Section 1. Depositions before action; petition.

A person who desires to perpetuate his own testimony or that of another person
regarding any matter that may be cognizable in any court of the Philippines, may
file a verified petition in the court of the place of the residence of any expected
adverse party.

This is also known as a Petition for Perpetuation of Testimony

This rule was originally Rule 19 in the 1940 Rules of Court. It was transposed to the Rules
of Evidence under Rule 134 of the 1964 Rules of Court, because it was not strictly a mode
of discovery. It was intended to preserve known testimony against danger or loss and
hence, the rule was entitled “Perpetuation of Testimony.” Now, it has been put back where
it was in the 1940 Rules of Court.
To further explain this, let’s know the 2 types of deposition taking:
1. Deposition Pending Action (Rule 23)
2. Deposition Before Action or Pending Appeal (Rule 24)
In rule 23, you take a testimony or deposition of people in relation to a pending case.
There is already a pending case in court, so everything is based on a pending action. The
next rule, Rule 24 is a deposition before a case is filed. That is why it is called Depositions
Before Action.
Now, how can one apply deposition taking if there is no case filed yet? That is why it was
known as Perpetuation of Testimony under Rule 134.
An example of this is suppose there is a case which I would like to file against A. But for
the moment I cannot file it yet. I intend to file a case against him. So there is an expected
case between us in the future only there are certain things that I still have to do like
condition precedents. But if I file a case against A, I have some witnesses who are all
ready like B and C. But the trouble is, I learned lately that B will die soon. He has cancer
and C will have to leave for abroad, never to come back. Definitely, If I will file a case,
there are no more witnesses available.
NOW THE QUESTION IS, IS THERE A WAY OF TAKING TESTIMONY OR
DEPOSITION IN ADVANCE EVEN BEFORE THERE IS no CASE FILED YET? Yes, by
applying Rule 24. I will file a petition before the court known as Petition to Perpetuate the
Testimony of B and C. Well, even if there is no case yet, I will just file a petition under
Rule 24. If I can prove really that the testimony would be relevant or important the court
will issue an order allowing me to take deposition in advance.
Now, where will you file it? You shall file it, in the court of the place of the residence of
any expected adverse party because there is still no case. So you have to file an
independent petition under Rule 24.
This rule also:
 Can apply to a prospective plaintiff of prospective defendant to a case
 Deposition can include those of any probable witness
 May include situations where cause of action has not yet accrued