GUIDELINES IN DIGESTING CASES

A.) CAPTION

 This includes the title of the case, the date it was promulgated, and
citation. Include the petitioner, respondent, ponente and the division that
decided the case.
 The title should consist of the complete names of the parties- in bold, all
capital letters and centered.
 If the parties are natural persons, their complete names should be
indicated.

i.e. FELICIANO CATALAN v JESUS BASA

 If any of the parties is a juridical person, the name of such should be

spelled out and not in acronym form.

i.e. PUBLIC ESTATES AUTHORITY v JESUS YUICO

COMMISSIONER ON INTERNAL REVENUE v SONY PHILIPPINES

 If there are two or more parties in the case, use the party first named
followed by “et. al” which should be italicized.
 The word versus should be abbreviated to “v”.

i.e. LORENZO TANADA et.al. v HONORABLE JUAN TUVERA et.al.

 The citation of case should first start with the G.R. Number followed by
the date of promulgation, the division of the court that decided the case
(i.e. First, Second, Third Division or En Banc/ Per Curiam) and the
ponente.
 The name of the ponente is in parenthesis: surname of the justice,
followed by the italicized capital letter J then a period.
 The format for the date should be: Month, Day, Year.

i.e. PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPINNES v ENRICO BRIONES BADILLA

GR No. 218578 August 31, 2016, THIRD DIVISION (Peralta, J.)

 If the Decision is a consolidation of several cases with several G.R.

numbers, include ALL such numbers.

i.e. JAMES IMBONG et. al v HONORABLE PAQUITO OCHOA et.al.

 GR No. 204819/204934/204957/204988/205003/205043/205478/2-
5491/205720/206355/207111/2-7172/207563 April 8, 2014 EN BANC
(Mendoza, J.)

B.) DOCTRINE

 Doctrines may either be presented at the beginning of the case (before

the facts), or put in bold letters already incorporated in the Ruling.
Further instructions will be given by the head per division on this matter.
 The caption “DOCTRINE” should be put in bold and all capital letters.
 Note that this will serve as the introduction of the case digest, so bear in
mind that it should be responsive and reflective of the main issue cited in
the case.

C.) FACTS

 Focus only on the subject matter discussed and assigned in such case.
 Facts should only have 2-3 paragraphs, except in cases when the cases
are lengthy or several issues are discussed.
 The names of the courts should be spelled when first mentioned. In
subsequent uses, abbreviate them as may be appropriate. Do not
mention the branch number. Indicate the geographical location of the
court only when relevant to the case (e.g. venue, lack of jurisdiction).
 The parties must be identified in the facts with their complete names and
should not merely be referred to as petitioner, respondent, appellant or
appellee. But the use of such terms may be allowed in the subsequent
mention of the parties, and their last names may be used. With regard to
juridical persons, the names should be spelled when first mentioned and
then abbreviated in subsequent mentions.
 If the issue is procedural, do not include substantive facts anymore.
 Do not include dates, numbers, symbols, figures if such are irrelevant to
the main issue. Dates should be eliminated when not necessary. Only
include the dates when they are material to the resolution of the issue/s
of the case (e.g. prescription, period of appeal)
 Foreign words (not English words) or latin maxims should be italicized.
(e.g. certiorari, quo warranto, mutatis mutandi, renvoi doctrine)

♠ Tips:
  Read the full text first. Appreciate and understand the case before
attempting to digest it.
 Take into consideration the main issue, topic and ruling of the Court in
selecting what facts are pertinent and relevant.
 Facts should be as brief as possible. A digest is the summary of the full
text and not another copy of the full text. Simplify the facts. Paraphrase
them if necessary. Just be sure that substance of the case remains.
 Read the finished digest before submitting it to your respective head.
Take note that other people will read your digests so make sure that
others can equally comprehend your work. Check if the facts, issue and
ruling are correlated, if the ruling is responsive to the issue, if the ruling
is based on the facts presented, and the ruling itself is based on law.

D. ISSUES

 Issues are framed in the form of questions that are answerable by “yes”
or “no” (e.g. Is the contract void?)
 The issue is framed in a simple sentence. If there are more than one
issue, indicate the same in another number to be answered consecutively
in the ruling.
 Do not confine yourself with the issues presented by the Court.
Formulate your own issue and make sure it is related to your subject
area.

E. RULING

 This starts with a “yes” or “no”. This must be responsive to the

question/s asked in the issue/s.
 After the categorical “yes” or “no”, the reason for the decision must be
explained.
 Do not paraphrase the ruling of the case. Copy verbatim the portion of
the ratio decidendi which answers the issue/s of the case. It should
contain the main reason or basis of the Court for their decision. Be
guided of the issues presented in the case and the subject area you are
assigned to in selecting the portion of the ruling that will be included in
your case digest.
 Replace the words Petitioners, Respondents, Appellant, Appellee, and the
like, with their proper names, same with how they are referred to in the
facts portion of the digest. Also, pronouns used to refer to the Supreme
Court (i.e. We, Us, Our), should be replaced with the word “Court”.
F. FONT AND LAYOUT (subject to revisions per Division)

 Font Style: Bookman Old Style; Font Size: 11

 Paragraph: Justified, except the Caption which should be Centered and
in Bold letters.
 Spacing: Single
 Spacing between paragraphs: 1.5 spacing
 Margins: 1.5” on the left margin, 1” on all others
 Header: Indicate the Subject and Topic. ( Civil Law: Obligation and
Contracts)
 Footer: Indicate the Page Number