Amendments to the rules of court

The Supreme Court on Wednesday held a Media Launch of the 2019 Amendments to the 1997 Rules of Procedure and to the Revised Rules on Evidence. The event was streamed live on YouTube via Zoom. Truly we have entered the new era of virtual events where online live press launchings and other events try to recreate to some extent in-person meetings.

The new rules took effect last May but its media launch was postponed because of the ongoing pandemic. Despite that, I can say that the judiciary is one of those institutions that responded quickly and effectively when the pandemic first hit us last March. The Supreme Court and the Regional Trial Courts promptly issued circulars that keep the wheels of justice turning.

The amendments to the 1997 Rules of Procedure and the Revised Rules on Evidence constitute a milestone in the judiciary’s efforts to strengthen the judicial system into a better, faster, and cost-effective mechanism of delivering justice to our people. The media launch last Wednesday was the Supreme Court’s attempt to inform the people about the salient points of the amendments. You may view it through the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdjtbL9cCV4.

“After 22 years and even 30 even longer years, respectively, the Rules on Civil Procedure and (the Rules on) Evidence finally get their much needed upgrade,” said Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez in his welcome remarks.

How many of our people are giving up on seeking justice through the courts because they know it would likely take a disproportionately large amount of time and resources?

In fairness, there were major changes to the rules introduced in between those 22 years like the judicial affidavit rule and the procedure for small claims which helped speed up the court processes and decongest court dockets. But the 2019 amendments promise a major shift toward responding to the concerns of our people because these are based on the best practices in various courts and the experiences of judges, lawyers, and litigators. The amendments seek to simplify the flow of the cases in court and to prevent other factors that prolong the resolution of cases.

Under the old rules, a person files a complaint on the basis initially of concise and direct statements of the ultimate facts on which he relies for his claim. Evidence is only required to be presented during trial. Under the new rules, the filing of a complaint must now include evidentiary facts with the attachment of judicial affidavits of witnesses and other supporting documents.

Five calendar days from the filing of the complaint in court, the court must issue a summons ordering the defendant to answer the complaint within 30 calendar days from receipt of summons. Likewise, the defendant is required to attach in his answer the evidences of his defense such as judicial affidavits and other supporting documents.

In this manner, as early as the initial filing of these pleadings (the complaint and the answer), the court can immediately evaluate the merits of the complaint and the defense. In other words, the court can actually decide at the pre-trial stage if the case should proceed to trial or if it could be resolved already either because are no controverted facts, no genuine issue, or the answer fails to tender an issue.

Additional changes that speed up the process include the prohibition of motions which tend to delay the proceedings. Likewise in general, motions are no longer heard in court and will be decided based on submitted evidence and documents.

Other salient features include faster notification to parties as regards the process, rules, or documents submitted in court with the rule on presumptive service of pleadings, substituted service of summons, and service and filing using accredited private couriers, email, and other electronic means.

There are still many important amendments I omitted to discuss because of column space constraints. But I hope the ones I mentioned give you an idea of how the amendments are expected to improve the delivery of justice from hereon.

These amendments incorporate “technological advances, international conventions, recognized practices in decongesting court dockets, and developments in law, jurisprudence and international conventions.”

To some extent, this may be a new and unfamiliar terrain for many lawyers, but we are more than willing to adjust because the purpose is common to all – to improve the delivery of justice and strengthen our people’s faith in the judicial process.