Consolacion de Vera v. Court of Appeals

Summary

This case involved a landlord-tenant dispute over lease termination rights under rent control laws. Petitioner de Vera, who had leased an apartment unit since 1967 under a month-to-month oral agreement, was served notice of lease termination when the property was sold to Quayalay Realty in 1990. The Supreme Court ruled that oral month-to-month leases constitute definite period contracts under Article 1687 of the Civil Code, making them terminable at month's end. The Court clarified that B.P. Blg. 877 suspended Article 1673 but not Article 1687, and that lease expiration remains a valid ground for ejectment under Section 5(f). The decision established that new property owners are not bound by expired lease contracts and affirmed the lower courts' ejectment orders, effectively extending tenant occupancy for five years through the appellate process.