Controlling Nature of the Period
The period for appeal or review is part of the remedy itself. Because appeal is a statutory privilege, the party seeking review must use the mode fixed by the Rules and must file within the reglementary period. A judgment becomes final and executory by operation of law when the period lapses without a proper appeal; entry of judgment merely records that finality.
Perfection of an appeal within the period is generally mandatory and jurisdictional. A court may relax procedural periods only for exceptional and persuasive reasons, not for ordinary negligence, inadvertence, or a belated change of theory. The policy of finality protects the winning party's right to enjoy the judgment and prevents litigation from remaining indefinitely open.
The appeal period runs from notice of the judgment or final order, or from notice of the order denying a timely motion for new trial or reconsideration when such motion is allowed. Notice to counsel of record is notice to the party. If a party is represented by counsel, personal notice to the party does not normally start a separate period.
Basic Computation
Periods under the amended Rules are counted in calendar days unless the rule or controlling issuance provides otherwise. In computing a period, the day of receipt is excluded and the last day is included. If the last day falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the act may be done on the next working day.
The controlling date is receipt of notice, not the date when the judgment was signed, promulgated, mailed, or entered. For service by registered mail or accredited courier, the period is reckoned from actual or constructive receipt under the rules on service. For authorized electronic service, the period is reckoned from the time service is deemed complete under the applicable electronic filing rules.
A materially amended judgment starts a new period because it replaces the original adjudication. A merely clerical correction does not reopen the period to appeal from matters already finally adjudged.
Periods by Mode of Review
The correct period depends on the court or tribunal that rendered the judgment and on the proper mode of review. A notice of appeal, a record on appeal, and a petition for review are not interchangeable because each invokes a different appellate jurisdiction.
| Judgment or final order | Mode | Period | Place of filing |
|---|---|---|---|
| First-level court judgment reviewed by the Regional Trial Court | Ordinary appeal by notice of appeal; record on appeal if required | 15 calendar days by notice of appeal; 30 calendar days when a record on appeal is required | First-level court that rendered the judgment |
| Regional Trial Court judgment in the exercise of original jurisdiction, with factual or mixed questions for the Court of Appeals | Ordinary appeal by notice of appeal; record on appeal if required | 15 calendar days by notice of appeal; 30 calendar days when a record on appeal is required | Regional Trial Court that rendered the judgment |
| Regional Trial Court judgment in the exercise of original jurisdiction, raising only questions of law | Petition for review on certiorari | 15 calendar days, with a possible extension of 30 calendar days only upon timely motion and payment of required fees | Supreme Court |
| Regional Trial Court judgment in the exercise of appellate jurisdiction | Petition for review | 15 calendar days; one extension of 15 calendar days may be granted, and a further extension is exceptional and capped at another 15 calendar days | Court of Appeals |
| Judgment, final order, or resolution of a quasi-judicial agency covered by the general rule on appeals to the Court of Appeals | Petition for review | 15 calendar days; one extension of 15 calendar days may be granted, and a further extension is exceptional and capped at another 15 calendar days, unless a special law or rule controls | Court of Appeals |
| Decision or final resolution of the Court of Appeals, Sandiganbayan, Court of Tax Appeals en banc, or other court whose rulings are reviewable by the Supreme Court through this mode | Petition for review on certiorari | 15 calendar days, with a possible extension of 30 calendar days only upon timely motion and payment of required fees | Supreme Court |
Notice of Appeal and Record on Appeal
A notice of appeal is sufficient for ordinary appeals in civil actions where the judgment completely disposes of the case and no multiple appeals are allowed. It is filed in the court that rendered the judgment, not in the appellate court. Filing it in the wrong court does not perfect the appeal unless the Rules or the receiving court's valid action can legally save the filing.
A record on appeal is required in special proceedings and in other cases where multiple appeals are allowed. The purpose is to separate the appealed matter from the remaining incidents still pending in the trial court. When a record on appeal is required, both the notice of appeal and the record on appeal must be filed within 30 calendar days.
In ordinary appeals by notice of appeal, the appeal is perfected as to the appellant upon timely filing of the notice. In appeals requiring a record on appeal, perfection occurs upon approval of the record filed in due time. The trial court loses jurisdiction over the case upon perfection of the appeals in due time and the expiration of the time to appeal of the other parties, subject to its residual powers before transmittal of the records.
The trial court's residual authority includes issuing orders for the protection and preservation of the rights of the parties, approving compromises, permitting appeals by indigent litigants, ordering execution pending appeal in proper cases, and allowing withdrawal of the appeal. This residual authority does not extend to changing the judgment on the merits after jurisdiction has passed to the appellate court.
Petitions for Review
A petition for review is the proper mode when the Rules require the appellate court to exercise discretionary review through a verified petition rather than through a notice of appeal. The petition must be filed with the appellate court within the period, accompanied by payment of docket and lawful fees, proof of service, and the required material portions of the record.
A petition for review from a Regional Trial Court decision rendered in appellate jurisdiction is filed in the Court of Appeals within 15 calendar days from notice of the decision or from denial of a timely motion for new trial or reconsideration. Because the Court of Appeals may deny due course outright, timely filing alone does not guarantee review on the merits.
