SECOND DIVISION

[G.R. No. 76801. August 11, 1995.]

LOPEZ REALTY, INC., AND ASUNCION LOPEZ GONZALES , petitioners,

vs. FLORENTINA FONTECHA, ET AL., AND THE NATIONAL LABOR
RELATIONS COMMISSION , respondents.

The Solicitor General for petitioners.

Roberto B. Capoon, Jr. for private respondents.

SYLLABUS

1. REMEDIAL LAW; ACTIONS; APPEAL; ISSUES CANNOT BE RAISED FOR THE FIRST
TIME ON APPEAL. Indeed, it would be offensive to the basic rules of fair play and justice
to allow petitioners to raise questions which have not been passed upon by the labor
arbiter and the public respondent NLRC. It is well-settled that questions not raised in the
lower courts cannot be raised for the rst time on appeal. Hence, petitioners may not
invoke any other ground, other than those it speci ed at the labor arbiter level, to impugn
the validity of the subject resolutions.
2. COMMERCIAL LAW; CORPORATION LAW; CORPORATION; SHOULD ACT IN THE
MANNER AND WITHIN THE FORMALITIES PRESCRIBED BY ITS CHARTER OR BY THE
GENERAL LAW. The general rule is that a corporation, through its board of directors,
should act in the manner and within the formalities, if any, prescribed by its charter or by
the general law. Thus, directors must act as a body in a meeting called pursuant to the law
or the corporation's by-laws, otherwise, any action taken therein may be questioned by any
objecting director or shareholder.
3. ID.; ID.; ID.; ACTION OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS WITHOUT NOTICE MAY BE
RATIFIED. Be that as it may, jurisprudence tells us that an action of the board of
directors during a meeting, which was illegal for lack of notice, may be rati ed either
expressly, by the action of the directors in subsequent legal meeting, or impliedly, by the
corporation's subsequent course of conduct.
4. ID.; ID.; ID.; ID.; BOARD RESOLUTION GRANTING GRATUITY PAY WITHOUT NOTICE
TO MAJOR STOCKHOLDER; RATIFIED WHERE SAID MAJOR STOCKHOLDER SIGNED CASH
VOUCHERS FOR GRATUITY PAY. In the case at bench, it was established that petitioner
corporation did not issue any resolution revoking nor nullifying the board resolutions
granting gratuity pay to private respondents. Instead, they paid the gratuity pay,
particularly, the rst two (2) installments thereof, of private respondents Florentina
Fontecha, Mila Refuerzo, Marcial Mamaril and Perfecto Bautista. Despite the alleged lack
of notice to petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales at that time the assailed resolutions were
passed, we can glean from the records that she was aware of the corporation's obligation
under the said resolutions. More importantly, she acquiesced thereto. As pointed out by
private respondents, petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales af xed her signature on Cash
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 Voucher Nos. 81-10-510 and 81-10-506, both dated October 15, 1981, evidencing the 2nd
installment of the gratuity pay of private respondents Mila Refuerzo and Florentina
Fontecha. We hold, therefore, that the conduct of petitioners after the passage of
resolutions dated August 17, 1981 and September 1, 1981, had estopped them from
assailing the validity of said board resolutions.
5. ID.; ID.; ID.; ULTRA VIRES, DEFINED. In legal parlance, "ultra vires" act refers to one
which is not within the corporate powers conferred by the Corporation Code or articles of
incorporation or not necessary or incidental in the exercise of the powers so conferred.
6. ID.; ID.; ID.; RESOLUTION GRANTING GRATUITY TO EMPLOYEES, NOT ULTRA VIRES .
The assailed resolutions before us cover a subject which concerns the bene t and
welfare of the company's employees. To stress, providing gratuity pay for its employees is
one of the express powers of the corporation under the Corporation Code, hence,
petitioners cannot invoke the doctrine of ultra vires to avoid any liability arising from the
issuance the subject resolutions.
7. ID.; ID.; ID.; ID.; NEED NOT BE APPROVED IN THE ANNUAL STOCKHOLDERS'
MEETING; CASE AT BENCH. Petitioners try to convince us that the subject resolutions
had no force and effect in view of the non-approval thereof during the Annual Stockholders'
Meeting held on March 1, 1982. To strengthen their position, petitioners cite Section 28
1/2 of the Corporation Law (Section 40 of the Corporation Code). We are not persuaded.
The cited provision is not applicable to the case at bench as it refers to the sale, lease,
exchange or disposition of all or substantially all of the corporation's assets, including its
goodwill. In such a case, the action taken by the board of directors requires the
authorization of the stockholders on record. It will be observed that, except for Arturo
Lopez, the stockholders of petitioner corporation also sit as members of the board of
directors. Under the circumstances in eld, it will be illogical and super uous to require the
stockholders' approval of the subject resolutions. Thus, even without the stockholders'
approval of the subject resolutions, petitioners are still liable to pay private respondents'
gratuity pay.

