Servillano Aquino v. Emeterio Tañedo

Summary

This case involves a contractual dispute between private parties over payment obligations following contract rescission. Plaintiff Aquino purchased land from defendant Tañedo for P45,000 in 1913, paying P10,000 as partial payment. The parties later agreed to rescind the contract in 1914, with plaintiff returning the land and defendant acknowledging a P12,000 debt. The Supreme Court affirmed the lower court's judgment ordering defendant to pay P10,000 while rejecting defendant's counterclaim for the value of land products collected by plaintiff. The Court held that mutual rescission by consent does not trigger Civil Code provisions requiring return of fruits, and that plaintiff's good faith possession entitled him to retain collected products. The decision establishes important principles regarding the effects of contractual rescission by mutual agreement versus legal rescission, and the rights of good faith possessors to fruits collected during their possession.