Nutrimix Feeds Corporation v. Court Of Appeals

SR., J.:

For review on certiorari is the Decision1 of the Court of Appeals in CA-G.R. CV No. 59615 modifying, on appeal, the Joint Decision2 of the Regional Trial Court of Malolos, Bulacan, Branch 9, in Civil Case No. 1026-M-933 for sum of money and damages with prayer for issuance of writ of preliminary attachment, and Civil Case No. 49-M-944 for damages. The trial court dismissed the complaint of the respondents, ordering them to pay the petitioner the unpaid value of the assorted animal feeds delivered to the former by the latter, with legal interest thereon from the filing of the complaint, including attorney's fees. The Factual Antecedents On April 5, 1993, the Spouses Efren and Maura Evangelista, the respondents herein, started to directly procure various kinds of animal feeds from petitioner Nutrimix Feeds Corporation.

The petitioner gave the respondents a credit period of thirty to forty-five days to postdate checks to be issued in payment for the delivery of the feeds. The accommodation was made apparently because of the company president's close friendship with Eugenio Evangelista, the brother of respondent Efren Evangelista. The various animal feeds were paid and covered by checks with due dates from July 1993 to September 1993.

Initially, the respondents were good paying customers. In some instances, however, they failed to issue checks despite the deliveries of animal feeds which were appropriately covered by sales invoices. Consequently, the Sales Invoice Number Date Amount 21334 June 23, 1993 ₱ 7,260.00 21420 June 26, 1993 6,990.00 21437 June 28, 1993 41,510.00 21722 July 12, 1993 45,185.00 22048 July 26, 1993 44,540.00 22054 July 27, 1993 45,246.00 22186 August 2, 1993 84,900.00 Total: