Chapter 9: Prosp or retroactive statutes
Presumption against retroactivity
 Meaning of Mandatory and Directory
Statutes
 Mandatory: conf power
o Granting benefits
o Presc jurisdictional reqts
o Presc time take action or
appeal
o Preced reqts
o Election law: dsqual conduct
qual
o Ass of taxes
o Concerning Public auction
sale
 Test: know the consequences, no
absolute rule; primary: ascertain leg
intent
 Language- primary determiner
I. Prospective-meaning
 Statute operating on facts
or transactions that occur
after statute takes effect
 Looks, applies to future
II. Retroactive- meaning
 Creates new obli, duty,
disability in respect to
transaction already made in
past
III. GR: Law operates prospectively
Xpn: unless otwp by law
 Lex propiscit, non respiscit
 R- law is a rule est to guide
actions with no binding effect
until enacted.
i. No application to past
only future
 App to statutes, rulings,
circulars.
i. Ex-Pp v. que polay.
ii. Ex- CSC memo
entiting temp
employee expired
cant be made
permanent
IV.
esp subst laws.
V. Words- Prospective
 “hereafter, thereafter
 From and after passing of ths
act
 Shall have been made
 From and after
 Statute prosp app only
 Shall
 Shall take eff upon its app
a. Penal statutes
a. Define off presc penalties for
b. Art 21 RPV
b. Expost facto
a. Prej to the accused
i. Making criminal an
act before passage of
law which was
innocent when done
ii. Alters legal rules of
evidence, auth
concivtion ipone less
or diff testimony
iii. Changes punishment
inflicts greater
punishment
iv. Aggravates a crime
makes it greater than
it was
v. Assumes to regulate
civ rights and
remedies onlu but
imposes penalty or
dep of right
vi. Dep accused of some
lawful prot he has
become entitled
b. Ononly to crim or penal matt
Not civil laws (private rights
-so if retro not viol expost
facto law
Applies if not Habitual criminal
- within 10 years after the date of release or
last conviction of the crimes such as s/ls pi,
robo, hurto estafa, falsification he is found
guilty for a third time or oftener
r- pirnciples of justice and goodlaw
and consicience.

2 laws affecting accused
 Time of commissions
 Enacted during or after trial
Favorable to accused
 Red degree of penalty
 Abolishes the crime
 Remove sub imprisonment
 Pres grd for mit and
extinction of crim liab
 Presc of offense
*applied during pendency
But if already with final judgment, acc
serving sent:
 Pet for habeas corpus
 Allege imprisonment is illeg
c. bill of attainder
leg aact which inflicts punishment
wo jud trial
 Substitute leg act sa jud
proceedings to det guilt
 R- sep of powers, leg v jud
 Ex post f features
d. substantive law
1) creates defines regulates
rights concerning
life lib prop
2) powers of agencies or ins of admin or
pub affairs
Crim law- sub law are those
definingcrimes presc penalties.
If retro app, affect rights oec vested.
Ex- stat lays down reqs before court
acquires jurisd
Ex- freezes amount of rentals for resd
houses during fixed period,
v. procedural
- regulates procedure, the jud process for
enforcing this reights recog by subs law.
-remedy, redress.
Ex- prosecute appeal,
Creates jurisdiction in courts
Ex- law vesting jurisdnon MetC, MunC,
MunTC, try cases punishable by imp not
more than 6 yrs.
RA 7691 vests jursid, subst, not applied to .
Being a matter of sub law, est rule at the
time of commencement of case in trial court.
Time na pinasa pend appeal na sa ca.
Applies to pending cases
r- social justice promote social power.
e) Vested right- some right or interest in
property that has become fixed or
established and no longer open to
controversy.
Vested when- rights to enjoyment, pres or
prosp has become prop of some part
person or persons as a present interest.
 Absolute
 Complete
 Unconditional
 Independed of a contongeny.
Cant be retro If takes away vested right-
subs
Ex- abol of DP and re-impos.
Acc of crimes before reimpos of DP, have
acquired vested rights under abolishedDP,
must not affect.
 a right accrued under old law.
f. affecting obli of contracts
GR- any contr entered into must be in acc
with and not repug to applicable law at the
time of its exec.
 Later stat will not be given eff
if impairs obli of contracts
o A law enlarging,
abdridge, any
manner changes
intention of parties
impairs contract
o Accelerating or
postponing period of
 performance wc it
presc
 Against impairment, illeglity
g. repealing amendatory acts
 Stat repealing prior law operate
prospectively
o Xcp when rep statute penal
in nature fav to accused
 Amendment- part of act but prospec
 Unless exp provided
 governs. At the time the question of proc
Ex- statute imp tac on cert business
activities is amended by elim clause prov a
tax on some of such activities,
 Amended act further amended after
some time
 Elim clause restored
 Const as elim imp tax for said period
not reti
GR: ifact amended, amendment not affect
act. Original act continues w regard to all
right accrued prior to amendment.
Even if govt contr party.
VI. Retro statutes
 Consti does not prohibit prv
they are not:
i. Impair obli of contract
ii. Deprive persons of
their prop with due
process
iii. Divest rights that hve
bcome vested
iv. Expost fact law
 Some laws tlagang retro
o Curative or remedial
o Creating new rights
o of power or before certain
powers may arise
a. procedural- presc rules and forms
of proced encofrcing rights doesn’t
atake waway vested right or impair
obli of contract
b. curative- cures defects, adds means
enforcing existing obli
xpn_ express would not be feasible, work
injustice
Tayag v, Court of appeals
Art 285, ill minor through guardian
may file recog of filiatopn after death of
presumed parent before exp of 4 yrs from
att of majority.
FC art 175 during lifetime of parent. Art 285
aries. Vested right may be prej.
GR- no vested right may attach to
nor arise from proced laws.
Applicable actions pending and
undetermined at time of their
passage.
Ex- stat transfers jurisdiction to try
certain cases from a court to a
quasi judicial trib is a remedial
statute
c. curative- healing acts
intended to supply defects,
superfluities in existing laws, curb
evils.
-give validity to acts done which
would have been invalid under
existing laws
Ex- EO 111 amends Labor code
widen workers acces to redress for
grievances. Gave regional dir and
labor arbters concurrent juris over
money claims.
Statute delineates the jurisdiction
of the two since they overlapped
thus curative.
But, in case-
Court final judg, naturally void as no
juris over case.
If a curative statute grants juris, not
retro and validate judg.
r- leg has no power to validate judg
rendered wo juris.
 Ex- PD 725 cures problem of Filipino  No ordinary presumptions to be
women married to aliens before made.
1973 consti who lost cit by marriage
to aliens to reacquire PH cit even
during coverture. Presc in crim cases-
Under existing law, bawal. And
1973 consti- after lang not before.

Also, nat born fil cit who lost their ph

cit not desire to reacqu without going
through process of naturalization.

Even repatriation, and date of

application. Retro effect.

Except:

Police power legislations-

 regulate activites to promote
health, morals, peace order
safety, gen welfare
o Baguio city anti profanity
 it’s a leg exercise of power

relating to prescription

statute of lim are procedural in nature.

Prospective- applies to causes that accured
or accrues after the passage

Retro- applies to causes that accrued

before its pssage. But not to remova bar of
limitation if complete na.

Leg indicates intent if retroactive, but not

if impar vested rights.
Ex- if pahahabain period, not nec retro
because it will remove bar to presc. And
may impair vested right against whome
action if filed.

Also sa mga action that will nor prescribe

untl a much later period. As a new statute
prescribed a shorter period.

Presc in civil cases-

 impartial arbiter between two parties.
 No intendment to be made in favor
of eirhter.