Article 131Labor and Agrarian Laws and Social Legislation, p. 131

LABOR LAWS AND SOCIAL LEGISLATION SPECIAL LAWS AND IMPLEMENTING RULES AND REGULATIONS

may order that but one session per day shall be held

instead of two, at such hours as he may deem expedient

for the convenience both of the Court and of the public;

but the number of hours that the Court shall be in session

per day shall be not less than five.

Sessions of the Court shall be held at the places of the

official

station

of

the

respective

judges:

Provided,

however, That whenever necessary in the interest of

speedy and inexpensive justice and litigation, a judge

shall hold court in the municipality where the subject

matter of the dispute is located, utilizing the sala of the

local justice of the peace court for this purpose.

A brief monthly report which shall be submitted within

the first five days of the succeeding month showing the

number and nature of the cases tried in his sala, the place

of hearing in each case, the progress of the litigation with

corresponding dates and the disposition made thereon

shall be rendered by every judge under his signature and

copies thereof shall be furnished the Executive Judge,

who shall compile and report in an appropriate form the

decisions promulgated in important cases. A judge who

fails or neglects to make his report shall, upon first

offense, be liable to warning by the Executive Judge, and

upon repeated failure or neglect may be suspended or

removed from office.

Section 154. Jurisdiction of the Court - The Court shall

have original and exclusive jurisdiction over:

(1) All cases or actions involving matters, controversies,

disputes, or money claims arising from agrarian relations:

Provided, however, That all cases still pending in the

Court of Agrarian Relations, established under Republic

Act Numbered Twelve hundred and sixty-seven, at the

time of the effectivity of this Code, shall be transferred to

and

continued

in the respective Courts of Agrarian

Relations within whose district the sites of the cases are

located;

(2) All cases or actions involving violations of Chapters I

and II of this Code and Republic Act Number Eight

hundred and nine; and

(3) Expropriations to be instituted by the Department of

Agrarian Reform: Provided, however, That expropriation

proceedings

instituted

by

the

Land

Tenure

Administration pending in the Court of First Instance at

the time of the effectivity of this Code shall be transferred

to and continued in the respective Courts of Agrarian

Relations within whose district the subject matter or

property is located.

Section 155. Powers of the Court; Rules and Procedures -

The Courts of Agrarian Relations shall have all the powers

and prerogatives inherent in or belonging to the Court of

First Instance.

The Courts of Agrarian Relations shall be governed by the

Rules of Court: Provided , That in the hearing, investigation

and

determination

of

any

question

or

controversy

pending

before them, the Courts without impairing

substantial rights, shall not be bound strictly by the

technical rules of evidence and procedure, except in

expropriation cases: Provided, further , That in case the

persons

referred

to

under

Section

one

hundred

sixty-three hereof, are not represented by a lawyer of their

own choice, the duly authorized leaders of duly registered

farmers organizations may enter their appearances as

counsel for their respective member and/or organization

before the Court of Agrarian Relations, if the Court is fully

convinced that the said leader could competently protect

the interest of his client subject to the basic duties and

obligations as officers of the Court.

The Court of Agrarian Relations is hereby authorized to

conduct

compulsory

arbitration

between

agricultural

labor and agricultural management, agricultural share

tenants

and

agricultural

landlords,

and

agricultural

lessees and agricultural lessors in conflicts arising out of,

and in connection with, their agrarian relations upon

certification by the Secretary of Justice.

The rights and duties of the parties to the proceedings,

the functions and responsibilities of the Court, and the

binding effect of awards, orders and processes of the

Court shall be covered by Section six to twenty-four of

Commonwealth Act Numbered One hundred three.

Where the litigant is an agricultural tenant, tiller or lessee,

he shall be entitled to the rights of a pauper-litigant

under the rules of Court and the privileges of an indigent

litigant under Republic Act Numbered Sixty hundred and

thirty-five, without further proof thereof. (Amendments to

RA No. 3844 (Agricultural Land Reform Code), Republic

Act No. 6389, [September 10, 1971])

Section 156. Appeals - Appeals from an order or decision

of the Courts of Agrarian Relations may be taken to the

Court of Appeals on questions of fact and of fact and law

or to the Supreme Court on pure questions of law, as the

case may be, in accordance with rules governing appeals

from the Court of First Instance as provided in the Rules

of Court.

Section

157.

Detail

of

Judges to Another District -

Whenever any judge in any of the Court shall certify to

the Executive Judge that the condition of the docket in

his Court is such as to require the assistance of an

additional judge, or when there is any vacancy in any

Court, the Executive Judge may, in the interest of justice,

with the approval of the Supreme Court, assign any judge

of the Court of Agrarian Relations whose docket permits

his temporary absence from said Court, to hold session in

the Court needing such assistance or where such vacancy

exists.

Whenever a judge appointed or assigned in any branch

of

the

Court

shall

leave

his

district

by

transfer

or

assignment to another Court of equal jurisdiction without

having decided a case totally heard by him and which

was duly argued or opportunity given for argument to the

parties of their counsel, it shall be lawful for him to

prepare and sign his decision in said case anywhere

within the Philippines and send the same by registered

mail to the clerk of court to be filed in the Court as of the

date when the same was received by the clerk, in the

same manner as if the judge had been present in the

Court to direct the filing of the judgment: Provided,

however, That if a case has been heard only in part, the

Supreme Court, upon petition of any of the interested

parties to the case and the recommendation of the

respective district judge, may also authorize the judge

who has partly heard the case to continue hearing and to

decide

said

case

notwithstanding

his

transfer

or

appointment to another court of equal jurisdiction.

Section

158.

Personnel

of

the

Courts

of

Agrarian

Relations -

(1)

Court

Commissioners;

Qualifications

and

Compensation

-

There

shall

be

twenty-four

Court

Commissioners

who

shall

receive

an

annual

compensation of nine thousand pesos each and shall be

appointed by the President with the consent of the

Commission on Appointments. A Court Commissioner

shall be a member of the Philippine Bar and must have

been engaged in the practice of law for five years or must

have held a position in the government requiring the

qualifications of a lawyer for the same period. A Court

Commissioner may be assigned by the Executive Judge

to assist in the hearing and investigation of cases. Subject

to the latter's direction and supervision, he may hear

evidence for the Court on any disputed point or issue in

any given case or cases and shall after said hearing

submit a report of all the cases heard by him together

with the records thereof within the period prescribed by

the

Court.

During

the

hearing

he

may

rule

upon

questions of pleading and procedure but not on the

merits of the case.

(2) Clerks of Court; Qualifications, Duties, Compensation

and Bond - There shall be as many Clerks of Court as

there are judges, who shall be appointed by the President

of the Philippines with the consent of the Commission on

Appointments. Deputy Clerks of Court and such other

employees as may be required shall be appointed by the

© Compiled By RGL

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