---

Republic of the Philippines
SUPREME COURT
Manila

EN BANC

G.R. No. L-2478             July 27, 1950

ESTATE OF THE DECEASED ABAUL HASSAN. EMILIO OQUIÑENA, petitioner,
vs.
PRIMITIVO CANLA, respondent.

Filemon Sotto for petitioner.
Jose M. Tumulak for respondent.

OZAETA, J.:

The appellee presented a claim for P2,667 against the estate of the deceased Abaul Hassan, based on the documents Exhibit A and B, which were attached to and made a part of his claim and which read, respectively, as follows:

(TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN)

This is to certify that Primitivo Canla of Cebu City is employed by me as Coal Prospector with a remuneration of FIFTY CENTAVOS (P0.50) per ton of coal extracted. In this connection I would recommend that he be allowed to carry firearm.

Cebu City, July 31, 1939. (s)    BOUL HASSAN (t)    ABOUL HASSAN

(Exhibit A.)

"Claim
Date	Tons of Coal Extracted	Share and Participation at P0.50 a ton	Amount Paid by Deceased	Balance Payable
1941
Jan. ...........................	P700	P350	P200	P150
Feb. ...........................	744	372	200	172
March .......................	620	310	200	110
Apr. ...........................	740	370	200	170
May ...........................	840	420	200	220
June ...........................	960	480	200	280
July ............................	900	450	200	250
August .....................	920	460	200	260
Sept. .........................	800	400	200	200
October ....................	760	380	150	230
November ................	720	360	150	210
Dec. ..........................	600	300	200	100
1942
Jan. ...........................	680	340	200	140
Feb. ..........................	600	300	125	125
March ......................	400	200	150	50
TOTALS .................	10,984	P5,492	P2,825	P2,667

(EXHIBIT B.)                                     (Sgd.) PRIMITIVO CANLA

After hearing the claim the trial court approved it to the extent of P994.01, and ordered the administrator to pay said amount to the claimant. From that order the administrator appealed to the Court of Appeals, which modified the order of the trial court by increasing the amount allowed to the claimant from P994.01 to P3,819.01.

From that judgment of the Court of Appeals the administrator has appealed to this court by certiorari.

Under his first assignment of error the appellant contends that the deceased Hassan was not the proprietor of the coal mine, but a mere operator and that he could not be held liable to the claimant. This assignment of error is untenable because the finding of the Court of Appeals from the oral and documentary evidence adduced in the trial court that Hassan employed the claimant as prospector and obliged himself to pay to the latter 50 centavos per ton of coal extracted, is conclusive upon this court.

Under his second assignment of error petitioner-appellant contends that the Court of Appeals erred in sustaining an assignment of error made by the appellee, who had not appealed from the judgment of the trial court, by increasing the judgment from P994.01 to P3,818.01. We find this assignment of error to be meritorious. The claim presented by the plaintiff in the probate court was P2,667 only. The trial court could have allowed less but not more than that amount. It allowed less, to wit: P994.01. The claimant did not question the correctness of that amount by filing a motion for reconsideration in the court below or by appealing from the judgment of the trial court. His role as appellee is limited to refuting the appellant's assignment of error and to sustaining the judgment of the trial court. He is precluded from making any assignment of error impugning the correctness of the amount of the judgement of the trial court. To do that he should have appealed from the judgment. Both parties are allowed to appeal from the same judgment. (See section 8, Rule 41; see also secs. 17 and 18, Rule 48.)

Respondent-appellee attempts to justify the act of the Court of Appeals in increasing the amount of the judgment of the trial court by invoking sections 3 and 5 of Rule 53, which reads as follows:

SEC. 3. Harmless error. — No error in either the admission or the exclusion of evidence and no error or defect in any ruling order or in anything done or omitted by the court or by any of the parties is ground for granting a new trial or for setting aside, modifying, or otherwise disturbing a judgment or order, unless refusal to take such action appears to the court inconsistent with substantial justice. The court at every stage of the proceeding must regard any error or defect in the proceeding which does not affect the substantial rights of the parties.

SEC. 5. Questions that may be decided. — No error which does not affect the jurisdiction over the subject matter will be considered unless stated in the assignment of errors and properly argued in the brief, save as the court, at its option, may notice plain errors not specified, and also clerical errors.

Neither of the above-quoted sections of the Rule authorizes the Court of Appeals to modify a judgment in favor of a party who has not appealed therefrom.

It appears that during the trial the claimant introduced in evidence a statement of account (Exhibit D) which was entirely different from Exhibit B, on which his claim was based. In said Exhibit D it is made to appear that the amount was P3,819.01 and not P2,667 as alleged in the claim. Appellee contended that the trial court erroneously deducted the amount already paid — P2,825 — from said sum of P3,819.01.

The theory of the Court of Appeals that the trial court committed a clerical error in awarding to the claimant P994.01 instead of P3,818.01, is untenable, taking into consideration that the claim presented by the claimant to the probate court was P2,667 only. The error, if any, was substantial and judicial — not clerical — and could have been corrected by an appellate court thru appeal by the party adversely affected by such alleged error.

The judgment of the Court of Appeals is modified by making it conform to that of the court of First Instance, without any finding as to costs.

Pablo, Bengzon, Tuason, Montemayor and Reyes, JJ., concur.

The Lawphil Project - Arellano Law Foundation

---