- Petitioner
- La Compania General de Tabacos de Filipinas
- Respondent
- Candida Obed
- Citation
- G.R. No. 4226
- Court
- Supreme Court En Banc
- Division
- En Banc
- Ponente
- Torres, J.
- Decided
- March 31, 1909
Summary
The Supreme Court affirmed a debt collection case where La Compania General de Tabacos sought to collect P1,658.93 from Candida Obed and Felipe Gallegos based on a written debt acknowledgment. Defendant Obed claimed fraud, alleging her son deceived her into signing by claiming it was her late husband's debt. The Court found no proof of fraud, noting the document was interpreted to her in her dialect and she understood Spanish. The Court clarified that the obligation was joint (mancomunal) rather than solidary (in solidum) since not expressly stated, requiring defendants to pay by halves rather than joint and several liability. The decision established important precedents on contractual obligations, fraud requirements, and the distinction between joint and solidary obligations under the Civil Code.