In line with its commitment to speed up the settlement of minor disputes and provide poor Filipinos greater access to justice, the Supreme Court (SC) has authorized all 1,137 first-level courts nationwide to hear small claims cases.

A small claims case is a civil claim SC helps poor litigants which is exclusively for the payment or reimbursement of a sum of money not exceeding P100,000.

Starting last March 18, small claims cases can already be filed in all first-level courts in the country, except Shari’a courts, the SC said.

Small claims courts are comprised of 82 metropolitan trial courts, 212 municipal trial courts in cities, 376 municipal trial courts, and 467 municipal circuit trial courts.

Previously, small claims cases were heard only by 44 first-level courts designated by the High Court.
In the last quarter of 2009, Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno established the small claims court project in response to statistics showing that 70 percent of the caseloads of first-level courts consist of small claims.

The SC came up with rules and procedures on small claims cases in a bid to address the serious and debilitating backlog of civil cases in the Philippines, where people often wait for years for basic litigation to be resolved.

The rules restrict cases that can be heard in the small claims court to those with disputed amounts under P100, 000 and to matters of contract, simple negligence, failure to repay loans and other minor complaints.

Cases that require complicated evidentiary findings, such as fraud, eviction and malpractice, are excluded. There is also a prohibition on attorney representation in the small claims court.
Ready-made forms are made available to the parties who may not be well-versed in legal technicalities. Procedural rules, including the rules of evidence, are also relaxed to facilitate faster disposition of such claims.

According to Chief Justice Puno, the designation of small claims courts has “shortened the distance between our dream of justice for the poor and the cruel reality on the ground.”

Under the project, small claims judges serve to ascertain the main factual matters at issue and elicit evidence – all in one hearing. They effectively substitute for legal representatives and lend a “helping hand” to the disputing parties.

Decisions are rendered immediately thereafter and are final and unappealable, thus ensuring immediate and swift dispensation of justice.

Court Administrator and SC Spokesman Jose Midas Marquez said the installation of small claims courts and the promulgation of the Rule of Procedure for Small Claims Case were part of the SC’s “Increasing Access to Justice by the Poor Program.”

“Marked by inexpensiveness, informality and simplicity, it aims to widen the avenue to justice for the poor. The small claims process results in the declogging of court dockets of civil cases involving the poor,” Marquez said.