The Supreme Court (SC) starts implementing today, Aug. 21, Republic Act No. 11576 that expanded the jurisdiction of trial courts on civil cases involving property, probate such as inheritance, and maritime disputes.
RA 11576, which amended the Judiciary Reorganization Act of 1980 and signed by President Duterte last July 30, became effective after its publication in two newspapers of general circulation last Aug. 6.
The SC, through Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo, had welcomed the enactment of the law that also gave the High Court “delegated authority to adjust the jurisdictional amounts” cognizable by trial courts.
The adjustments should “reflect the extraordinary supervening inflation or deflation of currency, change in land valuation, or to maintain the proportion of caseload between first and second level courts.”
First level courts in the country are the municipal trial court (MTC), municipal circuit trial court (MCTC), municipal trial court in cities (MTCC), and metropolitan trial court (MeTC). Regional trial courts (RTCs) are the second level courts.
In a circular issued by Court Administrator Jose Midas P. Marquez, all first and second level courts are mandated to comply with the provisions of RA 11576 starting Aug. 21, 2021.
The new law increased the jurisdiction amount cognizable by the RTCs “in all civil actions which involve the title to, or possession of, real property, or any interest therein, from the previous amount of P20,000 (P50,000 in Metro Manila) to P400,000, except for forcible entry into and unlawful detainer of lands and buildings, original jurisdiction over which remains with the first-level courts.”
It also increased RTCs’ jurisdiction in maritime cases “where the demand or claims exceeds P2,000,000, from the previous amount of P100,000 (P200,000 in Metro Manila); in all matters of testate and intestate probate where the gross value of the estate exceeds P2,000,000, from the previous amount of P100,000 (P200,000 in Metro Manila); and in all other cases in which the demand, exclusive of interest, damages of whatever kind, attorney’s fees, litigation expenses and costs or the value of the property in controversy exceeds P2,000,000, from the previous amount of P100,000.”
For the first level courts, the new law provides that they will have “exclusive original jurisdiction over civil actions and probate proceedings, testate and intestate, including grant of provisional remedies where the value of the personal property, estate, or amount of the demand does not exceed P2,000,000, exclusive of interest, damages of whatever kind....”
The first level courts will also have “exclusive original jurisdiction in all civil actions which involve title to, or possession of real property, or any interest therein where the amount does not exceed P400,000, exclusive of interest, damages....”
In admiralty and maritime cases, first level courts have jurisdiction on amounts not exceeding P2,000,000.
In 2020, the SC designated several first level and second level courts as admiralty courts to handle shipping, ocean, and sea legal cases such as those involving contracts, injuries and offenses relating to maritime laws.
Marquez’s circular states that “those cases now falling within the jurisdiction of the first level courts... though filed with the second level courts prior to the effectivity of RA 11576 but no pre-trial order has been issued, shall be remanded to and heard by the first level courts.”
Such cases “shall be transmitted to the clerks of court of the Office of the Clerk of Court for raffle among the first level courts in multi-sala stations, or the branch clerk of court for single sala first level courts.”
“The docket fees already paid in cases initially filed with the second level courts shall be considered sufficient payment of docket fees in the first level courts,” the circular also stated.
Second level courts “shall turn over to the first level courts the records of the subject cases, together with the legal fees form or the certified true copies of the related official receipts,” it added.
Chief Justice Gesmundo said RA 11576 “will no doubt help declog the dockets of our second-level courts, which in turn would lead to a faster adjudication of cases and better administration of justice.”
“Through this new law, the jurisdictional amounts of our trial courts have now been adjusted to levels which are more suitable to the current economic conditions and property valuation in the country,” he said.