Defenses In Negligence Cases

Prepared by: Cabahug, Sheila Carbonel, Jeff Tan, Dominique

Fortuitous Event
Concept of Fortuitous Event
A person is not liable if the cause of damage is fortuitous; an event which could not be foreseen, or which though foreseen, was inevitable (Art. 1174, New Civil Code)

Partidas as caso fortuito

Fortuitous Event
Elements of Fortuitous Event
1. The cause of the unforeseen and unexpected occurrence, or of the debtor to comply with his obligation, must be independent of the human will It must be impossible to foresee the event, or if it can be foreseen it must be impossible to avoid The occurrence must be such as to render it impossible for the debtor to fulfill his obligation in a normal manner The obligor must be free from any participation in the aggravation of the injury resulting to the creditor

2. 3.

4.

NATIONAL POWER CORPORATION, et al. v. THE COURT OF APPEALS, GAUDENCIO C. RAYO, et al. (222 SCRA 415) May 21, 1993

Facts:
The plaintiffs sought to recover for actual and other damages for the loss of lives and the destruction to property caused by the inundation of the town of Norzagaray, Bulacan on 26-27 October 1978 Defendant NPC allege that they exercised due care, diligence and prudence in the operation and maintenance of the hydroelectric plant as manifested by the written notices sent to the different municipalities in Bulacan as a warning about the impending release of a large volume of water with the onset of typhoon Kading and advising them to take the necessary precautions

NATIONAL POWER CORPORATION, et al. v. THE COURT OF APPEALS, GAUDENCIO C. RAYO, et al. (222 SCRA 415) May 21, 1993

Issue:
Whether or not the herein petitioners were guilty of patent gross and evident lack of foresight, imprudence and negligence in the management and operation of Angat Dam

Held:
Petitioners were guilty of negligence
The event was not occasioned exclusively by an act of God or force majeure; a human factor negligence or imprudence had intervened

SOUTHEASTERN COLLEGE, INC. v. COURT OF APPEALS, et al. (G.R. No. 126389) July 10, 1998 Facts:
Buffeted by very strong winds, the four-storey school building owned by the herein petitioner was partly ripped of and blown away, landing and destroying portions of the roofing of the respondents house After the typhoon had passed, an ocular inspection of the destroyed buildings was conducted headed by the city building official whom declared that structural hazards were discovered to the subject school building

SOUTHEASTERN COLLEGE, INC. v. COURT OF APPEALS, et al. (G.R. No. 126389) July 10, 1998 Issue:
Whether or not the petitioner was negligent, such that if it were not, the damage caused to respondents house could have been avoided Held: Petitioner not guilty of negligence or at fault regarding the construction and maintenance of its school building in question
Fortuitous event (typhoon Saling) is the proximate cause of the damage suffered by the defendants by private respondents house

Effect of Death of Defendant

Death not a Defense
Death of the defendant will not extinguish the obligation based on quasi-delict The case will continue through the legal representative who will substitute the deceased

Effect of Death of Defendant

Rules of Court Provisions
Whenever a party to a pending action dies, and the claim is not thereby extinguished, it shall be the duty of his counsel to inform the Court within thirty (30) days after such death of the fact thereof, and to give the name and address of his legal representative or representatives (Rule 3, Sec. 16, Rules Of Civil Procedure)

Prescription
When period commences
Prescriptive period for quasi-delict is four (4) years counted from the date of the accident

Prescription
Kramer, Jr. v. Court Of Appeals
Right of action accrues when there exists a cause of action, which consists of three (3) elements, namely:
1. A right in favor of the plaintiff by whatever means and under whatever means and under whatever law it arises or it is created 2. An obligation on the part of the defendant to respect such right 3. An act or omission on the part of such defendant violative of the right of the plaintiff

Prescription
Doctrine of Relations or Relations Back Doctrine
An act done at one time is considered by fiction of law to have been done at some antecedent period

Allied Banking Corporation v. Court Of Appeals

Relations Back Doctrine cannot be properly invoke in the computation of the prescriptive period

Prescription
Effect of Prescription on Other Sources of Obligation
Prescription of the action for quasi-delict does not operate as a bar to an action to enforce the civil liability arising from crime

Mendoza v. La Mallorca Bus Company

Action based on Culpa Aquiliana is not a bar to the enforcement of the subsidiary liability of the employer

Involuntariness
Complete defense in quasi-delict cases and the defendant is therefore not liable if force was exerted on him Laidlaw v. Sage
The law presumes that an act or omission done or neglected under the influence of pressing danger was done or neglected involuntarily
Self-preservation is the first law of nature