USA College of Law

Case Name BAYANI CUEVAS v. ATTY. ULYSSES M. ROSAL

Topic Attorney’s Fees / Attorney-Client Relationship
Case No. | Date A.C. No. 9202 | July 29, 2019 (Resolution)
Ponente
Doctrine

RESOLUTION

Atty. Ulysses M. Rosal was found liable for dishonesty for denying the existence of a lawyer-client relationship
between him and Bayani G. Cuevas even in the face of evidence that he received P50, 000.00 as legal fee. He got
suspended from the practice of law and ordered to return in full the amount he received from Cuevas. To date,
however, Atty. Rosal has failed to return this amount even two years after the Court required him.
Atty. Rosal's claim that he has no intention of defying the Order is specious. Notably, Atty. Rosal received 3
Resolutions, requiring him to restitute to Cuevas the amount of P50, 000.00 i.e. IBP-Board of Governor's Resolutions
dated April 18, 2015 and September 24, 2016; and the Court's Resolution dated June 21, 2017 --- all affirming his
liability and ordering him to return the full amount to Cuevas. Up to this very moment, Atty. Rosal has conveniently
chosen to ignore these directives.
In Felipe v. Atty. Macapagal, the Court has emphatically stated that lawyers are particularly called upon to obey court
orders and processes and are expected to stand foremost in complying with court directives being themselves officers
of the court. As an officer of the court himself, respondent here is expected to know that a resolution of this
Court is not a mere request but a command which should be complied with promptly and completely.

Atty. Rosal, therefore, cannot excuse himself from complying with the Court's directive to return to Cuevas the full
amount of P50,000.00 based alone on his bare statement that he has no capability to pay it even after two years
following issuance of said directive. He never before pleaded this reason for the purpose of seeking this Court's
consideration of his supposed financial predicament, if at all it was true. He simply ignored and continuous to ignore
the Court's directive as if he could freely do so with impunity.

RULING:
Respondent Atty. Ulysses M. Rosal is ORDERED anew to return to Bayani G. Cuevas the sum of P50,000.00 within
ten days from notice and is further required to pay 6% interest per annum on the amount due reckoned from July 25,
2017. For every month or fraction thereof that he fails to comply with this directive, he shall serve an additional
suspension of one month.

Bayani G. Cuevas is required to manifest to this Court Atty. Ulysses M. Rosal's compliance with the order, attaching
therewith evidence/receipt of said payment.

Atty. Ulysses M. Rosal is WARNED another time that a repetition of similar acts shall be dealt with more severely.