Monte de Piedad y Caja de Ahorros de Manila v. El Concejo Municipal de Parañaque

Summary

Monte de Piedad y Caja de Ahorros de Manila filed a mandamus action against the Municipal Council of Parañaque to compel preparation of an assessor list required for civil ejectment cases. The Municipal Council failed to prepare the list as mandated by Article 57 of the Code of Civil Procedure, causing eight ejectment cases to be suspended. The Supreme Court affirmed the lower court's decision, establishing that Monte de Piedad has legal standing as a juridical person created by Spanish Royal Order, and that mandamus is the appropriate remedy to compel government entities to perform statutory duties. The Court rejected the defendant's argument that procedural delays caused loss of jurisdiction, ruling that a party cannot benefit from violating the very law it seeks to invoke. The decision reinforces the principle that government entities must fulfill their legal obligations to support judicial proceedings.