- Petitioner
- Republic of the Philippines
- Respondent
- The Honorable Sandiganbayan
- Citation
- G.R. No. 84895
- Court
- Supreme Court En Banc
- Division
- En Banc
- Ponente
- Gutierrez, Jr., J.
- Decided
- May 4, 1989
Summary
The Republic of the Philippines challenged the Sandiganbayan's denial of its motion to drop Jose D. Campos Jr. as defendant in an ill-gotten wealth recovery case. The PCGG had previously granted immunity to Jose Y. Campos and his family in exchange for cooperation and voluntary surrender of Marcos-related properties. The Supreme Court En Banc ruled that the PCGG has implied authority to grant civil immunity through compromise agreements, as Executive Order No. 14 empowers it to file both criminal and civil cases. The Court held that the immunity granted to Jose Y. Campos extends to his son Jose D. Campos Jr., and that technical procedural rules should not strictly apply to PCGG cases. The decision emphasizes the importance of allowing amicable settlements to facilitate expeditious recovery of ill-gotten wealth, balancing procedural fairness with the constitutional mandate for efficient asset recovery.