A petition for review from a covered quasi-judicial agency is also generally filed in the Court of Appeals within 15 calendar days from notice of the judgment, award, final order, or resolution, or from denial of a timely motion for reconsideration when allowed by the agency's rules. Special statutes and special procedural rules prevail when they prescribe another mode, another tribunal, or another period.
A petition for review on certiorari to the Supreme Court must be filed within 15 calendar days from notice of the judgment or final order, or from denial of a timely motion for new trial or reconsideration. This mode is limited to questions of law, because the Supreme Court is not ordinarily a trier of facts.
Effect of Motions for New Trial or Reconsideration
A timely and proper motion for new trial or reconsideration interrupts the period to appeal. After notice of the denial of the motion, the movant receives a fresh period to appeal or seek review under the applicable rule. The fresh period is a new full period, not merely the balance of the original period remaining when the motion was filed.
The fresh-period rule applies to ordinary appeals and to petitions for review under the principal appellate rules. Its function is to equalize the treatment of litigants who first ask the rendering court to correct its own judgment and those who proceed directly to appellate review.
An untimely motion does not toll the period. A pro forma motion does not toll the period because it presents no genuine ground for reconsideration or new trial. A prohibited motion, including a prohibited second motion for reconsideration, does not suspend finality. A motion for extension of time to file a motion for new trial or reconsideration is not allowed and does not stop the running of the appeal period.
When a special rule makes a motion for reconsideration prohibited, the appeal period runs from notice of judgment without interruption by such motion. When the governing procedure requires prior reconsideration before judicial review, the period for the review remedy must be computed in harmony with that special requirement.
Extensions of Time
There is generally no extension of time to file a notice of appeal or a record on appeal. Ordinary appeal periods are fixed because the filing of the notice or record is the act that perfects the appeal and affects the trial court's jurisdiction.
Extensions are allowed only where the rule governing the petition expressly permits them. For petitions for review to the Court of Appeals from Regional Trial Court appellate decisions and from covered quasi-judicial agencies, the usual extension is 15 calendar days upon proper motion filed before expiration of the original period. A further extension is extraordinary and cannot exceed another 15 calendar days.
For petitions for review on certiorari to the Supreme Court, an extension of 30 calendar days may be granted for justifiable reasons when the motion is filed and served before expiration of the original period and the required docket fees and deposits are paid. A party who relies on an extension assumes the risk that the motion may be denied if it is defective, late, unsupported, or unpaid.
A motion for extension must itself be timely. A motion filed after the original period has expired cannot revive a lost remedy. Payment of docket fees after the period is also defective because fee payment is part of the timely invocation of appellate jurisdiction, although courts retain narrow discretion to recognize substantial compliance in truly equitable situations.
Late Filing, Wrong Mode, and Finality
A late appeal is dismissible because the appellate court acquires no authority to disturb a judgment that has already become final. Once finality attaches, the judgment becomes immutable and unalterable, subject only to recognized exceptions such as clerical correction, nunc pro tunc entries that cause no prejudice, void judgments, or circumstances where the judgment cannot be enforced as written.
Using the wrong mode of appeal may be as fatal as filing late. A notice of appeal cannot replace a petition for review when the Rules require discretionary review by petition. A petition for review on certiorari cannot be used to raise factual issues that belong to an ordinary appeal or to a petition for review in the Court of Appeals.
The choice between appeal to the Court of Appeals and direct review by the Supreme Court depends on the nature of the issues. Questions of fact involve the truth or falsity of alleged facts, the probative value of evidence, or the credibility of witnesses. Questions of law involve the correct application or interpretation of law when the facts are not disputed.
The period to appeal does not run from an interlocutory order because such an order does not finally dispose of the case. The proper remedy against an interlocutory order is not an ordinary appeal, and errors in interlocutory rulings are generally reviewed through an appeal from the final judgment unless a separate extraordinary remedy is available.
A judgment may become final as to one party and not as to another when their periods are separately triggered and the judgment is severable. If the rights and liabilities are joint, indivisible, or legally interdependent, the effect of one party's appeal must be assessed in relation to the whole judgment and the relief sought.
Periods After the Appeal Is Given Due Course
After an ordinary appeal reaches the Court of Appeals, the filing of briefs follows separate periods. The appellant's brief is generally due within 45 calendar days from notice that the evidence is attached to the record. The appellee's brief is due within 45 calendar days from receipt of the appellant's brief. A reply brief, if filed, is due within 20 calendar days from receipt of the appellee's brief.
In petition modes, the appellate court may require a comment, usually within 10 calendar days from notice. If the petition is given due course, the court may require memoranda, commonly within 15 calendar days from notice. Failure to file the required comment, brief, or memorandum can lead to dismissal of the appeal, waiver of arguments, or submission of the case for decision without the missing pleading.
These later periods do not replace the reglementary period for perfecting the appeal or filing the petition. The first deadline determines whether appellate review was validly invoked; later deadlines regulate the prosecution of a review that has already been initiated.