Facts:
This is a petition for review on certiorari regarding the reversing decision of
the Court of Appeals in the decision of the Trial Court and thus, making the
petitioners liable for damages through the abusive conduct of petitioner Lim,
imposing upon them P200,000 as exemplary damages, P200,000 as moral damages,
and P10,000 as attorney’s fees.
Plaintiff Roberto Reyes (Amay Bisaya) was having coffee at the Nikko Hotel
lobby on October 13, 1994 at around six in the morning when Dr. Violeta Filart,
a long-time friend, approached him and invited him to a party at the penthouse
where the hotel’s former manager’s birthday was being celebrated. He consented
and carried the latter’s present. At the party, when he was helping himself at
the buffet table, Ruby Lim, one of the petitioners, approached him and asked
him to leave in a loud voice enough to be heard by those around the buffet
table. Then, a Makati policeman accompanied the embarrassed Amay Bisaya in
leaving the penthouse.
Ruby Lim accepted the fact that she asked Mr. Reyes to leave but not in the
manner he claimed. She said she politely asked Mr. Reyes to finish his food and
leave the party as the celebrant wants the party to be intimate, and that he
was not invited. On the other hand, Dr. Filart denied Amay Bisaya’s claim that
she invited him to the party.
Issue:
Whether or not petitioner Lim’s conduct was abusive enough to make the
petitioners liable for damages caused to plaintiff.
Held:
No. The Supreme Court ruled that any damage which Mr. Reyes might have suffered
through Ms. Lim’s exercise of a legitimate right done within the bounds of
propriety and good faith, must be his to bear alone.
The plaintiff failed in proving the ill-motive of the petitioners. It was from
his confession that when Ms. Lim approached him, they were very close that they
nearly kissed each other. Considering the closeness of defendant Lim to
plaintiff when she requested the latter to leave the party, it is apparent that
the request was meant to be heard by him only and there could have been no
intention on her part to cause him embarrassment. It was plaintiff’s reaction
to the request that must have made the other guests aware of what transpired
between them. Had plaintiff simply left the party as requested, there was no
need for the police to take him out. Therefore, we find the petitioners not
guilty of violating Articles 19 and 21 of the Civil Code.
WHEREFORE, premises considered, the petition filed by Ruby Lim and Nikko Hotel
Manila Garden is GRANTED. The Decision of the Court of Appeals dated 26
November 2001 and its Resolution dated 09 July 2002 are hereby REVERSED and SET
ASIDE. The Decision of the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City, Branch 104,
dated 26 April 1999 is hereby AFFIRMED. No costs.
SO ORDERED.
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