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Damages; Attorneys fees; when proper.

An award of attorneys fees has always


been the exception rather than the rule and there must be some compelling legal
reason to bring the case within the exception and justify the award. In this case,
none of the exceptions applies. Attorneys fees are not awarded every time a party
prevails in a suit. The policy of the Court is that no premium should be placed on the
right to litigate. Even when a claimant is compelled to litigate with third persons
or to incur expenses to protect his rights, still, attorneys fees may not be awarded
where no sufficient showing of bad faith could be reflected in a partys persistence
in a case other than an erroneous conviction of the righteousness of his cause.
Damages; moral damages. Certainly, an award of moral damages must be anchored
on a clear showing that the party claiming the same actually experienced
mental anguish, besmirched reputation, sleepless nights, wounded feelings, or
similar injury. In the case herein under consideration, the records are bereft of any
proof that respondent in fact suffered moral damages as contemplated in the aforequoted provision of the Civil Code. The ruling of the trial court provides simply that:
[Petitioners] outright denial and unjust refusal to heed [respondents] claim for
payment of the value of her lost/damaged shipment caus[ed] the latter to suffer
serious anxiety, mental anguish and wounded feelings warranting the award of
moral damages x x x. The testimony of respondent, on the other hand, merely
states that when she failed to recover damages from petitioner, she was saddened,
had sleepless nights and anxiety without providing specific details of the suffering
she allegedly went through. Since an award of moral damages is predicated on a
categorical showing by the claimant that she actually experienced emotional and
mental sufferings, it must be disallowed absent any evidence thereon.
Damages; Temperate damages. In the absence of competent proof on the amount
of actual damages suffered, a party is entitled to receive temperate damages.
Article 2224 of the New Civil Code provides that:Temperate or moderate damages,
which are more than nominal but less than compensatory damages, may be
recovered when the court finds that some pecuniary loss has been suffered but its
amount cannot, from the nature of the case, be proved with certainty. The amount
thereof is usually left to the sound discretion of the courts but the same should be
reasonable, bearing in mind that temperate damages should be more than nominal
but less than compensatory.

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