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CIVIL LIABILITY ARISING FROM DELICT

Every person criminally liable for a felony is also civilly liable. (Article 100 RPC)
The reason is because a crime has a dual character: as an offense against the State and against the
private person injured by it.
Dual character of crimes applies to cases governed by special laws. Example: violation of the BP 22
results in criminal and civil liability.
There is civil liability even if the offense is a public offense, like in bigamy.
Persons liable are the principal, accomplice and accessories.
It includes restitution, reparation of damages and indemnification of consequential damages.
The rule on proximate cause in quasi-delict cases is applicable to cases involving civil liability
arising from delict. Art. 2202, NCC
Circumstances affecting Civil Liability
1 Justifying circumstances
Defendant is free from civil liability if justifying circumstances are properly establishes.
2 Exempting Circumstances
They do not erase the civil liability.
3 Mitigating and Aggravating Circumstances
Damages to be adjudicated may either be decreased or increased depending on the presence of
mitigating or aggravating circumstances.
Effect of Death
A DEATH AFTER FINAL JUDGMENT: extinguishes criminal liability of the person liable but will not
extinguish the civil liability.
B

DEATH BEFORE FINAL JUDGMENT:


GENERAL RULE: The defendant is relieved from both criminal and civil liability arising from
criminal liability.
EXCEPTION: In case of libel and physical injuries wherein the plaintiff initially opted to claim
damages in the criminal proceeding can file another case under Article 33 of the Civil Code.

Effect of Pardon
Pardon does not erase civil liability.
While pardon removes the existence of guilt so that in the eyes of the law the offender is deemed
innocent and treated as though he never committed the offence, it does not operate to remove all the
effects of the previous conviction.
TORTS WITH INDEPENDENT CIVIL ACTIONS
2 Violation of civil and political rights (Article 32)
Although the same normally involves intentional acts, it can also be committed through negligence.
Public officer who is a defendant cannot escape liability under the doctrine of state immunity; the
said doctrine applies only if acts involved are done by officers in the performance of their official
duty within the ambit of their powers; officers do not act within the ambit of their powers if they
violate the constitutional rights of persons.
3
A

Defamation, Fraud, and Physical injuries (Article 33)


Defamation
Defamation is an invasion of the interest in reputation and good name, by communication to others
which tends to diminish the esteem in which the plaintiff is held, or to excite adverse feelings or
opinion against him.
Includes the crime of libel and slander.
RPC considers the statement defamatory if it is an imputation of circumstance tending to cause the
dishonor, discredit or contempt of natural or juridical person or to blacken the memory of one who
is dead.

Requisites for one to be liable for defamatory imputations:


a It must be defamatory
b It must be malicious
c It must be given publicity
d The victim must be identifiable

NOTES:
Test in determining the defamatory character of the imputation: A charge is sufficient if the words
are calculated to induce the hearers to suppose and understand that the person/s against whom they
were uttered were guilty of a certain offense, or are sufficient to impeach their honesty, virtue, or
reputation, or to hold the person/s up to public ridicule.

Dissemination to a number of persons is not required, communication to a single individual is


sufficient publication.
GENERAL RULE: Every defamatory imputation is presumed to be malicious, even if it be true, if
no good intention or justifiable motive for making it is shown.
EXCEPTIONS:
1
A private communication made by any person to another in the performance of any legal,
moral or social duty; and
2
A fair and true report, made in good faith, without any comments or remarks, of any
judicial, legislative or other official proceedings which are not of confidential nature, or of any
statement, report, or speech delivered in said proceedings or of any other act performed by public
officers in the exercise of their functions.

It is not sufficient that the offended party recognized himself as the person attacked or defamed,
it must be shown that at least a third person could identify him as the object of the libelous
publication.
In order to escape liability, the defendant may claim that the statements made are privileged.

Two kinds of privileged communication:


1 Absolutely privilege Those which are not actionable even if the author acted in bad faith.
2 Qualifiedly privilege not actionable unless found to have been made without good intention or
justifiable motive.
B

Fraud
Elements of deceit
1 The defendant must have made false representation to the plaintiff
2 The representation must be one of fact
3 The defendant must know that the representation is false or be reckless about whether it is
false
4 The defendant must have acted on the false representation
5 The defendant must have intended that the false representation should be acted on
6 The plaintiff must have suffered damage as a result of acting on the false representation
Half-truths are likewise included; it is actionable if the withholding of that which is not stated
makes that which is stated absolutely false.
Misrepresentation upon a mere matter of opinion is not an actionable deceit.
Physical injuries
Battery an intentional infliction of a harmful or offensive bodily contact; bodily contact is
offensive if it offends a reasonable persons sense of dignity.
Assault intentional conduct by one person directed at another which places the latter in
apprehension of immediate bodily harm or offensive act.
Includes bodily injuries causing death.
Physical injuries which resulted because of negligence or imprudence is not included in Article 33;
they are already covered by Article 2176 of the Civil Code.

Neglect of duty by police officers (Article 34)


Subsidiary liability of cities and municipalities, is imposed so that they will exercise great care in
selecting conscientious and duly qualified policemen and exercise supervision over them in the
performance of their duties.

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