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1997 Rules on Civil Procedure2001 Edition
< DRAFT COPY; Please check for errors >
Rule 14Summons
Rule 14SUMMONSSection 1.
Clerk to issue summons.
Upon the filing of the complaint and thepayment of the requisite legal fees, the clerk of court shall forthwith issuethe corresponding summons to the defendants. (1a)
Ano ang plural ng “summons”? Meron bang plural yan? “Summonses”? I think it is still“summons,” whether singular or plural. The verb is, of course,
to summon –
tawagin mo. Summonsis a noun, a legal term. But actually, there is a similarity in meaning because you are being called toanswer in a case.Summons in civil cases is the counterpart of warrant of arrest in criminal cases. Under the Ruleson Criminal Procedure, when an information is filed in court, the judge will issue a warrant of arrest.In civil cases, when a complaint is filed in court, the court will issue what is known as a summonsunder Section 1.Section 2 states the contents of a summons:
Sec. 2.
Contents
. The summons shall be directed to the defendant, signedby the clerk of court under seal, and contain: (a) the name of the court andthe names of the parties to the action; (b) a direction that the defendantanswer within the time fixed by these Rules; (c) a notice that unless thedefendant so answers, plaintiff will take judgment by default and may begranted the relief applied for.A copy of the complaint and order for appointment of guardian ad litem,if any, shall be attached to the original and each copy of the summons. (3a)
Q: Define Summons.A: SUMMONS it is a writ or process issued and served upon a defendant in a civil action for thepurpose of securing his appearance therein. (Ballentine’s Law Dict., 2nd Ed., p. 1250)Q: What is the purpose of summons?A: The service of summons enables the court to acquire jurisdiction over the person of thedefendant. (Echevarria vs. Parsons Hardware, 51 Phil. 980)Q: How does the court acquire jurisdiction over the person of the plaintiff?A: Jurisdiction over the person of the plaintiff is acquired from the moment he files his complaint.Upon filing his complaint in court, he is automatically within the jurisdiction of the court. (MRR Co. vsAtty. Gen. 20 Phil. 523)Q:What is the effect if a defendant is not served with summons?A:The judgment is void. The court never acquired jurisdiction over his person. (Pagalaran vs.Bal-latan, 13 Phil. 135; De Castro vs. Cebu Portland Cement Co., 71 Phil. 479)Q:If a complaint is amended and an additional defendant is included, is there a necessity of issuing new summons on the additional defendant?A:YES. When an additional defendant is included in the action, summons must be served uponhim for the purpose of enabling the court to acquire jurisdiction over his person. The case is
197
 
1997 Rules on Civil Procedure2001 Edition
< DRAFT COPY; Please check for errors >
Rule 14Summons
commenced against the additional defendant upon the amendment in the complaint (Fetalino vs.Sanz, 44 Phil. 691)Q:Suppose a defendant, who has already been summoned, died, and there was substitution of party (under Rule 3), his legal representative was substituted in his place, is there a necessity of issuing new summons on the substituted defendant?A:NO. The order of the court ordering him to be substituted is already sufficient. Anyway he isonly a continuation of the personality of the original defendant. Just serve the copy of the order,where he is ordered to be substituted. (Fetalino vs. Sanz, 44 Phil. 691)BAR QUESTION
:
If a defendant is served with summons and later on the complaint is amendedby the plaintiff, is there a necessity that another summons be issued and served based on theamended complaint? Or is the summons of the original complaint sufficient?ANS: It depends on whether the amendment was made before or after defendant’s
appearancein the action
:Q: What do you mean by the phrase “appearance in the action”?A: The best example is, whether the defendant files an answer to the complaint.
 Appearance
in civil cases does not mean that you are there and show your face to the judge. That is not the meaning of the word “appearance”.
