Disposition of "Inherited Cases" Forwarded to the Judiciary Planning Development and Implementation Office (JPDIO)

January 28, 1998

SUPREME COURT ADMINISTRATIVE CIRCULAR NO. 2-98

 

To facilitate the early disposition of a total of 266 inherited cases which were transmitted to the JPDIO, now defunct pursuant to Administrative Circular # 4-97 dated April 1, 1997, the following guidelines shall be adopted:

I. Cases submitted for decision before a judge who is still in the service as a Regional Trial Court judge, shall be returned to and decided by said judge pursuant to Paragraph A sub paragraph 2 of Administrative Circular # 3-94 dated January 26, 1994.

II. Cases submitted for decision before a judge who is no longer in the service as a Regional Trial Court judge shall be returned to the court vacated by said judge and shall be decided by the present presiding judge of such court, provided that if the vacated court is one of two or more branches in one station the case shall be equitably raffled by the Executive Judge among all the judges in the station whether regular or in an acting capacity including judges who are designated to special courts. The result of the raffle shall be submitted to the office of the Court Administrator within ten (10) days thereafter.

III. The inherited cases pertaining to the Regional Trial Courts of Bataan and Oriental Mindoro shall be equitably distributed / assigned by the Court Administrator among all the Regional Trial Court judges in the province concerned .

A judge to whom an inherited case was raffled/assigned, shall have 6 months from receipt of the records of the case, within which to decide the case. However, when an inherited case involves a detention prisoner, the judge to whom said case was raffled/assigned shall decide the same not later than 3 months from receipt of the records.

The decision together with the records of the case shall be transmitted to the branch where the case was filed, for promulgation thereof.

A manifestation of compliance together with a copy of the decision duly signed by the judge concerned shall be submitted to the office of the Court Administrator upon the expiration of the 3 months / 6 months period, as the case may be.

For strict compliance.

January 28, 1998

(SGD.) ANDRES R. NARVASAChief Justice