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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:
A.M. No. 25-09-16-SC lays down detailed requirements governing the form, format, and manner of electronic filing of pleadings, motions, and other papers before the courts.
After discussing the general provisions of A.M. No. 25-09-16-SC in Part I of this Article, this Part II takes a closer look at the technical requirements prescribed under the Rules, highlighting the standards that litigants and counsel must strictly observe to ensure valid and timely filings.
Digital File Format
The term “digital file format,” when used to refer to pleadings, motions, and other papers, shall mean the Portable Document Format (PDF) or Portable Document Format Archive (PDF/A). The primary pleading or other paper, as well as any additional accompanying documents such as annexes or affidavits, must be in the prescribed digital file format for the purpose of electronic filing under this Rules. The digital file may be electronically generated from a word processing or portable document format creation program, or be scanned images of an original document on paper compiled in a digital file, or a combination of both methods. (Section 1, Rule III)
Form, Font, and Paper Size Requirements
The pleading, motion, or other paper must be written in single space, with a 1.5-line spacing between paragraphs, using an easily readable font style of the party’s choice, in 14-point font. The paper size must be 8.5 x 13 inches, with a white background. If an additional accompanying document was originally on paper, the paper size of the digital file shall approximate the paper size of the original document on paper. (Section 1, Rule III)
Separation of Digital Files
The digital file of the primary pleading, motion, or other paper must be separate from the electronic copies of any additional accompanying documents, each of which must be contained in their own digital files. (Section 2, Rule III)
Filename
The digital file of a pleading, motion, or other paper shall have the same filename as its designation, in accordance with Rule 7, Section 2 of the Rules of Civil Procedure. At the option of the filer, the designation of the pleading, motion, or other paper may be shortened for the filename, but must still contain sufficient information to ascertain the nature of the relief sought.
The digital file of each additional accompanying document, if any, shall have the same filename as the document’s title, which must further be appended with the designation of the pleading, motion, or other paper to which it is attached or annexed.
All filename information shall be separated with a hyphen (-). Any special characters that cannot be used in a filename by reason of technical limitations may be omitted entirely, or substituted with an underscore (_), at the option of the filer.
Discrepancy between the images of scanned text and any machine-readable text
In case of discrepancies between the images of scanned text and any machine-readable text generated using optical character recognition or similar technologies, the former shall be the controlling text. (Section 1, Rule III)
Discrepancy between file name and designation of digital file
In case of any discrepancy between the filename and the designation of the digital file of a pleading, motion, or other paper, the latter shall be controlling. (Section 3, Rule III)
Discrepancy between file name and any visible mark on the first page of the document
In case of any discrepancy between the filename of the digital file of an additional accompanying document and any visible mark on the first page of the document serving as the label of its position in the sequence of the set of additional accompanying documents, the latter shall be controlling. (Section 3, Rule III)
Prohibited Digital Files
Digital files with password protection or other encryption; with embedded executable code or scripts; in archive files; or are corrupted files, even if in the digital file formats in Section 1, shall be deemed as not filed and shall be excluded from the case rollo. The filing of digital copies not in accordance with the format and manner stated under this Rule shall subject the filing party, lawyer, or law firm or equivalent to disciplinary action or any appropriate sanction to be imposed by the Court. (Section 4, Rule III)
Noncompliance to the Digital File Requirement
Noncompliance with the digital file requirement due to lack of technical capacity, volume of documents or pages thereof, quality of the original document on paper, existence of confidential or secret material or personal data, or other similar reasons shall not be excused. (Section 5, Rule III)
Electronic Filing of Pleadings, Motions, or Other Papers.
Only one digital file of the pleading, motion, or other paper shall be uploaded to the electronic filing application. Only one digital file of each and all additional accompanying documents, if any, shall be uploaded to the electronic filing application, in the order by which they have been enumerated or referenced in the pleading, motion, or other paper.
In case it is determined that more than one digital file of the same pleading, motion, or other paper was submitted in a single electronic filing, the Court shall include only the first submitted file, as determined by the timestamps in the electronic filing application, in the case rollo, without need of notice to the filer.
Timeliness of Filing
The date and time of the confirmation of a successful filing as recorded in the electronic filing application shall be considered the date and time of the Court’s receipt of the filing. (Section 3, Rule IV)
However, the timeliness of the filing is subject to the Court’s subsequent assessment and determination of the filing’s compliance with the requirements in the Rules of Court including, but not limited, to the required attachments, full payment of the required docket and other court fees, and completed service on the other parties.(Section 3, Rule IV)
Effect of Erroneous Manner of Filing
When a covered filer uses any manner of filing other than electronic filing under this Rules without express authority from the Court, the pleading, motion, or other paper shall be deemed not filed, and the erroneous manner of filing shall not toll the reglementary period for the filing of the pleading, motion, or other paper. (Section 3, Rule IV)
Unavailability of the electronic filing application
Take Note that under Section 1, Rule IV of A.M. No. 25-09-16-SC , the unavailability of the electronic filing application shall neither stay the running nor extend the timeline of any reglementary period provided under the Rules of Court. Should the expiry of any reglementary period for the filing of a pleading, motion, or other paper fall within the duration of the unavailability of the electronic filing application, filing may be made in accordance with Rule V of this Rules, and service to covered filers in accordance with the Rules of Civil Procedure, without need for prior leave of court.
In the next part of this Article, we shall discuss Conventional Filing in instances of unavailability of the electronic filing application, pursuant to A.M. No. 25-09-16-SC.
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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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