CAUSE OF ACTION

- the act or omission by which a party violates the right of another

- Elements:

o a right in favor of plaintiff

o obligation of defendant to respect or not to violate such right

o act or omission by the defendant in violation of the right of the

plaintiff or constituting a breach of the obligation of the defendant
to the plaintiff for which that latter may maintain an action for
recovery of damages or other appropriate relief

Types of Actions

ORDINARY CIVIL ACTION

o It is one in which a party sues another for the enforcement or

protection of a right or the prevention or redress of a wrong

SPECIAL CIVIL ACTION

o It is one in which a party sues another for the enforcement or

protection of a right or the prevention or redress of a wrong
wherein it has special features not found in ordinary civil actions.
It is governed by ordinary rules but subject to specific rules
prescribed under Rules 62-71

CRIMINAL ACTION

o It is one by which the state prosecutes a person for an act or

omission punishable by law

SPECIAL PROCEEDINGS

o A special proceeding is a remedy by which a party seeks to

establish a status, a right, or a particular fact (SRPF)
PERSONAL v REAL ACTION

PERSONAL ACTION REAL ACTION

Recovery of personal property, the It affects title to or possession of

enforcement of a contract or the real property, or an interest
recovery of damage therein.

Founded on privity of contract When it is founded upon the

such as damages, claims of money, privity of a real estate. The realty
etc. or interest therein is the subject
matter of the action.

A personal action is ‘transitory’ – A real action is ‘local’ – i.e., its

i.e., its venue depends upon the venue depends upon the location
residence of the plaintiff or the of the property involved in the
defendant litigation.

JURISDICTION

Jurisdiction refers to the power and authority of a court to try, hear, and
decide (THD) a case and the power to enforce its determination.

Type of Jurisdiction:

• Courts of general jurisdiction- those with competence to decide on

their own

• Special/ limited jurisdiction- those which have only a special

jurisdiction for a particular purpose OR are clothed with special
powers for the performance of specified duties beyond which they
have no authority.
 • Original jurisdiction- when actions or proceedings are originally filed
with it

• Appellate jurisdiction- when it has the power of review over the

decisions or order of a lower court.

• Concurrent jurisdiction- (aka coordinate jurisdiction) power of different

courts to take cognizance of the same subject matter.

– Court first taking cognizance of the case assumes jurisdiction to the

exclusion of the other courts.

-concurrent jurisdiction among different courts of different ranks is subject

to the doctrine of hierarchy of courts.

VENUE

- place or the geographical area where an action is to be filed and tried.

- Civil cases: relates only to place of suit.

- Criminal cases: place of suit and jurisdiction

PARTIES

CIVIL CASES CRIMINAL CASES

PLAINTIFF- claiming party or more PETITIONER

appropriately, original claiming party and
one who files the complaint or party
claiming in a counterclaim, et
 DEFENDANT- party against whom there is RESPONDENT
a claim

REMEDIAL LAW
(CRIMINAL PROCEDURE)

DUE PROCESS

- Due process in criminal proceeding is mandatory and indispensable

and cannot be met without a law which hears before it condemns and
proceeds upon inquiry and renders judgment only after trial.

Requirements of due process in a criminal proceeding

- Court or tribunal is properly clothed with judicial power to hear and

determine the matter before it;

- Jurisdiction is lawfully acquired over the person of the accused;

- That the accused is given the opportunity to be heard; and

- That judgment is rendered only upon lawful hearing

REQUISITES FOR EXERCISE OF CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

1. Jurisdiction over the subject matter;

2. Jurisdiction over the territory; and
3. Jurisdiction over the person of the accused.
“1,489 mayors in the Philippines proposed constitutional amendments calling for
an extension of office terms as the country is sinking deeper into its pandemic
woes. Critics called the proposal a power grab” Will there be a charter change
during the Duterte Administration? Do we really need a new a Constitution?

a. What is constitution?

b. What are the methods of amending or revising the Constitution?

c. Distinguish amendment and revisions

Political Law

• Branch of public law which deals with the organization and operations
of the governmental organs of the State and defines the relations of
the State with the inhabitants of its territory

• People v. Perfecto, 43 Phil 88 (1922)

Constitution, Defined

That written instrument enacted by direct action of the people by which the
fundamental powers of the government are established, limited and defined,
and by which those powers are distributed among the several departments for
their safe and useful exercise for the benefit of the body politic

• Malcolm, Philippine Constitutional Law, p 6

Classification of the Constitution

WRITTEN UNWRITTEN

Precepts are embodied in one Consists of rule, which have not

document or set of documents been integrated into a single,
concrete form but are scattered in
various sources

ENACTED EVOLVED
 Formally struck off at a definite time Result of political evolution, not
and place following a conscious or inaugurated at any specific time
deliberate effort taken by a but changing by accretion rather
constituent body or ruler than by any systematic method

RIGID FLEXIBLE

Can be amended only by a formal and Can be changed by ordinary

usually difficult process legislation

Permanence of the Constitution

1. Constitution intends to govern far into the indefinite future

2. Constitution intended to have an indefinite life

3. Constitution intended to be adapted to changing conditions

4. Constitution intended to be construed with a measure of flexibility

The Supremacy of the Constitution and the Role of the Courts

PARTS OF A CONSTITUTION

• Constitution of Liberty.

• Constitution of Government.

• Constitution of Sovereignty

WAYS TO INTERPRET THE CONSTITUTION

• Verba legis

• Ratio legis est anima

 • Ut magis valeat quampereat

 It is better for a thing to have effect than to be made void

 It is better to let it flourish than for it to perish
  The Constitution is to be interpreted as a whole - In other
words, the court must harmonize them, if practicable, and
must lean in favor of a construction which will render every
word operative, rather than one which may make the words
idle and nugatory.

• Every part must be given effect

• Conflicting provisions harmonized

• Doctrine of Necessary Implication

AMENDMENTS AND REVISIONS

Amendments

An addition or change within the lines of the original constitution as will effect
an improvement, or better carry out the purpose for which it was framed; a
change that adds, reduces or deletes without altering the basic principles
involved; affects only the specific provision being amended