Justice courts for each municipality.
SEC. 66. Justice courts for each municipality.—There shall be courts of justice of the peace as in this section provided:
The existing courts of justices of the peace, established by military orders since the thirteenth day of August, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, are hereby recognized and continued and the justices of such courts shall continue to hold office during the pleasure of the Commission.
In every province in which there now is, or shall hereafter be established, a Court of First Instance, courts of justices of the peace shall be established in every municipality thereof which shall be organized under The Municipal Code, or which has been organized and is being conducted as a municipality when this Act shall take effect, under and by virtue of The Municipal Code.
SEC. 67. Appointment and term of office of justices of the peace. Justices of the peace shall he appointed by the Philippine Commission, and shall hold office during the pleasure of the Commission. They shall be appointed from lists of suitable persons, nominated for such appointments by the provincial board for each province, for the several municipalities within the province.
Jurisdiction.
SEC. 68. Jurisdiction.—A justice of the peace shall have original jurisdiction for the trial of all misdemeanors and offenses arising within the municipality of which he is a justice, in all cases where the sentence might not by law exceed six months' imprisonment or a fine of one hundred dollars; and for the trial of all civil actions properly triable within his municipality and over which jurisdiction has not herein been given to the Court of First Instance, in all cases in which the demand, exclusive of interest, or the value of the property in controversy, amounts to less than three hundred dollars.
A justice of the peace shall also have jurisdiction over actions for forcible entry into, and detainer of real estate, irrespective of the amount in controversy.
The jurisdiction of a justice of the peace in civil actions triable within his municipality, in cases in which the demand, exclusive of interest, or the value of the property in controversy, amounts to one hundred dollars or more, but to less than three hundred dolars, shall be concurrent with that of the Court of First Instance: Provided, That the jurisdiction of a justice of the peace shall not extend to civil actions in which the subject of litigation is not capable of pecuniary estimation, or to those which involve the title to or possession of real estate or an interest therein, or the legality of any tax, impost, or assessment, or to actions in admiralty, or maritime jurisdiction, or to matters of probate, the appointment of guardians, trustees, and receivers, or actions for the annulment of marriage; but this proviso shall not apply to actions of forcible entry into and detainer of lands or buildings, original jurisdiction of which is hereby conferred upon courts of justices of the peace.
Courts of justices of the peace in Manila.
SEC. 69. Courts of justices of the peace in Manila.—The existing courts of justices of the peace in the city of Manila shall be continued as now organized, and with the same jurisdiction as is now by law conferred upon them, and shall so continue until special provisions shall be made by law for the organization of inferior civil and criminal tribunals for the city of Manila.
SEC. 70. Clerks and amanuenses, and so forth, for justice courts. Each justice of the peace may act as his own clerk or he may appoint a clerk, and, if necessary, other clerical assistants and bailiffs, all at his own expense.
Fees, fines, and costs.
SEC. 71. Fees, fines, and costs.—Justices of the peace shall receive no salaries or allowances. A justice shall be entitled to a fee of three pesos for each action, civil or criminal, tried by him. But in cases of nonsuit or default the justice shall be entitled to but one-half of the fee herein provided. In civil actions, the fee shall be paid by the successful party, and taxed as a part of the cost against the defeated party. In criminal actions the fee shall be paid by the municipality, but shall be taxed as a part of the costs to be paid against the defendant if he be convicted and sentenced to pay the costs. All fines and costs imposed by a justice of the peace in criminal prosecutions and collected during any month shall be paid into the municipal treasury on the first day of the succeeding month. On that day, the justice shall present to the municipal treasurer a detailed statement of the lines and costs collected by him since the last previous report, and of the fees accruing to him from the municipal treasury during the same period by virtue of this section. His account shall be forthwith audited by the municipal president and treasurer, and he shall thereupon receive from the treasury the amount of his fees as allowed by these auditors. For the purpose of the auditing herein provided, the auditors shall examine the records of the justice and any other papers or persons deemed necessary. The justice shall in all cases execute a receipt in duplicate for all money paid to him for fees, fines, or costs, one copy of which he shall retain and the other shall be delivered to the person making the payment. The copies retained by him shall be produced before the auditors. If the auditors are of the opinion that needless prosecutions have been instituted for the purpose of enhancing fees, they shall report the facts to the Commission and request the removal of the justice so offending.
