By Obiter07
Courts and bodies tasked to dispense justice (or even to just investigate like the Congress) do enjoy the privilege of receiving respect, or at least the appearance of it, from the public and from those who appear before them. We will not go into whether or not this respect is deserved all the time. But you get to have a first taste of when you hear the words “All rise” and lawyers as well as everyone else in the courtroom stand up as the judge comes in. And you hear the familiar “Your honor” every time the judge is addressed.
Contempt is based on the courts’ inherent power to “enforce their authority, preserve their integrity, maintain their dignity, and ensure the effectiveness of the administration of justice.” (Commissioner v. Cloribel, 127 Phil. 716, 723 [1967]; In re Kelly, 35 Phil. 944, 950 NEGROS ORIENTAL II ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE, INC., et al. vs. SANGGUNIANG PANLUNGSOD OF DUMAGUETE, et al. [G.R. No. 72492. November 5, 1987.]
We will be focusing on contempt under Rule 71 of the Rules of Court (the “Rules”).
What happens when a lawyer, a witness or someone in the gallery oversteps the bounds of behavior during the formal proceedings? You can be cited for contempt of court. And it could spring from something as simple as having a cellphone ring during court proceedings, to being late and in more extreme cases, or failing to obey a directive of the court. To a certain extent, one can be subject to the vagaries and whims of the presiding judge.
In one instance, a U.S. judge jailed “nearly four dozen people over a ringing mobile phone in his courtroom.” He resorted to this after no one admitted to owning the offending phone. He has since been removed from office.[1] But it just goes to show you how a ring can put you through the wringer and behind bars.
There are two kinds of contempt, direct and indirect contempt.
Direct Contempt
In direct contempt, a person is “guilty of misbehavior in the presence of or so near a court as to obstruct or interrupt the proceedings before the same, including disrespect toward the court, offensive personalities toward others, or refusal to be sworn or to answer as a witness, or to subscribe an affidavit or deposition when lawfully required to do so xxx.” This is why he may be “summarily adjudged in contempt by such court and punished by a fine not exceeding P2,000 or imprisonment not exceeding 10 days, or both, if it be a Regional Trial Court or a court of equivalent or higher rank, or by a fine not exceeding P200 or imprisonment not exceeding 1 day, or both, if it be a lower court, (Section 1).” This is an occasion where you really court the consequences, committing contempt in the face of the judge.
Please note the general description of what contempt can be and make sure your conduct does not fall under the definition. As one practitioner noted, one contempt citation could cost a lawyer his entire appearance fee for one hearing. One judge in Metro Manila is reportedly wont to impose the full P2,000 fine for late lawyers. Being imprisoned for at least 10 days is no laughing matter either. Direct contempt is punished summarily which means on the spot.
What can you do if you believe the order is invalid? You cannot appeal but you can file a petition for certiorari or prohibition. The execution of the judgment shall be suspended pending resolution of such petition, provided you file a bond fixed by the court which rendered the judgment and conditioned that you will abide by and perform the judgment should the petition be decided against you (Section 2). You may question the contempt order but it will cost you. Of course, until you do file, you have to follow the order given: that’s either paying a fine or going to prison or both.
Indirect Contempt
For indirect contempt, there must be a written charge against you and an opportunity given to comment thereon within such period as may be fixed by the court and you must be heard personally or through counsel.
Indirect contempt consists of –
“(a) Misbehavior of an officer of a court in the performance of his official duties or in his official transactions;
(b) Disobedience of or resistance to a lawful writ, process, order, or judgment of a court, including the act of a person who, after being dispossessed or ejected from any real property by the judgment or process of any court of competent jurisdiction, enters or attempts or induces another to enter into or upon such real property, for the purpose of executing acts of ownership or possession, or in any manner disturbs the possession given to the person adjudged to be entitled thereto;
(c) Any abuse of or any unlawful interference with the processes or proceedings of a court not constituting direct contempt xxx;
(d) Any improper conduct tending, directly or indirectly, to impede, obstruct, or degrade the administration of justice;
(e) Assuming to be an attorney or an officer of a court, and acting as such without authority;
(f) Failure to obey a subpoena duly served;
(g) The rescue, or attempted rescue, of a person or property in the custody of an officer by virtue of an order or process of a court held by him. xxx.” (Section 3)
For indirect contempt against a Regional Trial Court or a court of equivalent or higher rank, you may be punished by a fine not exceeding P30,000 or imprisonment not exceeding 6 months, or both. For contempt against a lower court, you may be punished by a fine not exceeding P5,000 or imprisonment not exceeding 1 month, or both. If the contempt consists in the violation of a writ of injunction, temporary restraining order or status quo order, you may also be ordered to make complete restitution to the party injured by such violation of the property involved or such amount as may be alleged and proved.(Section 7)
If you remain stubborn and continue to refuse or omit to do an act which is in your power to perform, you may be imprisoned by order of the court concerned until you perform it (Section 8). In theory, this could mean imprisonment for life. That is a high price to pay for disobedience although it is true that the defendant “carries the keys to his prison in his own pocket (Galvez vs. Republic Surety & Ins. Co., Inc., L-12581, May 29, 1959 as cited in Regalado, Remedial Law Compendium, Vol. 1 (1988), p. 529). He only needs to do the court’s bidding.
By whom punished
Take note that contempt is punishable not only by the courts. The Rules also “apply to contempt committed against persons, entities, bodies or agencies exercising quasi-judicial functions, or shall have suppletory effect to such rules as they may have adopted pursuant to authority granted to them by law to punish for contempt. xxx” (Section 12)
For example, the courts have upheld the power of the Congress to hold a witness in contempt. The Supreme Court ruled that “Congress or any of its bodies has the power to punish recalcitrant witnesses is founded upon reason and policy. Said power must be considered implied or incidental to the exercise of legislative power. How could a legislative body obtain the knowledge and information on which to base intended legislation if it cannot require and compel the disclosure of such knowledge and information, if it is impotent to punish a defiance of its power and authority? xxx STANDARD CHARTERED BANK, et al. vs. SENATE COMMITTEE ON BANKS, et al. [G.R. No. 167173. December 27, 2007.] “
In ARNAULT vs. NAZARENO, et al. [G.R. No. L-3820. July 18, 1950.], a witness was committed to prison for failing to provide the name of a person linked to an anomalous land transaction that was being investigated by Congress. This is one time when we can pine for the old days in relation to a certain government official who refuses to answer certain questions of the Senate, invoking executive privilege. Later on he provided a name but the Congress was not satisfied that it was the correct one and he remained incarcerated (ARNAULT vs. BALAGTAS, G.R. No. L-6749. July 30, 1955). He was literally damned if he did and damned if didn’t. And only the truth, or what is perceived to be the truth, could set him free.
What happens if you think the judge or some other body is engaged in behavior that is deserving of contempt? Well, you can observe this politely, stating it for the record or asking for a reconsideration or filing an appeal or petition before a higher court. If the offender happens to be a Senator, you can file an ethics complaint. But if this is unavailing, you may have no option but to keep the contempt you feel to yourself unless you are willing to face the consequence for speaking out.
By its nature, contempt is one offense that doesn’t apply equally between the common folk and the higher ups. Try to tell a judge he’s out of order and guess who’ll be judged in contempt.
[1] Brady, Panel gives judge a ringing rebuke, http://edition.cnn.com/2007/US/law/11/28/judge.cell.phone/index.html.
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