DECISION

PUNO , J : p

The controversy at bench arose from a complaint led by private respondents, 1 namely,
Florentina Fontecha, Mila Refuerzo, Marcial Mamaril, Perfecto Bautista, Edward Mamaril,
Marissa Pascual and Allan Pimentel, against their employer Lopez Realty Incorporated
(petitioner) and its majority stockholder. Asuncion Lopez Gonzales, for alleged non-
payment of their gratuity pay and other bene ts. 2 The case was docketed as NLRC-NCR
Case No. 2-2176-82. cdasia

Lopez Realty, Inc., is a corporation engaged in real estate business, while petitioner
Asuncion Lopez Gonzales is one of its majority shareholders. Her interest in the company
vis-a-vis the other shareholders is as follows:
1. Asuncion Lopez Gonzales 7,831 shares

2. Teresita Lopez Marquez 7,830 shares

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 3. Arturo F. Lopez 7,830 shares

4. Rosendo de Leon 4 shares

5. Benjamin Bernardino 1 share

6. Leo Rivera 1 share

Except for Arturo F. Lopez, the rest of the shareholders also sit as members of the
Board of Directors.
As found by the labor arbiter, 3 sometime in 1978, Arturo Lopez submitted a proposal
relative to the distribution of certain assets of petitioner corporation among its three (3)
main shareholders. The proposal had three (3) aspects, viz: (1) the sale of assets of the
company to pay for its obligations; (2) the transfer of certain assets of the company to its
three (3) main shareholders, while some other assets shall remain with the company; and
(3) the reduction of employees with provision for their gratuity pay. The proposal was
deliberated upon and approved in a special meeting of the board of directors held on April
17, 1978. cdtai

It appears that petitioner corporation approved two (2) resolutions providing for the
gratuity pay of its employees, viz: (a) Resolution No. 6, Series of 1980, passed by the
stockholders in a special meeting held on September 8, 1980, resolving to set aside, twice
a year, a certain sum of money for the gratuity pay of its retiring employees and to create a
Gratuity Fund for the said contingency; and (b) Resolution No. 10, Series of 1980 , setting
aside the amount of P157,750.00 as Gratuity Fund covering the period from 1950 up to
1980.
Meanwhile, on July 28, 1981, board member and majority stockholder Teresita Lopez
Marquez died.
O n August 17, 1981 , except for Asuncion Lopez Gonzales who was then abroad, the
remaining members of the Board of Directors, namely: Rosendo de Leon, Benjamin
Bernardino, and Leo Rivera, convened a special meeting and passed a resolution which
reads: cdt

"Resolved, as it is hereby resolved that the gratuity (pay) of the employees be given as follows:

(a) Those who will be laid off be given the full amount of gratuity;
(b) Those who will be retained will receive 25% of their gratuity (pay) due on
September 1, 1981, and another 25% on January 1, 1982, and 50% to be
retained by the office in the meantime. (Emphasis supplied) aisadc

