Bank of America NT VS American Realty

BANK OF AMERICA NT & ASIA
VS
AMERICAN REALTY
GR 133876 December 29, 1999
FACTS:
Petitioner granted loans to 3 foreign corporations. As security, the latter mortgaged
a property located in the Philippines owned by herein respondent ARC. ARC is a third
party mortgagor who pledged its own property in favor of the 3 debtor-foreign
corporations.
The debtors failed to pay. Thus, petitioner filed collection suits in foreign courts to
enforce the loan. Subsequently, it filed a petition in the Sheriff to extra-judicially
foreclose the said mortgage, which was granted.
On 12 February 1993, private respondent filed before the Pasig RTC, Branch 159, an
action for damages against the petitioner, for the latter’s act of foreclosing extra-
judicially the real estate mortgages despite the pendency of civil suits before foreign
courts for the collection of the principal loan.
ISSUE:
Whether or not petitioner’s act of filing a collection suit against the principal debtors
for the recovery of the loan before foreign courts constituted a waiver of the remedy
of foreclosure.
RULING:
Yes.
1. Loan; Mortgage; remedies:
In the absence of express statutory provisions, a mortgage creditor may institute
against the mortgage debtor either a personal action or debt or a real action to
foreclose the mortgage. In other words, he may pursue either of the two remedies,
but not both. By such election, his cause of action can by no means be impaired, for
each of the two remedies is complete in itself.
In our jurisdiction, the remedies available to the mortgage creditor are deemed
alternative and not cumulative. Notably, an election of one remedy operates as a
waiver of the other. For this purpose, a remedy is deemed chosen upon the filing of
the suit for collection or upon the filing of the complaint in an action for foreclosure
of mortgage. As to extrajudicial foreclosure, such remedy is deemed elected by the
mortgage creditor upon filing of the petition not with any court of justice but with
the Office of the Sheriff of the province where the sale is to be made.
In the case at bar, petitioner only has one cause of action which is non-payment of
the debt. Nevertheless, alternative remedies are available for its enjoyment and
exercise. Petitioner then may opt to exercise only one of two remedies so as not to
violate the rule against splitting a cause of action.
Accordingly, applying the foregoing rules, we hold that petitioner, by the expediency
of filing four civil suits before foreign courts, necessarily abandoned the remedy to
foreclose the real estate mortgages constituted over the properties of third-party
mortgagor and herein private respondent ARC. Moreover, by filing the four civil
actions and by eventually foreclosing extra-judicially the mortgages, petitioner in
effect transgressed the rules against splitting a cause of action well-enshrined in
jurisprudence and our statute books.
2. Conflicts of Law
Incidentally, petitioner alleges that under English Law, which according to petitioner
is the governing law with regard to the principal agreements, the mortgagee does
not lose its security interest by simply filing civil actions for sums of money.
We rule in the negative.
In a long line of decisions, this Court adopted the well-imbedded principle in our
jurisdiction that there is no judicial notice of any foreign law. A foreign law must be
properly pleaded and proved as a fact. Thus, if the foreign law involved is not
properly pleaded and proved, our courts will presume that the foreign law is the
same as our local or domestic or internal
law. This is what we refer to as the doctrine of processual presumption.
In the instant case, assuming arguendo that the English Law on the matter were
properly pleaded and proved in said foreign law would still not find applicability.
Thus, when the foreign law, judgment or contract is contrary to a sound and
established public policy of the forum, the said foreign law, judgment or order shall
not be applied.
Additionally, prohibitive laws concerning persons, their acts or property, and those
which have for their object public order, public policy and good customs shall not be
rendered ineffective by laws or judgments promulgated, or by determinations or
conventions agreed upon in a foreign country.
The public policy sought to be protected in the instant case is the principle imbedded
in our jurisdiction proscribing the splitting up of a single cause of action.
Moreover, foreign law should not be applied when its application would work
undeniable injustice to the citizens or residents of the forum. To give justice is the
most important function of law; hence, a law, or judgment or contract that is
obviously unjust negates the fundamental principles of Conflict of Laws.
Clearly then, English Law is not applicable.

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BANK OF AMERICA NT & ASIA

GR 133876 December 29, 1999

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