CASE LAW RESEARCH

CHAPTER 13
CASE LAW

• The creation and refinement of law in the course of judicial decisions

• A collection of published legal decisions of the courts which, because of Stare
Decisis, contributes a large part of the legal rules that apply in society today
• The rule cannot be found in statute books, but as a principle of law established by
a judge in some case
• Jurisprudence: legal decisions which have developed and accompany statutes in
applying the law
CASE LAW

• Decisions rendered by the SC, CA, Sandiganbayan, CTA, RTC’s, MTC’s Sharia courts
• Subordinate Case Law – decisions of commissions and boards with quasi-judicial
powers, rulings of administrative officers, opinions of the President, Secretary of
Justice, Solicitor General, and rulings of Court Martial
COURT OPINION

• Often referred to as a case, is the court’s written resolution of a legal dispute and
the reasons in support of its resolution
• Courts interpret constitutional or statutory provisions or create law when there is
no governing law (in exceptional cases only)
VALUE OF COURT OPINION

• Helps understand and interpret constitutional and statutory law

• Helps understand the litigation process
• Provides insight into the structure of legal analysis and legal argument
• Provides a guide to proper legal writing
• Can be used to determine favorable from unfavorable decisions
VALUE CASE BRIEFS

• Written summary of a court opinion that presents, in an organized format, all the
essential information of the opinion
• Saves an attorney time reading the entire case
• Serves as a valuable learning tool
• Serves as reference tool
• Serves as writing tool
STARE DECISIS OR DOCTRINE OF BINDING
PRECEDENT
• Basic principle of law whereby once a decision on a certain set of facts has been
made, the courts will apply that decision in subsequent cases with the same facts
• Decisions of a higher court is binding on lower courts
• Precedent – a case which establishes legal principles to a certain set of facts,
coming to a certain conclusion which is to be followed from that point on
DECISIONS OF THE COURT

• Judgment of the case

• Only decisions of the SC establish jurisprudence or doctrines in the Philippines
• The decision, not the opinion, that counts as the precedent
• Only the SC can overturn its decision via En Banc decision
ADVANTAGES OF STARE DECISIS

• Consistency – similar cases are decided on a similar basis

• Certainty – lawyers and clients are able to predict the outcome of a legal question
• Efficiency – saves time and resources for the lawyers, clients and judges
• Flexibility – changing times call for change in doctrine
HOLDING OF THE CASE

• Divided into 2 categories

• Ratio Decidendi – the logic of the ruling; statement of the law applied in the case
• Obiter Dictum – any statement of law that is not an essential part of the ratio
decidendi; by the way; observation of a judge on a matter not necessary in
determining the issue before the court
FOREIGN JUDGMENTS

• Only Philippine jurisprudence laid down by the Philippine Supreme Court is set as
precedent in this jurisdiction
• Foreign judgments are not binding but have persuasive effects.
RES JUDICATA

• Controversies, once decided on their merits, shall remain in repose

• Inconsistent judicial decisions shall not be made on the same set of facts
• Republicae ut sit litium – there should be an end to litigation in the interest of the
State
• Nemo debet bis vixari et eadem causa – no person shall be vexed for the same
offense
ELEMENTS OF RES JUDICATA

• The prior judgment was final

• The court which rendered the decision had jurisdiction over the issue and parties
• Judgment was based on merits
• The parties, subject matters, and causes of action in the initial and subsequent
actions are identical
ANATOMY OF A CASE

• A case starts in the trial courts (MTC/RTC) and may end up in higher courts
(CA/SC)
• Ponencia – the written decision rendered by the court.
• Reporters – published books containing the cases
ANATOMY OF A CASE

• Case Name – identifies the parties involved in the legal action, as well as the
nature of the proceeding
e.g. Caruncho v COMELEC; Guingona v Gonzales
People v Santos; Republic v Cruz
• In re Dela Cruz – regarding, not adversarial in nature
• In re J.M – typically used when involving minors to protect their privacy
• Ex Parte – cases involving just one party as supposed to both
ANATOMY OF A CASE