Fees, costs, and fines in the justice courts in Manila.
SEC. 72. Fees, costs, and fines in the justice courts in Manila.—Until a municipal government is established in the city of Manila, all fees, costs, and fines collected by justices of the peace in criminal actions in the city shall be paid into the Insular Treasury and the auditing of their statements, as provided in the preceding section, shall he by the Insular Treasurer, whose duties in this respect shall be the same as those of the auditing' board provided in the preceding section; and the justice fees in criminal prosecutions shall be paid from the Insular Treasury. After the organization of a municipal government in the city of Manila, all the provisions of the preceding section shall be applicable to it, as to other municipalities.
Fees to be only those prescribed by law.
SEC. 73. Fees to be only those prescribed by law.—No justice of the peace, clerk, or amanuensis thereof shall collect or receive any fee, except such as are prescribed in the fee bill embraced in the Code of Civil Procedure.
Bonds of justices.
SEC. 74. Bonds of justices.—Each justice of the peace, before entering upon the performance of his duties, shall execute a bond to the Insular Government, with sufficient surety, to he approved by the provincial treasurer, in the penal sum of one thousand dollars, conditioned for the faithful discharge of the duties of his office, and the payment of all sums of money that shall come into his hands by virtue of his office. The bond shall be tiled with the provincial treasurer and remain in his custody, and a breach of it may be prosecuted in the name of the Insular Government for the benefit of any party in interest.
Officers of justice court.
SEC. 75. Officers of justice court.—Any deputy of the governor or sheriff of the province is authorized to act as an officer of a justice court in the province, and to serve any process issuing from such court. Process of such court other than executions may also be served by any bailiff appointed by the justice for that purpose, or by any policeman of the municipality.
Auxiliary justices.
SEC. 76. Auxiliary justices.—There shall be appointed by the Philippine Commission, to hold office during the pleasure of the Commission, one auxiliary justice of the peace, for each municipality which has a court of a justice of the peace, who shall preside in the justice court in the municipality in case of the absence, disqualification or disability of the justice, and in case of the death of the justice, until the successor to the deceased justice shall have been appointed and qualified. The auxiliary justice shall receive the fees that would have appertained to the office of the justice during such time as he shall perform the duties of the justice as herein provided, but shall receive no other compensation.
Clerks and justices to make annual reports.
SEC. 77. Clerks and justices to make annual reports.—The clerk of the Supreme Court, and of every Court of First Instance, and every justice of the peace of the Islands shall, on or before February first of each year, make a full report concerning the business done in his court for the year previous, to the Attorney-General, upon forms to be prescribed by him. Such reports shall show the suits brought in each court respectively, the suits dismissed by the plaintiff, and the suits decided during the previous calendar year, together with the suits pending at the close of the year, and the nature of the suits as to being civil or criminal. Each clerk and justice shall state the amount of costs received by him during the year. The Attorney-General shall compile and analyze the reports thus made, and himself make a report to the Military Governor, to be transmitted to the Commission.
SEC. 78. Jurisdiction of provost courts over civil actions repealed, and actions pending therein to be transferred.—All military orders, and all acts conferring upon provost courts in the Philippine Islands jurisdiction over civil actions, are hereby repealed. All civil actions now pending in the provost courts are hereby transferred to the proper tribunal in which they would have been brought under the provisions of this Act had this Act been in force at the time such actions were commenced, and the Supreme Court, Courts of the First Instance, and courts of justices of the peace established by this Act are authorized to try and determine the actions so transferred to them respectively from the provost courts, in the same manner and with the same legal effect as though such actions had originally been commenced in the courts created by virtue of this Act. The criminal jurisdiction of provost courts shall not be affected by this Act.
Source: Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines — Philippine laws are public documents (works of the government).
