[G.R. No. 148571. December 3, 2002]

GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, REPRESENTED BY THE PHILIPPINE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, etc. vs. HON. GUILLERMO G. PURGANAN, etc., et al.

En Banc

Gentlemen:

Quoted hereunder, for your information, is a resolution of the Court dated DEC. 3, 2002

G.R. No. 148571 (Government of the United States of America, represented by the Philippine Department of Justice, etc. vs. Hon. Guillermo G. Purganan, etc., et al.)

In his "Motion for Leave of Court to File and to Admit Additional Arguments in Support of Motion for Reconsideration" dated November 6, 2002, private respondent -- through his new collaborating counsel, Atty. Froilan M. Bacungan - seeks, inter alia, "to exclude" the votes of Justices Ma. Alicia Austria Martinez, Renato C. Corona, Conchita Carpio Morales and Romeo J. Callejo Sr. on the ground that, allegedly, "they did not take part in the deliberations" of our September 24, 2002 Decision.

The Motion is based on totally erroneous assumptions. All the above-named justices fully participated in the deliberations of this case prior to the final voting. The mere fact that the Oral Argument took place on August 14, 2001 and the Memoranda of the parties were filed "under date of August 29, 2001" for private respondent and "under date of September 3, 2001" for petitioner does not mean that deliberations on the final resolution of this case took place on .those dates. Because of various pleadings thereafter filed, the case "was deemed submitted for resolution [only] on July 3, 2002, upon receipt by this Court of respondent's Counter-manifestation" as stated plainly in footnote number 13 of the Decision.

The justices concerned had already been sworn into office and begun discharging their official functions well before the discussions and deliberations took place.

The dates of the Oral Argument and the filing of the Memoranda and other pleadings are not decisive with respect to the deliberations and the voting. After all, the justices read the pleadings and the transcripts of the Oral Argument. And during the deliberations, they also heard, read and discussed the other justices' arguments and opinions.

The participation of newly appointed magistrates in the deliberations and the voting on cases that had already been submitted for resolution prior their appointments is a NORMAL procedure that is applied to ALL cases in this Court. There is nothing unusual or irregular in its application here.

In short, the prayer to exclude the aforementioned justices is utterly and absolutely without factual or legal bases.

WHEREFORE, the prayer -- in private respondent's present Motion -- to exclude the votes of Justices Ma. Alicia Austria-Martinez, Renato C. Corona, Conchita Carpio-Morales and Romeo J. Callejo Sr. -- is unanimously DENIED with finality. The other prayers for the reversal/modification of our Decision shall be ruled upon separately.

*The Court, further Resolved to NOTE the Reply to petitioner's comment on the motion for reconsideration, dated 26 November 2002 filed by counsel for respondent Mark B Jimenez, Puno, J., abroad on official business; Azcuna, J., on leave.

Very truly yours,

(Sgd.) MA. LUISA D.VILLARAMA

Acting Clerk of Court