PROCESSUAL PRESUMPTION (1) It must be attested by the officer having
legal custody of the records or by his respondent was validly terminated.
CIR v Fisher
Section 41, Rule 123 of the Rules of Court
prescribes the manner of proving foreign laws
before our tribunals. However, although we
believe it is desirable that these laws be proved in
accordance with said rule, these sections do no
exclude the presentation of other competent
evidence to prove the existence of a foreign law.
• The testimony of a Californian lawyer
who quoted verbatim a section of
California Civil Code and who stated that
the same was in force at the time
obligations were contracted, is sufficient
evidence to establish the existence of
the said law.
Manufacturers Hanover Trust v Guerrero
The bank cannot rely on CIR v Fisher to support
its cause. These cases involved attorneys
testifying in open court during the trial in the
Philippines and quoting the particular foreign laws
sought to be established.
• The Walden affidavit was taken abroad
ex parte and the affiant never testified in
open court.
• The Walden affidavit cannot be
considered as proof of New York law on
damages because (1) it is self-serving
and (2) it does not state the specific New
York law on damages.
• The citations in the Walden affidavit of
various U.S. Court decisions do not
constitute proof of the official records or
decisions of the U.S Courts. While the
Bank attached copies of some of the US
Court decisions, these do not comply
with Sec 24 of Rule 132.
Wildvalley Shipping v CA
For a copy of a foreign public document to be
admissible, the following requisites are
mandatory:
Philippine laws and that under Kuwaiti laws,
deputy; and
(2) It must be accompanied by a certificate
by a secretary of the embassy or
legation, consul general, consul, vice
consular or consular agent or foreign
service officer with the seal of his office.
• This requirement is intended to
justify the giving of full credit to
the genuineness of a document
in a foreign country
• It is not enough that the Gaceta
official, or a book published by
the Ministry of Communications
of Venezuela was as evidence
with Captain Monzon attesting it.
It is also required that a
certificate that Captain Monzon,
who attested the documents, is
the officer who had legal custody
of those records and
authenticated by the seal of his
office accompanying the public
document.
PCIB v Escolin
GENERAL RULE: Foreign law, as a matter of
fact must be alleged and proven.
• EXCEPT: Where the foreign law is within
the actual knowledge of the court, such
as when the law is generally well-known,
had been ruled upon in previous cases
before it, and none of the parties claim
otherwise, the court may take judicial
notice of the foreign law.
ATCI v Echin
Instead of submitting a copy of the pertinent
Kuwaiti labor laws duly authenticated and
translated by Embassy officials thereat, as
required under the Rules, what petitioners
submitted were mere certifications attesting only
to the correctness of the translations of the MOA
and the termination letter which does not prove at
all that Kuwaiti civil service laws differ from
JUDICIAL NOTICE
In re Siemen’s Estate
Judicial notice will be taken of such ordinary
abbreviations as by common use may be
regarded as universally understood.
• Judicial notice does not depend on actual
knowledge of the judges. When the fact
is alleged, they must investigate and may
refresh their recollection by resorting to
any means which they may deem safe
and proper.
• The test is where the abbreviation used
in this will is of such general and
public notoriety that everyone within
the limits of the jurisdiction may fairly
be presumed to be acquainted with it.
In re Marriage of Tresnak
To be capable of being judicially noticed, a matter
must be of common knowledge or capable of
certain verification. Courts are permitted to
dispense with formal proof of matters which
everyone knows.
• However, judicial notice is limited to what
a judge may properly know it his judicial
capacity, and he is no authorized to make
his personal knowledge of a fact not
generally or professionally known as the
basis of his action.
Ohio Bell v Public Utilities
Judicial notice may be taken of the fact that there
has been an economic depression, with decline
of market values, but judicial notice cannot be
taken of the values of land, labor, buildings and
equipment, with their yearly fluctuations.
• How great the decline has been for a
certain industry, during the specific year
or the next can be known only to the
experts who may even differ among
themselves.
Catungal v Hao
Material Requisites to be of Judicial Notice
(1) The matter must be one of common and
general knowledge
(2) It must be well and authoritatively settled
and not doubtful or uncertain; and
(3) It must be known to be within the limits of
jurisdiction of the court.
The RTC correctly took judicial notice of the
nature of the leased property based on its location
and commercial viability.
• The assessment of the Baclaran area
where the property is located is fairly
grounded.
• The RTC also has factual basis in arriving
at the said cost as it is based on the
testimonies of witnesses, such as real
estate brokers and petitioner.
• The Courts may take judicial notice of
the general increase in rentals of lease
contract renewals.
Corinthian Gardens v Tanjangco
There can be not judicial notice on the rental
value of the premises without supporting
evidence. The reasonable amount of rent may not
be determined by judicial notice but by supporting
evidence such as:
(1) The realty assessment of the land,
(2) The increase in realty taxes, and
(3) The prevailing rate of rentals in the
vicinity.
A court may fix the reasonable amount of rent but
it must still base its action on the evidence
adduced by the parties.
Social Justice Society v Atienza
While the Courts are required to take judicial
notice of the laws enacted by Congress, the rule
with respect to local ordinances is different.
Ordinances are not included in the enumeration
of matters covered by mandatory judicial notice
under Section 1, Rule 129 of the Rules of Court.
• All courts sitting in the city shall take
judicial notice of the ordinances passed
by the City. The party asking the court to • The Court may take judicial notice of the
take judicial notice should have taken the record of the case where the fact of
initiative in requesting that a trial court payment of the appeal bond was made.
take judicial notice of an ordinance, even • In a petition for certiorari
where a statute requires courts to take abovementioned (the private parties
judicial notice of local ordinances. were the same as appellant and
• The intent of a statute requiring a court to appelles), the allegations already states
take judicial notice of a local ordinance is that petitioner filed their notice of appeal
to remove any discretion a court might together with their appeal bond and
have in determining whether or not to record on appeal.
take notice of an ordinance. Such a
statute does not direct the court to act on People v Bernabe
its own in obtaining evidence for the In the case at bar, while the Information alleged
record and a party must make the both the minority of the victim and her relationship
ordinance available to the court for it to with appellant, the prosecution failed to prove the
take notice. victims age when it presented only the baptismal
certificate of Maria Esnelia and not her birth
Republic v CA certificate.
A court will take judicial notice of its own acts and
records in the same case, of facts established in
prior proceedings in the same case, of the
authenticity of its own records of another case
between the same parties, of the files of related
cases in the same court, and of public records on
file in the same court. In addition, judicial notice
will be taken of the record, pleadings or judgment
of a case in another court between the same
parties or involving one of the same parties, as
well as of the record of another case between
different parties in the same court. Judicial notice
will also be taken of court personnel.
Marcelo Steel v CA
When a matter of fact supposed to be proven to
the court is one capable of being taken judicial
notice of, being already known to the court
because it has already been proven or was
undisputed or judicially admitted in a related
proceeding before it, it would be the height of
absurdity and contrary to one's sense of justice
and propriety to still require the parties to reopen
the issue and litigate relative to the same matter
all over again.