Gianan Law Office

3rd Floor, The Fiat

Lopez Jaena St., Jaro, Iloilo City
Tel No. (033) 456-7786 Fax No. (033) 623-3342

January 29, 2020

MRS. MARY FLOR B. GALVEZ

Blk 7 Lot 8, Narra St.

Bakhaw, Mandurriao

Re. Collection of a Sum of Money

Dear MRS. GALVEZ:

You requested legal opinion from our law firm regarding the

collection of sum of money with damages you brought against Oliver

T. Olmedo.

You asked whether you can file an action against your neighbor

which arose from his failure to settle its monetary obligation from you.

Our answer is if a debtor fails to comply with his obligation, the

creditor shall have the right to institute an action against him for the

collection of his indebtedness. A creditor may only file an action for

the collection of sum of money before the court when the debt is

already due and demandable and there is failure of payment on the

part of the debtor. But before resorting to filing a case, a demand

letter is important. It will ensure that the debtor is reminded of his

 Gianan Law Office
3rd Floor, The Fiat
Lopez Jaena St., Jaro, Iloilo City
Tel No. (033) 456-7786 Fax No. (033) 623-3342

obligation and that he shall be given the chance to pay his debt

without resorting to a full blown trial.

You stated that your neighbor owes you P10,000,000.00, with a

collateral of a 10 hectare agricultural land, last October 8, 2018 and

with a written contract he promised to pay the full amount within

October of 2019.

The Civil Code of the Philippines states that a debtor has the

obligation to return to the amount that he borrowed on the date and

time that he and the creditor have agreed upon and is bound to pay

to the creditor an equal amount of the same kind and quality. In some

cases, where one or more of the grounds for preliminary attachment

apply to the creditor, he may attach the debtor’s property by including

an application for preliminary attachment when the creditor files

action for collection of sum of money in court.

As stated, an action against the debtor for collection of his

indebtedness shall be filed in case he failed to comply with his

obligations. However, a demand letter shall be filed first to ensure

that he is reminded of his obligation and that he shall be given the

chance to pay his debt.

 Gianan Law Office
3rd Floor, The Fiat
Lopez Jaena St., Jaro, Iloilo City
Tel No. (033) 456-7786 Fax No. (033) 623-3342

If you decided to continue with the litigation, I recommend that

you secure all possible physical evidences that can be used. Also, try

to look for possible witnesses to the incident.

If you pursue with the action, I believe that you have an

excellent chance of the case being decided in your favor. Should you

decide to communicate or if you need further clarification on the

matter, do not hesitate to contact us through the address and

numbers above.

Sincerely yours,

ATTY. MERYSHEL S. GIANAN

Legal Counsel