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Also, the matters contained in the following were written in accordance with the law, rules, and jurisprudence prevailing at the time of writing and posting, and do not include any future developments on the subject matter under discussion.
AT A GLANCE:
Replevin is an action for the recovery of personal property. It is both a principal remedy and a provisional relief. When utilized as a principal remedy, the objective is to recover possession of personal property that may have been wrongfully detained by another. When sought as a provisional relief, it allows a plaintiff to retain the contested property during the pendency of the action.
AS A PROVISIONAL REMEDY
As a provisional remedy, a party may apply for an order for the delivery of the property before the commencement of the action or at any time before an answer is filed. Rule 60 of the Rules of Court outlines the procedure for the application of a writ of replevin. Rule 60, Section 2 requires that the party seeking the issuance of the writ must first file the required affidavit and a bond in an amount that is double the value of the property:
Section 2. Affidavit and bond. – The applicant must show by his own affidavit or that of some other person who personally knows the facts:
(a) That the applicant is the owner of the property claimed, particularly describing it, or is entitled to the possession thereof;
(b) That the property is wrongfully detained by the adverse party, alleging the cause of detention thereof according to the best of his knowledge, information, and belief;
(c) That the property has not been distrained or taken for a tax assessment or a fine pursuant to law, or seized under a writ of execution or preliminary attachment, or otherwise placed under custodia legis, or if so seized, that it is exempt from such seizure or custody; and
(d) The actual market value of the property.
The applicant must also give a bond, executed to the adverse party in double the value of the property as stated in the affidavit aforementioned, for the return of the property to the adverse party if such return be adjudged, and for the payment to the adverse party of such sum as he may recover from the applicant in the action.
Once the affidavit is filed and the bond is approved by the court, the court issues an order and a writ of seizure requiring the sheriff to take the property into his or her custody. If there is no further objection to the bond filed within five (5) days from the taking of the property, the sheriff shall deliver it to the applicant. The contested property remains in the applicant’s custody until the court determines, after a trial on the issues, which among the parties has the right of possession.
What is the purpose of the bond in the amount that is double the value of the property?
In the case of ENRIQUEZ vs. THE MERCANTILE INSURANCE CO., INC., G.R. No. 210950, August 15, 2018, citing the case of Citibank, N.A. v. Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court reiterated that a replevin bond is intended to indemnify the defendant against any loss that he may suffer by reason of its being compelled to surrender the possession of the disputed property pending trial of the action. The same may also be answerable for damages if any when judgment is rendered in favor of the defendant or the party against whom a writ of replevin was issued and such judgment includes the return of the property to him. Thus, the requirement that the bond be double the actual value of the properties litigated upon. Such is the case because the bond will answer for the actual loss to the plaintiff, which corresponds to the value of the properties sought to be recovered and for damages, if any.
AS A PRINCIPAL REMEDY
On the other hand, replevin, as a main action, is a suit at law (action for replevin whereby goods or chattels that have been unlawfully taken from one may be recovered. Not only ordinary articles of movable personal property may be recovered but such things as records of corporation, local official records, trees cut down or cut into boards, or even if it can be found and identified as the same money which was taken. (Tan, Civil Procedure: A Guide For the Bench and the Bar, Book III, 2022 Ed., p. 252)
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Alburo Alburo and Associates Law Offices specializes in business law and labor law consulting. For inquiries regarding legal services, you may reach us at info@alburolaw.com, or dial us at (02)7745-4391/ 09175772207/ 09778050020.
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