G.R. No. 213696 - QUANTUM FOODS, INC., VS. MARCELINO ESLOYO AND GLEN MAGSILA.D E C I S I O N - Supreme Court E-Library

Ruling

Accordingly, it found no compelling reason to justify the relaxation of the rules. [51] Undeterred, QFI filed a motion for reconsideration [52] which was denied in a Resolution [53] dated July 4, 2014; hence, this petition. The Issue Before the Court The central issue for the Court's resolution is whether or not the CA erred in ascribing grave abuse of discretion on the part of the NLRC in giving due course to QFI's appeal. The Court's Ruling There is merit in the petition. In labor cases, the law governing appeals from the LA's ruling to the NLRC is Article 229 [54] of the Labor Code which provides: ART. 229. Appeal. - Decisions, awards, or orders of the Labor Arbiter are final and executory unless appealed to the Commission by any or both parties within ten (10) calendar days from receipt of such decisions, awards, or orders. Such appeal may be entertained only on any of the following grounds: (a) If there is a prima facie evidence of abuse of discretion on the part of the Labor Arbiter; (b) If the decision, order or award was secured through fraud or coercion, including graft and corruption; (c) If made purely on questions of law; and (d) If serious errors in the findings of facts are raised which would cause grave or irreparable damage or injury to the appellant. In case of a judgment involving a monetary award, an appeal by the employer may be perfected only upon the posting of a cash or surety bond issued by a reputable bonding company duly accredited by the Commission in the amount equivalent to the monetary award in the judgment appealed from . x x x x (Emphasis and underscoring supplied) In this relation, Section 4, Rule VI of the 2005 Revised Rules of Procedure of the NLRC [55] (the Rules) enumerates the requisites for the perfection of appeal, viz .: Section 4. Requisites For Perfection Of Appeal . - a) The appeal shall be: 1) filed within the reglementary period provided in Section 1 of this Rule; 2) verified by the appellant himself in accordance with Section 4, Rule 7 of the Rules of Court, as amended; 3) in the form of a memorandum of appeal which shall state the grounds relied upon and the arguments in support thereof, the relief prayed for, and with a statement of the date the appellant received the appealed decision, resolution or order; 4) in three (3) legibly typewritten or printed copies; and 5) accompanied by i) proof of payment of the required appeal fee; ii) posting of a cash or surety bond as provided in Section 6 of this Rule; iii) a certificate of non-forum shopping; and iv) proof of service upon the other parties. b) A mere notice of appeal without complying with the other requisites aforestated shall not stop the running of the period for perfecting an appeal. x x x x (Emphases supplied) Notably, while QFI timely filed its Notice of Appeal and Memorandum of Appeal, it was only accompanied by a partial bond with a Motion to Reduce Bond, and not a bond in an amount equivalent to the monetary judgment, the effects of whi