• Ex rel – upon relation or information; usually instituted by SOJ or other

government official in behalf of the state
• Et. Al - referring to multiple respondents or plaintiffs
e.g. Matibag v Benipayo et al
• Docket Number – when a case is filed in the trial court, the clerk assigns a number
to identify the said case.
e.g. G.R. 135996
ANATOMY OF A CASE

• The Court – pertains to the court that wrote the decision

• The Date – most cases include the dates when the date was argued, as well as the
date when the decision came out; when the decision announces a new rule of law
or invalidates a statute, the date is important
• The Ponente – the justice who penned the decision
• The Case Synopsis – usually a one paragraph summary of the decision written by
the editors of the reporter.
• Name of Counsel – the names and location of the law firms and the individual
attorneys who represented the appellant and appellee
TYPES OF OPINION

• Majority Opinion – written by a member of the majority after rendering its

decision
• Per Curiam Opinion – decision of the court wherein all justices are of one mind
and is clear that it does not require elaboration
• Concurring Opinion – written by justices who agree with the decision rendered
• Dissenting Opinion – written by justices who disagree with the decision rendered
• Memorandum Opinion – provide the holding but offer little or no reasoning; not
encouraged
• En Banc Opinion – deliberated by all 15 justices of the highest court
ANATOMY OF A CASE

• The Decision – final element of the case; usually recognizable as a one-liner

phrase pertaining to the holding of the court
• Attestation and Certification – the ponente should attest that the conclusions in
the decisions were reached in consultation; the Chief Justice will then certify
DECISION, ATTESTATION AND CERTIFICATION PIC
PUBLICATION OF CASES

• Compilation of judicial decisions are printed in reporters

• Reporters print cases in the order in which they are received
• Official Case Reports and Commercially-produced Reporters
• SCRA are SCAD commercially produced
PUBLICATION OF CASES

• Slip Opinions – where judicial decisions initially appear

• Advanced Sheets – pamphlets containing recently decided opinions
PUBLICATION OF CASES

• Official Publications – sanctioned by a government or court as the authoritative

text of the law.
For SC decisions, e.g. Philippine Reports or Official Gazette
• Unofficial Publications – commercially published and more timely. They are
editorially enhanced to improve usefulness as a research tool.
e.g. SCRA, SCAD, Lex Libris
PUBLICATION OF CASES

• Law Reports – decisions of the supreme courts are reported in law reports
Parts of a reported case are: Title, Syllabus, Headnotes, Facts, Opinion,
Decision, Concurring or Dissenting Opinions
• Lex Libris – covers the electronic format of the law reports from 1901-present
• Case or Court Reports
• Case Finders (Digest and Index)
CASE LAW CITATIONS

• 309 SCRA 177, Philippine Inter-Island Trading Corporation v COA

• Court Decisions from the SC down to the lower courts can be identified through
their case number
• Administrative Decisions are cited by the name of the agency, case number and
date of promulgation.
e.g. Padilla v Duque, CSC Adm. Case No. 12345, January 6, 2006
CASE LAW CITATIONS
Courts
Supreme Court Decisions
Court of Appeals Decisions
Sandiganbayan Decisions
Regional Trial Courts
Municipal Trial Courts
Sharia District and Circuit Courts
Citation
G.R. No. ___
Date of promulgation
C.A.-G.R. No. ___ -R, CV, CR or SP,
Date of promulgation
Sandiganbayan Crim Case No. __
Date of Promulgation
RTC (Place and Branch no.)
Civil or Criminal Case No. __
Date of Promulgation
MTC, CTC, MeTC MTCC
(Place and Branch no.)
Civil or Criminal Case No. ____
Date of Promulgation
Sharia District/Circuit. Court (place)
Case No. ___, (date of promulgation)
CASE LAW RESEARCH

• The Supreme Court Website has the latest jurisprudence;

http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/
CASE LAW RESEARCH
CASE LAW RESEARCH
CASE LAW RESEARCH
CASE LAW RESEARCH TECHNIQUES

• Descriptive Word Approach

• Title/Topic Approach
• Popular Name Approach