Galedo, Abegail P.

650. ESPANOL V. FORMOSO

PETITIONER : JUDGE DOLORES L. ESPAÑOL

RESPONDENT : ATTY. BENJAMIN S. FORMOSO and
SPOUSES BENITO SEE and MARLY SEE
DATE : June 21, 2007

PONENTE : SANDOVAL-GUTIERREZ, J
TOPIC : Forcible Entry and Unlawful Detainer

FACTS:

 Sharcons Builders Philippines, Inc. (Sharcons) bought from Evanswinda Morales a piece of land.
 A new title was issued under the name of Sharcons but when their workers tried to fence and
take possession of the lot, they were prevented by the caretakers claiming that spouses Mapua
are the owners of the land.
 Sharcons filed with RTC Cavite a complaint for quieting of title

HELD:

 DIRECT CONTEMPT as one done "in the presence of or so near the court or judge as to
obstruct the administration of justice." It is a contumacious act done facie curiae and may be
punished summarily without hearing. In other words, one may be summarily adjudged in direct
contempt at the very moment or at the very instance of the commission of the act of contumely.

 INDIRECT OR CONSTRUCTIVE CONTEMPT - is one perpetrated outside of the sitting of the

court and may include misbehavior of an officer of a court in the performance of his official
duties or in his official transactions, disobedience of or resistance to a lawful writ, process, order,
judgment, or command of a court, or injunction granted by a court or a judge, any abuse or any
unlawful interference with the process or proceedings of a court not constituting direct contempt, or
any improper conduct tending directly or indirectly to impede, obstruct or degrade the
administration of justice.

 imputed use of a falsified document, more so where the falsity of the document is not apparent
on its face, merely constitutes indirect contempt, and as such is subject to such defenses as
the accused may raise in the proper proceedings.

 Under Section 3, Rule 71, a contemner may be punished only after a charge in writing has
been filed, and an opportunity has been given to the accused to be heard by himself and
counsel.

 Settled is the rule that a contempt proceeding is not a civil action, but a separate proceeding
of a criminal nature in which the court exercises limited jurisdiction.Thus, the modes of
procedure and the rules of evidence in contempt proceedings are assimilated as far as practicable
to those adapted to criminal prosecutions.15 Perforce, petitioner judge erred in declaring
summarily that respondents are guilty of direct contempt and ordering their incarceration. She
should have conducted a hearing with notice to respondents.