Private respondents were the retained employees of petitioner corporation. In a letter,

dated August 31, 1981, private respondents requested for the full payment of their gratuity
pay. Their request was granted in a special meeting held on September 1, 1981. The
relevant portion of the minutes of the said board meeting reads:
"In view of the request of the employees contained in the letter dated August 31,
1981, it was also decided that all those remaining employees will receive another
25% (of their gratuity) on or before October 15, 1981 and another 25% on or
before the end of November, 1981 of their respective gratuity."
At that time, however, petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales was still abroad. Allegedly,
while she was still out of the country, she sent a cablegram to the corporation, objecting to
certain matters taken up by the board in her absence, such as the sale of some of the
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 assets of the corporation. Upon her return, she led a derivative suit with the Securities
and Exchange Commission (SEC) against majority shareholder Arturo F. Lopez. cdta

Notwithstanding the "corporate squabble" between petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales

and Arturo Lopez, the rst two (2) installments of the gratuity pay of private respondents
Florentina Fontecha, Mila Refuerzo, Marcial Mamaril and Perfecto Bautista were paid by
petitioner corporation.
Also, petitioner corporation had prepared the cash vouchers and checks for the third
installments of gratuity pay of said private respondents (Florentina Fontecha, Mila
Refuerzo, Marcial Mamaril and Perfecto Bautista). For some reason, said vouchers were
cancelled by petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales.
Likewise, the rst, second and third installments of gratuity pay of the rest of private
respondents, particularly, Edward Mamaril, Marissa Pascual and Allan Pimentel, were
prepared but cancelled by petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales. Despite private
respondents' repeated demands for their gratuity pay, petitioner corporation refused to
pay the same. 4 cdtai

On July 23, 1984, Labor Arbiter Raymundo R. Valenzuela rendered judgment in favor of
private respondents. 5

Petitioners appealed the adverse ruling of the labor arbiter to public respondent National
Labor Relations Commission. The appeal focused on the alleged non-rati cation and non-
approval of the assailed August 17, 1981 and September 1, 1981 Board Resolutions
during the Annual Stockholders' Meeting held on March 1, 1982. Petitioners further
insisted that the payment of the gratuity to some of the private respondents was a mere
"mistake" on the part of petitioner corporation since, pursuant to Resolution No. 6, dated
September 8, 1980, and Resolution No. 10, dated October 6, 1980, said gratuity pay should
be given only upon the employees' retirement.
On November 20, 1985, public respondent, through its Second Division, dismissed the
appeal for lack of merit, the pertinent portion of which states: 6 cdasia

"We cannot agree with the contention of respondents (petitioners) that the Labor
Arbiter a quo committed abuse of discretion in his decision.
"Respondents' (petitioners') contention that the two (2) resolutions dated 17
August 1981 and 1 September 1981 . . . which were not approved in the annual
stockholders meeting had no force and effect, deserves scant consideration. The
records show that the stockholders did not revoke nor nullify these resolutions
granting gratuities to complainants.
"On record, it appears that the said resolutions arose from the legitimate creation
of the Board of Directors who steered the corporate affairs of the corporation. . . .
cdtai

"Respondents' (petitioners') allegation that the three (3) complainants, Mila E.

Refuerzo, Marissa S. Pascual and Edward Mamaril, who had resigned after ling
the complaint on February 8, 1992, were precluded to (sic) receive gratuity
because the said resolutions referred to only retiring employee could not be given
credence. A reading of Resolutions dated 17 August 1981 and 1 September 1981
disclosed that there were periods mentioned for the payment of complainants'
gratuities. This disproves respondents' argument allowing gratuities upon
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 retirement of employees. Additionally, the proposed distribution of assets (Exh. C-
1) led by Mr. Arturo F. Lopez also made mention of gratuity pay, '. . . (wherein)
an employee who desires to resign from LRI will be given the gratuity pay he or
she earned.' (Emphasis supplied) Let us be reminded, too, that complainants'
resignation was not voluntary but it was pressurized (sic) due to 'power struggle'
which is evident between Arturo Lopez and Asuncion Gonzales.
"The respondents' (petitioners') contention of a mistake to have been committed
in granting the rst two (2) installments of gratuities to complainants Perfecto
Bautista, Florentina Fontecha, Marcial Mamaril and Mila Refuerzo, (has) no legal
leg to stand on. The record is bereft of any evidence that the Board of Directors
had passed a resolution nor is there any minutes of whatever nature proving
mistakes in the award of damages (sic).

