PAL vs.

Court of Appeals (July 17, 1997) Facts: Pantejo filed a case against petitioner, PAL, for its unequal and discriminatory treatment on its passengers. The complaint arose when PAL cancelled one of its flights going to Surigao, which Pantejo was a passenger. When Pantejo asked for the expenses to be billed on the airline; the company refused it. He was forced to share a room with another passenger and promise the latter to pay him when they arrived at Surigao. Subsequently, Pantejo learned of the reimbursement made by the company to his co-passengers on the hotels that they were accommodated onto. As supported by the factual evidences, the Court rendered judgment in favour of Pantejo. Damages were awarded to him with an interest of 6% beginning from the filing of the complaint. Thus, petitioner submitted this case for review. Issue: Whether or not the interest of 6 % imposed by the decision of the court be computed from the date of the judgment. Held: The 6% interest should be imposed at the rendition of the judgment and not on the filing of the complaint. The Supreme Court reiterated the rule laid down on the case of Eastern Shipping Lines, Inc. vs. Court of Appeals, et al. that: When an obligation, not constituting a loan or forbearance of money, is breached, an interest on the amount of damages awarded may be imposed at the discretion of the court at the rate of 6% per annum. No interest, however, shall be adjudged on unliquidated claims or damages except when or until the demand can be established with reasonable certainty. Accordingly, where the demand is established with reasonable certainty, the interest shall begin to run from the time the claim is made judicially or extrajudicially (Art. 1169, Civil Code) but when such certainty cannot be so reasonably established at the time the demand is made, the interest shall begin to run only from the date the judgment of the court is made (at which time the quantification of damages may be deemed to have been reasonably ascertained). The actual base for the computation of legal interest shall, in any case, be on the amount finally adjudged. In the case at bar, during the time the complaint was filed, the amount of damages to which the plaintiff is entitled to was still unliquidated and unknown. The court has the duty to ascertained, assessed and determined the amount after the proofs are presented. It is only when there is a definite ascertainment to the amount to which the interest of 6% can be imposed, which in this case when judgment was rendered. Submitted by Dianne Bay Grado