!"#$#!!#%& ()**#+ *,- $#%&-. #%/0.
10 #)/
-,22)(34 "[t|he rlnclle ubout "the lust cleur" chunce, would cull for
ullcutlon ln u sult between the owners und drlvers of the two collldlng
vehlcles. lt 56&- %6+ )(#-& 7"&(& ) !)--&%8&( 5&2)%5-
(&-!6%-#*#$#+3 9(62 +"& /)((#&( +6 &%96(/& #+- /6%+()/+,)$
6*$#8)+#6%-. lor lt would be lnequltuble to exemt the negllgent
drlver of the jeeney und lts owners on the ground thut the other drlver
wus llkewlse gullty of negllgence."
9)/+-4
- um of Lecember z, 66, Cutullnu Puscuu et ul. bourded the
jeeney owned by souses lsldro Mungune und Culllermu
Curreon und drlven by 1runqulllno Munulo ut Luu, Mubulucut,
Pumungu bound for Curmen, Rosules, Punguslnun to send
Chrlstmus ut thelr resectlve homes. (Pumungu to
Punguslnun)
- 1hey hud to rlde ln u jeeney thut duy becuuse the buses were
full. 1helr contruct wlth Munulo wus for them to uy Pz.cc for
the trl.
- Uon reuchlng burrlo Slnuyoun, Sun Munuel, 1urluc, the rlght
reur wheel of the jeeney wus detuched, so lt wus runnlng ln un
unbulunced osltlon. Munulo steed on the bruke, the jeeney
whlch wus then runnlng on the eustern lune (lts rlght of wuy)
mude u Uturn, lnvudlng und eventuully stolng on the
western lune of the roud ln such u munner thut the jeeney's
front fuced the south (from where lt cume) und lts reur fuced
the north (towurds where lt wus golng).
- 1he jeeney ructlcully occuled und blocked the greuter
ortlon of the western lune, whlch ls the rlght of wuy of vehlcles
comlng from the north, umong whlch wus 8us No. , of
etltloner Phllllne Rubblt 8us Llnes, lnc. (Rubblt) drlven by
1omus delos Reyes.
- 1hus, the bus bumed from behlnd the rlght reur ortlon of the
jeeney. As u result of the colllslon, three ussengers of the
jeeney (Cutullnu Puscuu, Lrllndu Merlules und Adeluldu
Lstomo) dled whlle the other jeeney ussengers sustulned
hyslcul lnjurles.
- Comlulnts for recovery of dumuges were then flled before the
Court of llrst lnstunce of Punguslnun.
- Souses Mungune und Curreon, Munulo, Rubblt und delos Reyes
were ull lmleuded us defendunts. Plulntlffs unchored thelr sults
ugulnst souses Mungune und Curreon und Munulo on thelr
contructuul llublllty. As ugulnst Rubblt und delos Reyes,
lulntlffs bused thelr sults on thelr culublllty for u quusldellct.
- 1he trlul court rendered lts declslon flndlng Munulo negllgent.
- Eowever, the lntermedlute Aellute Court reversed the
declslon by flndlng delos Reyes negllgent.
- Cn the cross clulm of Phllllne Rubblt 8us Llnes, lnc. orderlng
the defendunts lsldro Mungune, Culllermu Curreon und
1runqulllno Munulo, to uy jolntly und severully for the uctuul
dumuge to the bus und lts loss. ):;<. unother judgment ls
hereby rendered ln fuvor of lulntlffsuellunts Cuslunu Puscuu,
'uun vuldez und Curldud Puscuu, orderlng the Phllllne Rubblt
8us Llnes, lnc. und lts drlver 1omus delos Reyes to uy the
former jolntly und severully dumuges.
- 1hus, thls etltlon.
#--,&4 vho ls lluble for the deuth und hyslcul lnjurles suffered by the
ussengers of the jeeney?
ELLL: lt ls MANALC (the jeeney, not the Phll Rubblt bus) who ls lluble.