"With regard to the award of service incentive leave and others, the Commission
finds no cogent reason to disturb the appealed decision. cdt

"We affirm.
"WHEREFORE, let the appealed decision be, as it is hereby, AFFIRMED and let the
instant appeal (be) dismissed for lack of merit.
"SO ORDERED." cdtai

Petitioners reconsidered. 7 In their motion for reconsideration, petitioners assailed the

validity of the board resolutions passed on August 17, 1981 and September 1, 1981,
respectively, and claimed, for the rst time, that petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales was
not noti ed of the special board meetings held on said dates. The motion for
reconsideration was denied by the Second Division on July 24, 1986.
On September 4, 1986, petitioners led another motion for reconsideration. Again, the
motion was denied by public respondent in a Minute Resolution dated November 19, 1986.
8

Hence, the petition. As prayed for, we issued a Temporary Restraining Order, 9 enjoining
public respondent from enforcing or executing the Resolution, dated November 20, 1986
(sic), in NLRC-NCR-2-2176-82. 1 0 cdtai

The sole issue is whether or not public respondent acted with grave abuse of discretion in
holding that private respondents are entitled to receive their gratuity pay under the
assailed board resolutions dated August 17, 1981 and September 1, 1981.
Petitioners contend that the board resolutions passed on August 17, 1981 and September
1, 1981, granting gratuity pay to their retained employees, are ultra vires on the around that
petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales was not duly noti ed of the said special meetings.
They aver, further, that said board resolutions were not rati ed by the stockholders of the
corporation pursuant to Section 28 1/2 of the Corporation Law (Section 40 of the
Corporation Code). They also insist that the gratuity pay must be given only to the retiring
employees, to the exclusion of the retained employees or those who voluntarily resigned
from their posts.
At the outset, we note that petitioner's allegation on lack of notice to petitioner Asuncion
Lopez Gonzales was raised for the rst time in their motion for reconsideration led
before public respondent National Labor Relations Commission, or after said public
respondent had af rmed the decision of the labor arbiter. To stress, in their appeal before
the NLRC, petitioners never raised the issue of lack of notice to Asuncion Lopez Gonzales.
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 The appeal dealt with (a) the failure of the stockholders to ratify the assailed resolutions
and (b) the alleged "mistake" committed by petitioner corporation in giving the gratuity pay
to some of its employees who are yet to retire from employment. aisadc

In their Comment, 1 1 private respondents maintain that the new ground of lack of notice
was not raised before the labor arbiter, hence, petitioners are barred from raising the same
on appeal. Private respondents claim, further, that such failure on the part of petitioners,
had deprived them the opportunity to present evidence that, in a subsequent special board
meeting held on September 29, 1981, the subject resolution dated September 1, 1981,
was unanimously approved by the board of directors of petitioner corporation, including
petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales. 1 2
Indeed, it would be offensive to the basic rules of fair play and justice to allow petitioners
to raise questions which have not been passed upon by the labor arbiter and the public
respondent NLRC. It is well settled that questions not raised in the lower courts cannot be
raised for the rst time on appeal. 1 3 Hence, petitioners may not invoke any other ground,
other than those it speci ed at the labor arbiter level, to impugn the validity of the subject
resolutions.
We now come to petitioners' argument that the resolutions passed by the board of
directors during the special meetings on August 17, 1981, and September 1, 1981, were
ultra vires for lack of notice. cdta

