Accused has the burden to prove self-defense
Dear PAO,There was an altercation between my cousin and W. W allegedly sustained serious injuries and because of that, he filed a criminal complaint against my cousin. My cousin claims that he merely defended himself and it was W who attacked him. We were told by a personnel at the Hall of Justice that my […]
Bus drivers are supervised and their actual work hours are monitored
Dear PAO, May I be enlightened as to the meaning of a field personnel in our employment laws? Are bus drivers included in such and so considered to be unsupervised employee? If so, aren’t they entitled to service incentive leave? Marilyn Dear Marilyn, For brevity, permit me to jointly discuss the answers to your questions, […]
Ambiguity in complaint may not be questioned if proper remedies are not timely availed
Dear PAO,A complaint for murder was filed against my neighbor, X, alleging that he killed Y with evident premeditation. Assuming the case goes to trial and X is convicted, can he question the court’s judgment on the ground that the allegation of evident premeditation is imprecise or ambiguous, as the circumstances involving such evident premeditation […]
Process and requirements for local shipment of pets like cats and dogs
Dear PAO, I have a concern about our pet, Sushi, a cat. My whole family is planning to spend the Undas break in our province, and we want to bring Sushi with us. Can we bring our cat and transport her from Quezon City to Oriental Mindoro via ferry? Are there any requirements or documents […]
Passports cannot be used as loan collateral
Dear PAO, I recently obtained a loan from a lending institution, and they required me to give my passport as collateral. I am planning to work abroad and need my passport to process my documents. When I asked the lending institution to return my passport, they refused, saying I had not fully paid my loan […]
Existence of an employer-employee relationship is determined by law
Dear PAO, May I be enlightened on how the existence of employer-employee relationships is determined or established? As between an alleged contract that says “You are not an employee” and the nature of work being rendered, which carries more weight? Michelle Dear Michelle, For brevity, permit me to jointly discuss the answers to your questions […]
Creditor cannot be compelled to accept partial payments
Dear PAO, My friend asked me if I could lend her some money because she needs it to apply to work abroad. I agreed to lend her a certain amount, and we formalized our agreement in writing. The amount of the loan is P200,000, which should be paid on Oct. 15, 2024. We also agreed […]
Pregnancy outside of marriage not a ground for dismissal
Dear PAO, My sister is an elementary school teacher in a Catholic educational institution. She has been employed by the school on probationary status for 10 months. On her fifth month of employment, she found out that she was seven weeks pregnant. She immediately informed the school of her pregnancy and her plan to marry […]
Lemon Law is not the only remedy for new car owners
Dear PAO, Last month, we purchased a new family vehicle. On our way home, we noticed a grinding noise and jerky movements every time my husband shifted gears. I immediately informed the sales agent, who advised us to return the vehicle for inspection. After a thorough check, the manager offered to replace the transmission assembly […]
Retirement age of mining employee starts at 50
Dear PAO, I have a question regarding the retirement age for my employment. I have been a surface mining employee or “mill plant worker” in our company since 2002, and I plan to retire this year. Currently, I am 52 years old, and I asked our Human Resources Division if I can retire this year. […]