A statute of limitations is an enactment that sets the maximum time after an

event that legal proceedings based on that event may be initiated. It is a

defense that is ordinarily asserted by the defendant to defeat an action
brought against him after the appropriate time has elapsed.
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The essence of the statute of limitations has been explained by the
Supreme Court in the case of Conspecto vs. Fruto, 31 Phil. 144, 151,as
follows: "It is the essence of the statute of limitations that, whether the party
had a right to the possession or not, if he entered under the claim of such
right and remained in possession for the period (ten years) named in the
statute of limitations, the right of action of the plaintiff who had the better
title is barred by that adverse possession. The right given by the statute of
limitations does not depend upon, and has no necessary connection with,
the validity of the claim under which the possession is held. Otherwise
there could be no use for the statute of limitations or adverse possession
as a defense to an action, for if the decision is made to depend upon the
validity of the respective titles set up by the plaintiff and the defendant,
there can be no place for the consideration of the question of adverse
possession. It is because the plaintiff has a better title that the defendant is
permitted torely upon such uninterrupted possession, adverse to the
plaintiff's title, as the statute prescribes, it being well understood and an
element in such cases, that the plaintiff does have the better title, but that
he has lost it by delay in asserting it. (Probst vs. Presbyterian Church, 129
U.S., 182)”.
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One reason for statutes of limitation is that, over time, evidence can be
corrupted or disappear, memories fade, crime scenes are changed, and
companies dispose of records. The best time to bring a lawsuit is while the
evidence is not lost and as close as possible to the alleged illegal behavior.
Another reason is that people want to get on with their lives and not have
legal battles from their past come up unexpectedly. The injured party has a
responsibility to quickly bring about charges so that the process can begin.
The purpose of the law on prescription and the statute of limitations is to
protect the person who is diligent and vigilant in asserting his right, and
conversely to punish the person who sleeps on his right. The statute of
limitations applies both in civil and in criminal cases. They are also known
as periods of prescription.
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For civil cases, the defendant must plead the defense before the court
upon answering the plaintiff's complaint. If the defendant does not do so, he
is regarded as having waived the defense and will not be permitted to use it
in any subsequent proceedings. Article 1139 of the Civil Code provides that
an action prescribes by the mere lapse of time fixed by law. Here are
examples of prescriptive periods: (a) real action over immovables: 30
years;(b) an action upon a written contract, or upon an obligation created
by law, or upon a judgment: 10 years; (c) actions for the recovery of
movables: 8 years; (d) actions upon an oral contract, or upon a quasi
contract: 6 years; (e) actions for the rescission or annulment of contracts: 4
years; (f) forcible entry and unlawful detainer: 1 year.

there are two kinds of prescription provided in the Civil Code. One is
acquisitive, i.e. the acquisition of a right by the lapse of time. (Art. 1106,
par. 1). The other kind is extinctive prescription whereby rights and actions
are lost by the lapse of time. (Arts. 1106, par. 2 and 1139.) This latter kind is
what is known as statute of limitations which we are talking about here.