The general rule is that a corporation, through its board of directors, should act in the
manner and within the formalities, if any, prescribed by its charter or by the general law. 14
Thus, directors must act as a body in a meeting called pursuant to the law or the
corporation's by-laws, otherwise, any action taken therein may be questioned by any
objecting director or shareholder. 1 5
Be that as it may, jurisprudence 1 6 tells us that an action of the board of directors during a
meeting, which was illegal for lack of notice, may be rati ed either expressly, by the action
of the directors in subsequent legal meeting, or impliedly, by the corporation's subsequent
course of conduct. Thus, in one case, 1 7 it was held:
" . . . In 2 Fletcher, Cyclopedia of the Law of Private Corporations (Perm. Ed.) Sec.
429, at page 290, it is stated:
cdtai

'Thus, acts of directors at a meeting which was illegal because of want of notice
may be rati ed by the directors at a subsequent legal meeting, or by the
corporation's course of conduct . . .'
"Fletcher, supra, further states in Sec. 762, at page 1073-1074:

'Rati cation by directors may be by an express resolution or vote to that effect, or

it may be implied from adoption of the act, acceptance or acquiescence.
Rati cation may be effected by a resolution or vote of the board of directors
expressly ratifying previous acts either of corporate of cers or agents; but it is not
necessary, ordinarily, to show a meeting and formal action by the board of
directors in order to establish a ratification.'
cdt

"In American Casualty Co., v. Dakota Tractor and Equipment. Co. , 234 F. Supp.
606, 611 (D.N.D. 1964), the court stated:
'Moreover, the unauthorized acts of an of cer of a corporation may be rati ed by
the corporation by conduct implying approval and adoption of the act in question.
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 Such ratification may be express or may be inferred from silence and inaction.'

In the case at, bench, it was established that petitioner corporation did not issue any
resolution revoking nor nullifying the board resolutions granting gratuity pay to private
respondents. Instead, they paid the gratuity pay, particularly, the rst two (2) installments
thereof, of private respondents Florentina Fontecha, Mila Refuerzo, Marcial Mamaril and
Perfecto Bautista. cdtai

Despite the alleged lack of notice to petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales at that time the
assailed resolutions were passed, we can glean from the records that she was aware of
the corporation's obligation under the said resolutions. More importantly, she acquiesced
thereto. As pointed out by private respondents, petitioner Asuncion Lopez Gonzales
af xed her signature on Cash Voucher Nos. 81-10-510 and 81-10-506, both dated October
15, 1981, evidencing the 2nd installment of the gratuity pay of private respondents Mila
Refuerzo and Florentina Fontecha. 1 8
We hold, therefore, that the conduct of petitioners after the passage of resolutions dated
August 17, 1981 and September 1, 1981, had estopped them from assailing the validity of
said board resolutions.

Assuming, arguendo, that there was no notice given to Asuncion Lopez Gonzales during
the special meetings held on August 17, 1981 and September 1, 1981, it is erroneous to
state that the resolutions passed by the board during the said meetings were ultra vires. In
legal parlance, "ultra vires" act refers to one which is not within the corporate powers
conferred by the Corporation Code or articles of incorporation or not necessary or
incidental in the exercise of the powers so conferred. 1 9 cdasia

The assailed resolutions before us cover a subject which concerns the bene t and welfare
of the company's employees. To stress, providing gratuity pay for its employees is one of
the express powers of the corporation under the Corporation Code, hence, petitioners
cannot invoke the doctrine of ultra vires to avoid any liability arising from the issuance the
subject resolutions. 20
We reject petitioners' allegation that private respondents, namely, Mila Refuerzo, Marissa
Pascual and Edward Mamaril who resigned from petitioner corporation after the ling of
the case, are precluded from receiving their gratuity pay. Pursuant to board resolutions
dated August 17, 1981 and September 1, 1981, respectively, petitioner corporation
obliged itself to give the gratuity pay of its retained employees in four (4) installments: on
September 1, 1981; October 15, 1981; November, 1981; and January 1, 1982. Hence, at
the time the aforenamed private respondents tendered their resignation, the
aforementioned private respondents were already entitled to receive their gratuity pay.
Petitioners try to convince us that the subject resolutions had no force and effect in view
of the non-approval thereof during the Annual Stockholders' Meeting held on March 1,
1982. To strengthen their position, petitioners cite Section 28 1/2 of the Corporation Law
(Section 40 of the Corporation Code). We are not persuaded. aisadc

