filin' A motion to dismiss may be filed by each claimant within fifteen days from service of summons upon him which is the same period within which to file an answer. The filing of such motion has the effect of suspending the period to file an answer. Remedy if motion is denied If the motion is denied, the movant may file his answer within the remaining period, but which shall not be less than five days in any event, reckoned from notice of denial.

7or illustration, a claimant received summons on 3eptember $+. 5e has $8 days or until 3eptember *9 to file an answer or a motion to dismiss. If he files a motion on the +rd day or 3eptember $6, the period to file an answer shall be tolled. If later on, the motion to dismiss is denied, he has a remaining period of $* days within which to file an answer which is counted from the notice of denial. If he files the motion to dismiss on the $*th day and later on it was denied, the movant may file an answer not within the remaining period of + days but within 8 days from notice of denial. 1R.UN*S 2.R 0.&I.N &. *IS0ISS: A motion to dismiss may be filed on the following grounds: $. Impropriety of the interpleader action. *. (ther appropriate grounds specified in )ule $6 :nder 3ection $ of )ule $6 of the )ules of %ourt, a motion to dismiss may be filed on any of the following grounds: &a' That the court has no jurisdiction over the person of the defending party&b' That the court has no jurisdiction over the subject matter of the claim&c' That venue is improperly laid&d' That the plaintiff has no legal capacity to sue&e' That there is another action pending between the same parties for the same cause&f' That the cause of action is barred by a prior judgment or by the statute of limitations&g' That the pleading asserting the claim states no cause of action&h' That the claim or demand set forth in the plaintiff#s pleading has been paid, waived, abandoned, or otherwise e!tinguished&i' That the claim on which the action is founded is unenforceable under the provisions of the statute of frauds- and &j' That a condition precedent for filing the claim has not been complied with. Section 3 ,NS!ERS ,N* .&4ER PLE,*IN1S !hen to file an ans)er ;ach claimant shall file an answer within $8 days from service of the summons upon him. The claimant shall serve a copy of his answer upon each of the other conflicting claimants. The other conflicting claimants may then file their reply within $< days from such service in accordance with 3ection 6 of )ule $$.

Effect of failure to plead #y a claimant If a claimant did not file an answer or filed it beyond the $8 days, the court may, on motion, declare him in default. The court will thereafter render judgment barring him from any claim in respect to the subject matter. Pleadin's allo)ed in an interpleader action :nder the *nd paragraph, the parties in an interpleader action may file: $. %ounterclaims *. %ross=claims +. Third party complaints ,. )esponsive pleadings thereto The paragraph was added to 3ection 8 to e!pressly authori/e the additional pleadings and claims enumerated therein, in the interest of a complete adjudication of the controversy and its incidents. &A));>A ?3 4IA>, +6, 3%)A 99' Section 6 *E&ER0IN,&I.N The court shall proceed to determine their respective rights and adjudicate their several claims after: $. the pleadings of the conflicting claims have been filed, and *. pre=trial has been conducted Section 5 LIENS :nless the court shall order otherwise, the following shall constitute a lien or charge upon the subject matter of the action: $. 4ocket and other lawful fees *. %osts and litigation e!penses