G.R. No. 173008 -

Ruling

WHEREFORE , the instant petition is hereby GRANTED . Accordingly, the assailed Orders of the trial court dated April 13, 2006 and August 8, 2005 are hereby both SET ASIDE and in lieu thereof, another Order is hereby issued DISMISSING the Complaint, as amended. No pronouncement as to costs. SO ORDERED . [15] In dismissing the Amended Complaint, the appellate court ratiocinated in the following manner: In the light of the foregoing where no sufficient evidence was presented to grant the reliefs being prayed for in the complaint, more particularly the absence of the documents sought to be annulled as well as the properties sought to be partitioned, common sense dictates that the case should have been dismissed outright by the trial court to avoid unnecessary waste of time, money and efforts. [16] Subsequently, the CA denied petitioners' motion for reconsideration in its Resolution [17] dated June 2, 2006. The Issues In this petition for review, petitioners question whether the CA's dismissal of the Amended Complaint was in accordance with law, rules of procedure and jurisprudence. The Ruling of the Court The RTC Orders assailed before the CA basically involved the propriety of filing a demurrer to evidence after a Decision had been rendered in the case. Section 1, Rule 33 of the Rules of Court provides: SECTION 1. Demurrer to evidence. - After the plaintiff has completed the presentation of his evidence, the defendant may move for dismissal on the ground that upon the facts and the law the plaintiff has shown no right to relief. If his motion is denied, he shall have the right to present evidence. If the motion is granted but on appeal the order of dismissal was reversed he shall be deemed to have waived the right to present evidence. The Court has previously explained the nature of a demurrer to evidence in the case of Celino v. Heirs of Alejo and Teresa Santiago [18] as follows: A demurrer to evidence is a motion to dismiss on the ground of insufficiency of evidence and is presented after the plaintiff rests his case . It is an objection by one of the parties in an action, to the effect that the evidence which his adversary produced is insufficient in point of law, whether true or not, to make out a case or sustain the issue. The evidence contemplated by the rule on demurrer is that which pertains to the merits of the case. In passing upon the sufficiency of the evidence raised in a demurrer, the court is merely required to ascertain whether there is competent or sufficient proof to sustain the judgment. [19] Being considered a motion to dismiss, thus, a demurrer to evidence must clearly be filed before the court renders its judgment. In this case, respondents demurred to petitioners' evidence after the RTC promulgated its Decision. While respondents' motion for reconsideration and/or new trial was granted, it was for the sole purpose of receiving and offering for admission the documents not presented at the trial. As respondents never comp