1he etltlon ls CRAN1LL. 1he declslon of the lntermedlute Aellute
Court SL1 ASlLL. 1he declslon of the Court of llrst lnstunce ls
RLlNS1A1LL wlth MCLlllCA1lCN.
RA1lC:
- 1he trlul court declured thut Munulo wus negllgent. Eowever,
the lAC hud u contrury olnlon. Alylng rlmurlly () the
doctrlne of lust cleur chunce, (z) the resumtlon thut drlvers
who bum the reur of unother vehlcle gullty und the cuuse of
the uccldent unless contrudlcted by other evldence, und () the
substuntlul fuctor test. concluded thut delos Reyes wus
negllgent.
- 1he court reverses the declslon of the lAC.
- 1he court relterutes thut "[t|he rlnclle ubout "the lust cleur"
chunce, would cull for ullcutlon ln u sult between the owners
und drlvers of the two collldlng vehlcles. lt 56&- %6+ )(#-&
7"&(& ) !)--&%8&( 5&2)%5- (&-!6%-#*#$#+3 9(62 +"&
/)((#&( +6 &%96(/& #+- /6%+()/+,)$ 6*$#8)+#6%-. lor lt
would be lnequltuble to exemt the negllgent drlver of the
jeeney und lts owners on the ground thut the other drlver wus
llkewlse gullty of negllgence."
- 1he court flnds thut the roxlmute cuuse of the uccldent wus
the negllgence of Munulo und souses Mungune und Curreon.
+=>? @:: A@B:>C D< >E>FGB;> D=> HF>G@IDB<J; D=@D @F> J>>C>C
HF>GB;>:? "#$ %&' ()'*+
- ln !"#$% !'()*%!)"%#, the moment u ussenger dles or ls lnjured,
the currler ls resumed to huve been ut fuult or to huve ucted
negllgently, und thls dlsutuble resumtlon muy only be
overcome by evldence thut he hud observed extruordlnury
dlllgence us rescrlbed ln Artlcles ,, , und ,6 of the
New Clvll Code or thut the deuth or lnjury of the ussenger wus
due to u fortultous event.
- 1he negllgence of Munulo wus roven durlng the trlul by the
unrebutted testlmonles of Curldud Puscuu, Pollce lnvestlgutor
1ucul, Pollce Cororul Cuculdu, hls (Munulo's) convlctlon for
the crlme of Multlle Eomlclde und Multlle Serlous lnjurles
wlth Lumuge to Proerty thru Reckless lmrudence, und the
ullcutlon of the doctrlne of *+, -$,% #'."-)"* ,"$*%/ 1he
negllgence of souses Mungune und Curreon wus llkewlse
roven durlng the trlul
- 1hus, the trlul court wus therefore rlght ln flndlng thut Munulo
und souses Mungune und Curreon were negllgent0 "67&1&(.
#+K- (,$#%8 +")+ -!6,-&- 2)%8,%& )%5 /)((&6% )(&
L6#%+$3 )%5 -&1&()$$3 $#)*$& 7#+" 2)%)$6 #-
&((6%&6,-0
- +"& 5(#1&( /)%%6+ *& "&$5 L6#%+$3 )%5 -&1&()$$3
$#)*$& 7#+" +"& /)((#&( #% /)-& 69 *(&)/" 69 +"&
/6%+()/+ 69 /)((#)8&0
- 8LCAUSL llrstly, the contruct of currluge ls between the
currler und the ussenger, und ln the event of contructuul
llublllty, the currler ls excluslvely resonslble therefore to the
ussenger, even lf such breuch be due to the negllgence of hls.
ln other words, the currler cun nelther shlft hls llublllty on the
contruct to hls drlver nor shure lt wlth hlm, for hls drlver's
negllgence ls hls.
- Secondly, lf ve muke the drlver jolntly und severully lluble wlth
the currler, thut would muke the currler's llublllty ersonul
lnsteud of merely vlcurlous und consequently, entltled to
recover only the shure whlch corresonds to the drlver,
contrudlctory to the exllclt rovlslon of Artlcle z8 of the New
Clvll Code.
