CIRILO A. UNDALOC, PLAINTIFF-APPELLANT, VS. REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES, DEFENDANT-APPELLEE.

Before Us is an Appeal from the January 13, 2011 Decision of the Municipal Trial Court, 7^th Judicial Region, San Fernando, in LRA Case No. N-47; LRC REC Case No. N-79505, entitled Cirilo A. Undaloc.

Upon verification of the case, the Judicial Records Division (CA-JRD), made a report that plaintiff-appellant have failed to pay the required docket fees, as per Cebu Civil docket entry^[1] dated April 30, 2013.

In the case of Spouses Papa and Lolita Manalili, vs. Spouses Arsenio and Gliceria De Leon^[2], the Supreme Court held that appeal is not a constitutional right but a mere statutory privilege. It must be exercised strictly in accordance with the provisions of the law and rules. Specifically, the payment of docket fees within the period for perfecting an appeal is mandatory. In the present case, plaintiff-appellant have not given sufficient reason why he should be exempt from this stringent rule.

On the matter of non-payment in full of the docket fee, Section 4 of Rule 41 of the Rules of Court, as amended, provides that appellate court docket and other lawful fees should be paid within the period for taking an appeal, viz:

Sec. 4. Appellate court docket and other lawful fees. — Within the period for taking an appeal, the appellant shall pay to the clerk of the court which rendered the judgment or final order appealed from, the full amount of the appellate court docket and other lawful fees. Proof of payment of said fees shall be transmitted to the appellate court together with the original record or the record on appeal.

Payment in full of docket fees within the prescribed period is mandatory. Non-compliance therewith may cause the dismissal of the appeal pursuant to Sec. 1, Rule 50 of the Rules of Court, which reads:

Sec. 1. Grounds for dismissal of appeal. An appeal may be dismissed by the Court of Appeals, on its own motion or on that of the appellee, on the following grounds . . . (c) Failure of the appellant to pay the docket and other lawful fees as provided in Section 5 of Rule 40 and Section 4 of Rule 41 . . . .

WHEREFORE, the appeal is DISMISSED pursuant to Sections 4, Rule 41 in relation to Section 1, Rule 50 of the Revised Rules of Court.

SO ORDERED.

Ingles,^* and Lopez, JJ., concur.

---

^* In lieu of Justice Edgardo L. Delos Santos who is on wellness leave per Office Order No. 13-14-GTI.

^[1] Rollo, dorsal portion of page 41.

^[2] G.R. No. 140858, November 27, 2001.