CA throws out suit filed by ABS-CBN vs Eli Soriano

SOURCE: http://www.tribuneonline.org/metro/20110409met3.html


By Benjamin B. Pulta
 
04/09/2011


The Court of Appeals (CA) has thrown out a suit for damages filed by the Lopez-controlled ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. against “Ang Dating Daan” television evangelist Eliseo “Eli” Soriano.
In an 11-page decision by Associate Justice Vicente Veloso, the CA Special 6th Division reversed and set aside the ruling of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC) against Soriano.

Associate Justices Francisco Acosta and Ramon Cruz both concurred with the decision.
The QC court ordered Soriano and the Bayan ng Katotohanan Inc. to pay P100,000 to defendants Patrick Paez, Epoy Fuduranan, Luchi Cruz-Valdes and Abigail Apostol, then officials of ABS-CBN news and current affairs.

The appellate court’s ruling pointed out that the lower court did not justify why Soriano and his religious group should be compelled to litigate and incur expenses to the defendants.

“Current jurisprudence instructs that in awarding attorney’s fees, the trial court must state the factual, legal or equitable justification for awarding the same, bearing in mind that the award of attorney’s fees is the exception, not the general rule, and it is not sound public policy to place a penalty on the right to litigate; nor should attorney’s fee be awarded every time a party wins a lawsuit,” the appellate court said.

The ruling added “while Article 2208 (of the Civil Code) allows attorney’s fees to be awarded the claimant is compelled to litigate with third persons or to incur expenses to protect his interest by reason of an unjustified act or omission of the party from whom it is sought, there must be a showing that the losing party acted willfully or in bad faith and practically compelled the claimant to litigate and incur litigation expenses.”

Soriano stated in his petition that he filed the case to protect their reputation and that they honestly believed that the filing of the case was the only legal way to prevent defendants from maligning their reputation.

The lower court earlier had stopped the airing of the Special Assignment, particularly the “Mga Kwentong Komiks ni Bro. Eli” episode.