Facts: Dael filed a complaint for breach of contract and damages against Beltran, alleging that Beltran sold him a parcel of land without disclosing that the land was previously mortgaged. Beltran filed a Motion to Dismiss on the ground that Dael had no cause of action since the party to the contract to sell was Dael's father. Dael filed a Notice of Dismissal praying that the case be ordered dismissed without prejudice. The RTC, however, dismissed the case with prejudice after finding merit to Beltran’s contention that Dael has no cause of action since he is not one of the contracting parties in the Contract to Sell. Dael filed a Motion for Reconsideration but it was denied. Beltran argue that the Motion to Dismiss precedes the Notice of Dismissal filed by Dael and hence, the trial court correctly gave it precedence and ruled based on the motion. Was the RTC correct in dismissing the complaint with prejudice?
Held: No. Section 1, Rule 17 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure provides:
SECTION 1. Dismissal upon notice by plaintiff. – A complaint may be dismissed by the plaintiff by filing a notice of dismissal at any time before service of the answer or of a motion for summary judgment. Upon such notice being filed, the court shall issue an order confirming the dismissal. Unless otherwise stated in the notice, the dismissal is without prejudice, except that a notice operates as an adjudication upon the merits when filed by a plaintiff who has once dismissed in a competent court an action based on or including the same claim.
Under this provision, it is mandatory that the trial court issue an order confirming such dismissal and, unless otherwise stated in the notice, the dismissal is without prejudice and could be accomplished by the plaintiff through mere notice of dismissal, and not through motion subject to approval by the court. Dismissal is ipso facto upon notice, and without prejudice unless otherwise stated in the notice. The trial court has no choice but to consider the complaint as dismissed, since the plaintiff may opt for such dismissal as a matter of right, regardless of the ground.
Section 1 of Rule 17 provides that a plaintiff may file a notice of dismissal before service of the answer or a motion for summary judgment. Thus, upon the filing of the Notice of Dismissal by the plaintiff, the Motion to Dismiss filed by respondents became moot and academic and the trial court should have dismissed the case without prejudice based on the Notice of Dismissal filed by the petitioner.
Moreover, to allow the case to be dismissed with prejudice would erroneously result in res judicata and imply that petitioner can no longer file a case against respondents without giving him a chance to present evidence to prove otherwise. [Dael vs. Sps. Beltran, G.R. No. 156470, April 30, 2008]
