Republic of the Philippines
SUPREME COURT
Manila
EN BANC
G.R. No. L-15566 June 29, 1962
BANK OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS as Special Administrator of the Testate Estate of the late JOSE V. RAMIREZ, plaintiff-appellant,
vs.
ANGELA M. VDA. DE BUTTE, defendant-appellee.
Aviado and Aranda for plaintiff-appellant.
Delgado, Flores and Macapagal for defendant-appellee.
R E S O L U T I O N
PADILLA, J.:
On 30 May 1956 the Bank of the Philippine Islands, as special administrator of the testate estate of the late Jose V. Ramirez, filed in the Court of First Instance of Manila a complaint, amended on 6 July 1956, seeking to recover from Angela M. Vda. de Butte stock certificates Nos. 7, 11 and 16 representing 16,580 shares of stock in the Central Luzon Milling Company, Inc. and different supplies, furniture and equipment listed in the amended complaint, which, the plaintiff Bank claims, belonged to the late Jose V. Ramirez, and praying for such other just and equitable reliefs (civil case No. 29826). On 8 June 1956 the defendant filed an answer, amended on 22 August 1956, praying for the dismissal of the amended complaint and, as counterclaim, for the recovery of one steel safe, one typewriter "Corona" and one portable typewriter "Hermes" which, according to her, the late Jose V. Ramirez had borrowed from and had not returned to her. After trial, on 3 April 1959 the Court rendered judgment holding the defendant the owner of the shares of stock and the supplies, furniture and equipment in question and dismissing the complaint and the counterclaim, the latter for not having been satisfactorily proven. On 22 April 1959, the plaintiff filed a notice of appeal, but on 5 May 1959 moved for a new trial. On 8 May 1959 the defendant objected to the motion for new trial. On 11 May 1959 the motion for new trial was denied. Hence, the plaintiff has taken this appeal from the judgment rendered on 3 April 1959.
The certificates of stock Nos. 7, 11 and 16 issued by the Central Luzon Milling Company, Inc., which the appellant claimed to be owned by the late Jose V. Ramirez, originally covered or represented 829 shares of stock with par value of P100, or a total value of P82,900 (Exhibit D-1). At any extraordinary meeting on 10 October 1947, the stockholders converted each share of stock with P100-par value to 20 shares without par value, or the 829 shares with par value of P100 to 16.580 shares without par value. The other claim of the appellant consists of supplies, furniture and equipment the book value of which is P5,040 (Exhibit F-1). Adding this amount to P82,900, the value of the stock certificates, the total value or amount the appellant seeks to recover is P87,940. On the other hand, the value of one steel safe and two typewriters claimed by the appellee is P825. In either or both, the total claim involved in the present appeal is less than P200,000. Under sections 17 and 29 of Republic Act No. 296, otherwise known as the Judiciary Act of 1948, as amended by Republic Act No. 2613, the Court of Appeals has the appellate jurisdiction to decide this case.1äwphï1.ñët
Pursuant to section 31 of the above law, the present appeal is certified to the Court of Appeals for determination and judgment.
Bengzon, C. J., Bautista Angelo, Labrador, Concepcion, Reyes, J. B. L., Barrera, Paredes, Dizon, Regala and Makalintal, JJ., concur.
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