Somes v. Crossfield
REITERATIONFacts
The Antecedents: Plaintiffs sought a writ of mandamus to compel the defendant judge of the Court of First Instance of Manila to sign a bill of exceptions. Procedural History: The defendants appeared and demurred to the complaint. The case was brought before the Supreme Court for a decision on the demurrer. The Petition: The plaintiffs filed an original action in the Supreme Court, seeking a writ of mandamus. The defendants demurred to the complaint, raising the issue of the propriety of the remedy sought.
Issue(s)
Whether an original action for mandamus is the proper remedy to compel a judge to sign a bill of exceptions.
Ruling
The demurrer is sustained. The plaintiffs are given five days to file an amended complaint; otherwise, the complaint will be dismissed with costs, without prejudice to their right to proceed under Section 499 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
Ratio Decidendi
On Issue 1: The Supreme Court held that an original action for mandamus is not the proper remedy to compel a judge to sign a bill of exceptions. The Court cited its previous ruling in Cedre et al. vs. Jenkins, which clarified that the remedy provided in Section 499 of the Code of Civil Procedure, similar to the recurso de queja under the old Spanish Law of Civil Procedure, is distinct from the extraordinary remedy of mandamus under Sections 222 and 515 of the present Code of Procedure. The Court emphasized that the petition under Section 499 is made in the original case and bears the same title, not constituting a new and separate case. Therefore, the plaintiffs had mistaken their remedy by filing an original action for mandamus instead of proceeding under Section 499.
Main Doctrine
The Supreme Court reiterated that an original action for mandamus is not the proper remedy to compel a judge to sign a bill of exceptions. Instead, parties must follow the specific procedure outlined in Section 499 of the Code of Civil Procedure, which involves filing a petition in the appellate court. This petition is considered part of the original case and not a separate action.