The cited provision is not applicable to the case at bench as it refers to the sale, lease,
exchange or disposition of all or substantially all of the corporation's assets, including its
goodwill. In such a case, the action taken by the board of directors requires the
authorization of the stockholders on record.

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 It will be observed that, except for Arturo Lopez, the stockholders of petitioner corporation
also sit as members of the board of directors. Under the circumstances in eld, it will be
illogical and super uous to require the stockholders' approval of the subject resolutions.
Thus, even without the stockholders' approval of the subject resolutions, petitioners are
still liable to pay private respondents' gratuity pay.
IN VIEW WHEREOF, the instant petition is DISMISSED for lack of merit and the temporary
restraining order we issued on February 9, 1987 is LIFTED. Accordingly, the assailed
resolution of the National Labor Relations Commission in NLRC-NCR-2-2176-82 is
AFFIRMED. This decision is immediately executory. Costs against petitioners. cdtai

SO ORDERED.
Narvasa, C.J., Regalado, Mendoza and Francisco, JJ., concur.

Footnotes

1. Private respondents' basic monthly salary and date of employment with said company
are as follows: i

Employee Date Employed Latest Salary

Florentina U. Fontecha 10-03-68 P1,090.00
Mila C. Refuerzo 08-02-68 930.00
Marcial C. Mamaril 09-01-51 560.00
Perfecto Bautista 12-01-54 540.00

Edward S. Mamaril 10-01-80 540.00

Marissa S. Pascual 02-01-81 540.00
Allan M. Pimentel 03-01-81 540.00
2. The case was docketed as NLRC-NCR Case No. 2-2176-82.

3. See Decision, dated July 23, 1984, Rollo, pp. 20-35.

4. Decision, dated July 23, 1984, Rollo, pp. 20-35. cdtai

5. Rollo, pp. 20-35.

6. Rollo, p. 51.
7. See Annex "E'' of Petition, Rollo, pp. 56-61.

8. Annex "A" of Petition, Rollo, p. 19. cdtai

9. Resolution, dated February 9, 1987, Rollo, p. 72.

10. On November 20, 1985, the National Labor Relations Commission promulgated its
Resolution, dismissing the appeal of petitioners, in NLRC-NCR-2-2176-82, for lack of
merit. The November 20, 1986 Resolution alluded to refers to the NLRC notice re:
November 19, 1986 Resolution, dismissing the second motion for reconsideration of
petitioners, dated September 4, 1986; Rollo, p. 19.
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 11. Rollo, pp. 98-113.
12. Ibid., p. 180.
13. Anchuelo v. IAC , G.R. No. 71391, January 29, 1987, 147 SCRA 434. cdtai

14. 19 C.J.S. 432-444.

15. cf.; Section 53 of the Corporation Code.
16. Johnson v. Community Development Corp., 222 N.W. 2d 847.
17. Ibid.
18. Rollo, p. 109. cdtai

19. Section 45 of the Corporation Code provides:

"Sec. 45, Ultra vires acts of corporation. No corporation under this Code shall
possess or exercise any corporate powers except those conferred by this Code or by it
articles of incorporation and except such as are necessary or incidental to the exercise of
the powers so conferred."
20. Section 36 (10) of the Corporation Code provides, inter alia, that a corporation has the
power and capacity "to establish pension, retirement and other plans for the benefit of its
directors, trustees, officers and employees. cdtai

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