JUDICIAL JURISDICTION JURISDICTION (LATIN) Juris and Dico = I speak by the law Means the power or capacity conferred

d by the Constitution or by law to a court or tribunal to entertain, hear and determine certain controversies and render judgment thereon. KINDS OF JURISDICTION 1. Jurisdiction over the subject matter: - Is determined by the statute in force at the time of the commencement of the action - refers to the nature of the cause of action and of the relief sought - vested by law and which is not acquired by consent or acquiescence of the parties nor by the unilateral assumption thereof by a tribunal - neither can it be fixed by the will of the parties nor can it be acquired through or waived enlarged or diminished by any act or omission of the parties 2. Jurisdiction over the issues framed in the pleadings 3. Jurisdiction over the person of the person petitioner/plaintiff - acquired by the latters filing the initiatory pleading and paying the required docket or filing fees. Respondent/defendant - acquired by the service of summons upon him or by his voluntary submission to the authority of the court or tribunal (note: if defendant is a non-resident and is not found in the Philippines, extraterritorial service may be affected pursuant to Sec. 15 Rule 14 of the Rules of Court) - In order that a given case could validly be decided by a Philippine court, it must have jurisdiction: 1. over the subject matter of the litigation; 2. over the person of the parties therein; 3. in actions in rem or quasi in rem, over the properties situated in the Philippines or over the res; JURISDICTION OVER ACTION UNDER WARSAW CONVENTION Warsaw Convention - It is the convention for the unification of certain rules relating to international transportation by air - Applicable to the Philippines on February 1, 1951. - The convention is a treaty commitment voluntarily assumed by the Philippine government and has the force and effect of law in this country. - Applies to all international transportation of persons performed by aircraft for hire. International Transportation

Mean any transportation in which according to the contract made by the parties, the place of departure and the place of destination, whether or not there be a break in the transportation or transhipment, are situated within the territories of two High Contracting Parties. The contract of transportation is the ticket.

Jurisdiction under the Warsaw Convention Article 28.(1) provides that the complaint for damages must be filed, at the option of the plaintiff, only in the territory of one of the contracting parties, before any of the following: 1. The court of the domicile of the carrier; 2. The court of its principal place of business; 3. The court where it has a place of business through which the contract had been made; 4. The court of the place of destination. [Illustrative Case: Santos III] Classification of Jurisdiction Personal Action - which enables the court to render judgment of personal liability Jurisdiction in rem involving Real Action - which enables the court to render judgment against the thing Jurisdiction quasi in rem involving property or interest of a defendant in the Philippines or involving the res or status of plaintiff - which enables the court to render judgment affecting the interests of particular person in a thing or the res, or the status of a person. As a general rule, unless a defendant can be properly served with summons, or he voluntarily submits himself to the jurisdiction of the court, no judgment may be validly rendered against him, as the court may acquire jurisdiction over the subject matter and the person of the defendant. The following are the exceptions: When the action affects the personal status of the plaintiff; When the action relates to, or the subject of which is property within the Philippines, in which the defendant has or claims a lien or interest, actual or contingent; When the relief demanded in such action consists, wholly or in part, in excluding the defendant from any interest in the property located in the Philippines; and When defendant non-residents property has been attached within the Philippines. (First exception finds justification in Art. 15 of the NCC while the Second, Third and Fourth exceptions are founded on Art. 16 of the NCC.)

(Illustrative Case: Perkins vs. Dizon 60 Phil. 186 [1930]) FORUM NON CONVINENS - Refers to the discretionary power of a court to decline jurisdiction when convenience of parties and ends of justice would be better served if action were brought and tried in another forum. - It is patterned upon the right of the court in the exercise of its powers to refuse the imposition upon its jurisdiction of the trial of cases even though the venue is properly laid if it appears that for the convenience of litigants and witnesses and in the interest of justice the action should be instituted in another forum where the action might have been brought. - The application of the doctrine rests in the sound discretion of the court and the factors to be considered in the doctrine are the private interest of the litigant and the interest of the public Whether an action should be entertained or dismissed under the rule depends largely upon the facts of the particular case and is in the sound discretion of the trial court. There are two important factors which may favour retention of the case: 1. Since it is for the plaintiff to choose the place of action, his choice of a forum should not be disturbed except for weighty reasons; 2. The action will not be dismissed unless a suitable alternative forum is available to the plaintiff When a party invokes the doctrine of forum non conviniens as a defense, the court may not be ready to rule on such, and as a rule, that matter has to be left to the sound discretion of the trial court judge who is in the best position, after some vital facts are established, to determine whether special circumstances require that his court desist from assuming jurisdiction over the suit. The principle of forum non conviniens is not a ground for a motion to dismiss, not being one of the grounds enumerated in Sec. 1 of Rule 16 of the Rules of Court.

(Illustrative Cases: Communication Materials and Design, Inc vs. CA 260 SCRA 673 [1996] and Manila Hotel Corp. Vs. NLRC 343 SCRA 1 [2000].)