Professional Documents
Culture Documents
FACTS:
Whether the clerk complied with this order does not affirmatively appear. An
Affidavit, however, was signed by Bernardo Chan y Garcia, the banks
attorney, showing that he had deposited in the Manila post-office a registered
letter, addressed to Engracio Palanca Tanquinyeng, at Manila, containing
copies of the Complaint, the Plaintiffs Affidavit, the Summons, and the
aforesaid Order for Publication. It appears from the postmasters receipt that
Bernardo probably used an envelope obtained from the clerks office, as the
receipt purports to show that the letter emanated from the office.
The Defendant not having appeared, Judgment by Default was then taken
against him before the trial court and a Decision rendered in favor of Plaintiff.
In this Decision, it was recited that publication had been properly made in a
periodical, but nothing was said about notice having been given by mail.
Foreclosure of the subject property proceeded and sale was confirmed by the
court thereafter.
ISSUE:
Whether or not the trial court acquired the necessary jurisdiction over the property
to proceed with the foreclosure proceeding?
YES
RULING:
Defendant-Appellant Vicente Palanca argues that the Order of Default and the
Judgment rendered thereon were void because the court had never acquired
jurisdiction over the person of the Defendant or over the subject of the action
Yes. The action to foreclose a mortgage is quasi in rem. The property itself is
the sole thing which is impleaded and which is the subject of the exercise of
judicial power. The jurisdiction of the court is derived from the power which it
possesses over the property. The jurisdiction over the person is non-essential.
The Judgment appealed from is without error, and the same is accordingly
affirmed, with costs against Defendant-Appellant.
Jurisdiction over the property which is the subject of the litigation may result
either from a seizure of the property under legal process, whereby it is
brought into the actual custody of the law, or it may result from the
institution of legal proceedings wherein, under special provisions of law, the
power of the court over the property is recognized and made effective. In the
latter case the property, though at all times within the potential power of the
court, may never be taken into actual custody at all.