PHILIPPINES Law and Practice Contributed by: Leland R Villadolid Jr, Gilberto D Gallos, Antonio Jose Gerardo T Paz and Leo Frederick Z Cruz, Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz
8.4 Setting Aside Settlement Agreements A compromise agreement may be set aside on grounds of vitiation of consent, mistake, forgery, fraud or coercion. The party seeking to set aside the compromise agreement may file a motion to set aside said agreement with the same court that approved the compromise. 9. Damages and Judgment 9.1 Awards Available to the Successful Litigant A prevailing litigant may generally be awarded only the relief they sought in their pleading. In an action for specific performance, the plain- tiff will ask the court to direct the defendant to comply with the provisions of the contract. Aside from this, the most common form of relief sought and granted is monetary damages. Monetary damages are typically awarded in cases involv- ing breach of contract, personal injury, damage to property and torts. • a declaratory judgment clarifying the rights and legal relationships between the parties; and • delivery of things. It may also compel the losing party to perform an act or obligation other than payment of money. 9.2 Rules Regarding Damages The forms of damages that may be awarded by courts include: The court may also grant: • a permanent injunction;
• actual or compensatory damages awarded in satisfaction of, or in recompense for, loss or injury sustained; • moral damages awarded to alleviate physical suffering, mental anguish, anxiety, besmirched reputation and social humiliation; • liquidated damages awarded if agreed upon by the parties to a contract; • nominal damages awarded to vindicate the rights of the prevailing party; • temperate damages awarded when the court finds that pecuniary loss has been suffered but the amount thereof cannot be proven with certainty; and • exemplary or punitive damages imposed, by way of example or correction for the public good, in addition to moral, temperate, liqui- dated or compensatory damages. While case law provides general guidance on how to compute the amount of damages that may be awarded, there are no laws expressly limiting this. 9.3 Pre-judgment and Post-judgment Interest The prevailing litigant may collect both pre-judg- ment and post-judgment interest. Pre-judgment interest is interest on the princi- pal amount of the obligation computed from the time said obligation should have been paid, or from date of default, until the date of full pay- ment. The applicable interest rate is the rate agreed upon by the parties in writing, unless reduced by the court for being unconscionable. On the other hand, in the absence of stipulated interest, the applicable rate of interest shall be the legal rate of interest, which is currently set at 6% per annum. Further, the interest due on the principal amount shall itself separately earn
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