 Appearance
means filingsomething in court which would show that the court has jurisdiction over your person,like the filing of an answer. When the defendant filed an answer through his lawyer,there is now appearance of the defendant.a.)If the defendant has not filed answer to the original complaint there must be anothersummons issued on the amended complaint. A new summons must be served all over againbased on the amended complaint. (Atkins, Kroll & Co. vs. Domingo, 44 Phil. 680)
 b.)
If the defendant has already filed an answer to the original complaint or he has alreadyappeared in the action, and after that the complaint is amended, there is no need of issuingnew summons on the amended complaint. (
Ibid;
Ong Peng vs. Custodio, L-14911, March1961)Q:Connecting the question with Rule 11 (on periods to file pleadings), suppose the defendantwas served with summons on the original complaint and before he could answer, there is now anamended complaint, so there will be new summons on the amended complaint, what is the period tofile an answer?A:The period to file an answer is 15 days all over again. there will be another period of 15 daysto file an answer to the amended complaint upon receipt of the amended complaint and thesummons.Q: Suppose the defendant has already filed an answer to the original complaint and after thatthere is an amended complaint, what must the plaintiff do?A: This time, there no need of summons. All that the plaintiff has to do is to furnish thedefendant a copy of the amended complaint together with the motion to admit it. Just serve thedefendant a copy of the amended complaint with a copy of the order admitting the filing of theamended complaint.Q: Suppose that the court allowed the admission of the amended complaint, what is the periodfor the defendant to file an answer to the amended complaint?A: Going back to Rule 11, ten (10) days only. Ten (10) days, not from the receipt of the amendedcomplaint, but from receipt of the order allowing the amended complaint.
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1997 Rules on Civil Procedure2001 Edition
< DRAFT COPY; Please check for errors >
Rule 14Summons
 Appearance
in an action is best manifested by the filing of an answer by the defendant. However,according to the SC in the case of:
PAN ASIATIC TRAVEL CORP.
vs.
COURT OF APPEALS
164 SCRA 623HELD: Appearance in the action is not only limited to the filing of an answer. Whendefendant files a motion for extension of time to file his answer, that is already anappearance in the action. If a defendant files a motion for Bill Of Particulars under Rule12, that is already considered as an appearance in the action.
SEC. 3
By whom served
– the summons may be served by the sheriff, hisdeputy, or other proper court officers, or for justifiable reasons by anysuitable person authorized by the court issuing the summons (5a)
Q: Who can serve summons? Who are authorized by law to serve summons?A: Under Section 3, the following:1.)Sheriff;2.)Deputy sheriff;3.)Other proper court officer (court employees);4.)For justifiable reasons, by any suitable person authorized by the courtNOTE: Policemen cannot validly serve summons unless authorized by court. (Sequito vs.Letrondo, L-11580, July 20, 1959)EXAMPLE
:
I will sue somebody who is living on top of Mt. Apo. I don’t think the sheriff would liketo go there. But there are people who go there, like the natives. So Barangay Captain Acelar will beasked to be deputized by the court to serve and he will be taught how to do it. So, he will become asort of special court officer for that purpose. But there must be a court order.Before, there was a complaint which had to be served in Brgy. Tapak, Paquibato. Have you heardof that place? It is still part of Davao City but I don’t think you have been there. To go there youhave to pass to Panabo first. You have to get out of Davao City and then re-enter Davao City andthen up to certain point land, maglakad na ng isang araw before you can reach that place. Mag-horse back ka. Makita mo doon mga natives. I don’t think a sheriff would bother to go there. Bakamawala pa siya. He has not even heard of the place. So, he can recommend a barangay captain ora policeman. These are allowed during abnormal situations.
SEQUITO
vs
.
LETRONDO
L-11580, July 20, 1959FACTS: The summons was served by a policeman in a remote area and the questionthat was asked is whether he is authorized.HELD: NO, he is not authorized. The policeman is not a sheriff, he is not a deputysheriff, and he is not a proper court officer. He belongs to the PNP. And PNP is under theexecutive branch and not a part of the judiciary.
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