Professional Documents
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Xth JUDICIAL DISTRICT
REGIONAL TRIAL COURT
Windsor, Branch XX
SPOUSES MR. AND MRS. VARGASON
Plaintiffs. CIVIL CASE NO. _____
versus
FOR: DAMAGES
CULLIGAN WATERS. LTD
Defendant.
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COMPLAINT
Plaintiffs, through the undersigned counsel and to this Honorable
Court respectfully state:
1. Plaintiff Spouses Vargason are of legal age, married, with address
at Russel Woods, Windsor.
2. Defendant Culligan Waters. Ltd. (hereinafter known as “Culligan”)
is a private domestic corporation engaged in the business of providing water
for consumption to the public.
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5. Sometime in 1999, Mr. and Mrs Vargason moved to their present
home where they installed a Culligan water dispenser. Their entire
household drank Culligan water exclusively and as regular customers, they
had a running account with Culligan. In fact, a Culligan deliveryman would
regularly deliver jugs of Culligan water to their home and pick up the empty
jugs.
6. On November 21, 2001, the Spouses Vargason was both at
home. Mrs. Vargason was pregnant with their second daughter
Martina. Upon noticing that the bottle in the water dispenser was
empty, they decided to replace it with a fresh bottle. Mr. Vargason
brought a filled bottle of Culligan water into the kitchen and to the
sink so that Mrs. Vargason could wash the neck of the bottle, as she
always did, to make sure there were no germs or contaminants on the
outside of the bottle before putting it on the dispenser.
7. While Mrs. Vargason was washing the bottle, Mr. Vargason
saw something dark inside of it. They both examined it and upon
seeing wings and legs realized that it was a dead fly. Upon realizing
that there was a fly in their bottle of Culligan water, Mrs. Vargason
vomited immediately. After vomiting, she held her stomach and
complained of cramps and pain. Mr. Vargason likewise felt abdominal
pain and nausea but it wasn't until after a few hours that he too
vomited.
8. Following this, Mr. Vargason could not get the fly in the
bottle out of his mind. He would have nightmares about flies and
about falling into a ditch, face down in water. He was not sleeping
more than four hours a night. He has not been able to drink water
since the incident.
9. As a direct result of the incident with the fly, Mr. Vargason's
friends and business associates observed that lost his sense of humor,
and became argumentative and edgy. He lost customers and he had to
close down all his salons.
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Art. 2176 Whoever by act or omission causes damage to another,
there being fault or negligence, is obliged to pay for the damage
done. Such fault or negligence, if there is no preexisting contractual
relation between the parties, is called a quasidelict and is governed by
the provisions of this Chapter.
11. Further, it is well settled in our jurisdiction that a successful
action in negligence requires that the plaintiff demonstrate the
following requisites: (1) that the defendant owed him a duty of care;
(2) that the defendant’s behavior breached the standard of care; (3)
that the plaintiff sustained damages; and (4) that the damages were
caused, in fact and in law, by the defendant’s breach. (Vicente
Vergara v. The Court of Appeals and Amadeo Azarcon, G.R. No.
77679 September 30, 1987)
12. The aforementioned requisites are present in the situation of
the Spouses Vargas and Culligan. (1) Culligan, being a manufacturer
of a consumable good, owe a duty of care to the Spouses Vargas, the
ultimate consumers of that good. (2) A supplier of bottled water
intended for personal consumption is under a duty to take reasonable
care to ensure that the water is safe to drink, i.e., not contaminated by
foreign elements. (3) Defendant breached the standard of care by
providing the plaintiff with a bottle of water with a fly therein. (4) As
a direct result of the breach of the duty, the plaintiffs sustained
damages described herein.
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PRAYER
WHEREFORE, in view of the foregoing, plaintiff prays for judgment in his
favor and against the defendant as follows:
(a) Moral Damages in the amount of P500,000.00.
(b) Exemplary Damages in the amount of P300,000.00
(c) Nominal Damages in the amount of P200,000.00
(c) The amount of P100,000.00 as Attorney's Fees
(d) The Defendant shall be ordered to pay for the Litigation Expenses
(e) Such other reliefs as may be just and equitable.
Windsor, 9 December 2001
ABELLANA ATIENZA CEBRECUS DEOGRACIAS & VILLAMOR
Counsel for Plaintiffs
Room 404, 4th Floor Law and Business Bldg.,
University of San Carlos, Pelaez St.,
Cebu City, Philippines
By:
LOURDE LIZ ABELLANA
PTR No. ____
Issued on _____ at Windsor
IBP No. ____
Issued on _____ at Windsor
Roll No. _____
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MCLE Cert of Compliance No. ____
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VERIFICATION AND AFFIDAVIT OF NONFORUM SHOPPING
I, MRS LYNN VARGASON, of legal age, married, and with address at
Russel Woods, Windsor, after having been duly sworn in accordance with
law, depose and state that:
1. I am a plaintiff in the abovestated case;
2. I caused the preparation of the foregoing complaint;
3. I have read the contents thereof and the facts stated therein are true and
correct of my personal knowledge and/or on the basis of copies of
documents and records in my possession;
4. I have not commenced any other action or proceeding involving the same
issues in the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, or any other tribunal or
agency;
5. To the best of my knowledge and belief, no such action or proceeding is
pending in the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, or any other tribunal or
agency;
6. If I should thereafter learn that a similar action or proceeding has been
filed or is pending before the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, or any
other tribunal or agency, I undertake to report that fact within five (5) days
therefrom to this Honorable Court.
___________________________
Affiant
SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN to before me this ___ day of
__________ 201_ at _________________ affiant exhibiting to me her <ID
DETAILS HERE>.
Doc. No. ;
Page No. ;
Book No. ;
Series of 201_.