Regina Q. Alba v. Nida Arollado

Summary

This case involves a dispute over collection of debt arising from sale of petroleum products on credit. Regina Alba, proprietor of Libra Fishing, sold petroleum products to Nida Arollado on various dates beginning 2000. Nida issued three checks totaling P170,260.50 which were dishonored by banks. Regina filed a collection case in 2013, more than 10 years after the transactions. The key legal issue was determining the prescriptive period for oral contracts. The Supreme Court affirmed that the agreement was an oral contract subject to a 6-year prescriptive period under Article 1145 of the Civil Code. The Court ruled that the cause of action accrued when the checks were dishonored (2000 and 2003), making Regina's 2013 lawsuit time-barred. The decision clarifies that checks alone do not convert oral agreements into written contracts and emphasizes strict compliance with prescription periods for debt collection.