Solangon vs. Salazar Case Brief
Solangon vs. Salazar Case Brief
Solangon vs. Salazar Case Brief
DECISION: The Court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeals and modified the interest rate of 72% per annum to 12% per annum. Supplemental Information The Usury Law is Act 2655, as amended by PD 116, provides that in the absence of express contract as to the rate of interest in loans/mortgages, it shall be set in default at 12% per annum. Any amount in excess of that fixed by the law is considered usurious, therefore unlawful. However, pursuant to Central Bank Circular No. 905, the Supreme Court declared that the Usury law is now legally inexistent. It should be clarified that CB Circular No. 905 did not repeal nor in anyway amend the Usury Law but simply suspended the latter's effectivity. Interest can now be charged as lender and borrower may agree upon (Source: http://phbar.org/wikilaw/index.php?title=Usury) In the case at bar, the court held that the Usury Law ceiling on interest rates was lifted by C.B. Circular No. 905, nothing in the said circular grants lenders carte blanche authority to raise interest rates to levels which will either enslave their borrowers or lead to a hemorrhaging of their assets. In the case at bar, the 6% interest rate per month cannot be considered usurious; nevertheless it is definitely outrageous and inordinate (exceeding reasonable limits).