What is a class suit?

July 24, 2008

Lately we have been barraged with news regarding the complaints filed by victims of Sulpicio Lines maritime disaster.  There are, to my knowledge, two groups of complainant against the Sulpicio Lines. 

The first are the bereaved relatives of the victims who not only suffered emotionally as a result of the death of their family members but also financially as well due to death of the family bread winnners or by the hussles suffered by the family members going back and forth to verify the identities of their victims and going to Sulpicio Lines to recover their insurance.  

The other group of complainants are the residents of Romblon and Masbate who suffered loss of income due to the Endosulfan scare and oil leak from the sunken vessel.  

I heard that both groups are planning to institute a class suit against the Sulpicio Company.  But what is exactly a class suit?

Section 12 of Rule 3 of the Rules of Court, provides,

Sec. 12.    Class suit. — When the subject matter of the controversy is one of common or general interest to many persons, and the parties are so numerous that it is impracticable to bring them all before the court, one or more may sue or defend for the benefit of all. But in such case the court shall make sure that the parties actually before it are sufficiently numerous and representative so that all interests concerned are fully protected. Any party in interest shall have a right to intervene in protection of his individual interest.

 According to the above-mentioned provision, there are two necessary elements for the maintenance of a class suit

1. that the subject matter of the controversy be one of common or general interest to many persons, and
2. that such persons be so numerous as to make it impracticable to bring them all to the court.

As nmemonic device, associate the word “class” as group of persons so numerous that they practically populate the court and relate the word “suit” with a common controversy or of general interest of the class of persons.

For an action to be a class suit it must allege the facts constituting the class suit in the complaint.  Mere designation of action as class suit is not enough.  

As declared by the SC in Mathay vs. Consolidated Bank and Trust Company, et al, GR. L-23136, Aug. 26, 1974

Whether the suit is or is not a class suit depends upon the attending facts, and the complaint, or other pleading initiating the class action should allege the existence of the necessary facts, to wit, the existence of a subject matter of common interest, and the existence of a class and the number of persons in the alleged class, 3 in order that the court might be enabled to determine whether the members of the class are so numerous as to make it impracticable to bring them all before the court, to contrast the number appearing on the record with the number in the class and to determine whether claimants on record adequately represent the class and the subject matter of general or common interest.