Cogeo-Cubao Operators v. The Court of Appeals

Summary

This case involved a dispute between a transport corporation holding a certificate of public convenience for jeepney operations and a drivers association that forcibly took over the route operations. Lungsod Silangan Transport Services Corp. held a valid certificate to operate on the Cogeo-Cubao route since 1983. In 1985, the Cogeo-Cubao Operators and Drivers Association, formed as a non-profit organization, created a human barricade and assumed control of jeepney dispatching for ten days without authorization. The Supreme Court affirmed that certificates of public convenience constitute property rights that cannot be interfered with without due process. While recognizing the association's constitutional right to redress grievances, the Court held that the manner of exercise violated the corporation's legal rights and public order, warranting nominal damages under Civil Code provisions on willful injury and property right invasion.