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Fighting Back Lawsuit Through Counterclaim

Filing a counterclaim is probably the best way to fight back a lawsuit. This is especially effective if you have valid grounds for a claim against the other party. It may or may not be related to the transaction or incident subject of the complaint. It may be a compulsory or permissive counterclaim. Regardless as to the type of counterclaim you have over the plaintiff, the purpose of counterclaim is to deter lawsuit, cushion the impact of an adverse judgment, force the other party to settle amicably, or offset contending claims. One must be mindful as to what kind of counterclaim you have against the adverse party. The two types of counterclaims have different effects or governed under different rules. For example, if it is a compulsory counterclaim, you do not have to pay the docket fees but if it is a permissive counterclaim, docket fees should be paid depending on the amount prayed for. If you do not file a compulsory counterclaim, you will be deemed to have waived it and you a...
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Small Claims: Faster Way to Collect Money?

One consideration in filing a collection case against somebody is the amount of money owed to you. But kudos to the Supreme Court for passing the 2016 Revised Rules of Procedure for Small Claims Cases. Without it, it was impractical to file a suit for collection especially if it involves a measly 4 to 5 figures before. Say, you loaned P20,000 to B. B defaulted in paying. It would be impractical to hire a lawyer to collect the indebtedness from B considering that a lawyer's retainer would usually cost you P20,000 also. Instead of getting back the money, you will find yourself losing some more on account of hiring a lawyer and the cost of litigation. With the Rules on Small Claims Cases, this immensely helped ordinary Juans to easily collect money because it specifically does not allow representation by a lawyer.  All you have to do is to download a readily available form online (just make sure it is the 2016 format) or ask for some forms with the MTC, fill it up, attach the sup...
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Land Conversion

The latest trend in the market today is investing in real property. This has become more apparent when San Miguel Corporation expanded its operation to include real property development. Probably taking hint on this active market, even small companies are now fighting for a piece of the market action by acquiring properties and developing it into resorts, buildings, and residential homes. Most of the properties being developed by these companies are agricultural lands. In the Philippines, conversion of agricultural lands to some other use such as commercial, residential, or industrial is regulated under the law. The primary purpose of which is maintain food security. Most companies are unaware of this. Such ignorance comes with a price if the government agency concerned enters its appearance to enforce the law. Failure to comply with the law on land use conversion may result to criminal and administrative cases, forfeiture and fines may be imposed, and/or cease and desist of op...
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How to Collect Loan from Deceased Person

Let us assume that a good friend of yours borrowed a huge amount of money from you in 2016. And because you know the guy for a very long time, you did not ask for security or for the two of you execute a mortgage over one of his properties. The next year, that friend died. Now, you are faced with the problem how to get the money owed to you. Collecting loans from a deceased person can be tricky and highly technical. If this is the case, it is advised to get a lawyer because there is high probability that the heirs will not acknowledge that their predecessor had gotten some money from you. Oftentimes, the heirs would ask why are you collecting from them? That question is warranted because ideally, debt is a personal obligation of the debtor. However, there are exceptions. You must take note that this problematic scenario may branch out from one problem to the other. The legal remedy/remedies may also differ depending on the circumstances. Hence, detail of the transaction is...
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How To Terminate Leasehold Tenancy Relationship on Agricultural Property

Pursuant to RA 3844, a tenant of an agricultural land has a security of tenure. Meaning, he cannot be ejected outside those grounds provided under the law. His right to cultivate the land can be passed on to qualified immediate family members. Once established, expressly or impliedly, this seemingly infinite right of the tenant to hold and cultivate a landowner's agricultural land can be problematic to those who want to sell the land, change tenants or to those landowners who want to handle production by themselves.  Under the law, there are three instances tenancy may be dissolved or extinguished: 1. By court order; 2. By voluntary surrender of landholding in favor of the landlord; 3. By absence of immediate family member to continue cultivation in case of permanent disability, old age or death of the tenant. Outside the said three instances, a tenant may not be legally ousted from his cultivation of the land. Some landowners would complain to the concerned ...
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Must Know If You Are Planning to Own Agricultural Land in the Philippines

If you are planning to buy an agricultural land especially riceland in the Philippines, here are the things that you have to watch out for: 1. Know if the land is irrigated or not.     If it is irrigated:     a. Know if the irrigation fees has been paid by the seller. Irrigation system is considered a permanent improvement in the land. Therefore, it is the owner who should pay for the fees. This means that absent agreement between the landowner and tenant, the obligation to pay for the irrigation fees belongs to the owner;     b. It is non-negotiable for conversion or it is prohibited from being turned from agricultural use to some other use, say, from agricultural to commercial;     c.   It produces more compared to rain-fed riceland; 2.   Know if it is tenanted. This is important because tenants of an agricultural land under leasehold contract is protected under the law, specifically RA 3844. They have a se...
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Opening Statement

Welcome! This site is dedicated to actual and practical application of law especially in the Philippines. It does not really matter much if you are abroad because the spirit and the logic behind law around the world is basically the same. Just bear in mind that discussions in this site on law and court decisions as applied to different situations reflect the opinions of the authors on the matter. All persons and situations discussed in this site are fictional and/or purposely changed to protect the identity of the persons concerned.
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