COMPUTATION OF TIME:

The Supreme Court clarified that procedural rules are designed for the orderly conduct of proceedings and expeditious settlement of cases in the courts of law.  Like all rules, they are required to be followed and utter disregard of the same cannot be expediently rationalized by harping on the policy of liberal construction which was never intended as an unfettered license to disregard the letter of the law or, for that matter, a convenient excuse to substitute substantial compliance for regular adherence thereto.  When it comes to compliance with time rules, the Court cannot afford inexcusable delay. (J. TIOSEJO INVESTMENT CORP vs. SPOUSES BENJAMIN AND ELEANOR ANG, G.R. No. 174149, September 8, 2010, PEREZ, J.).

                                                             

 How to compute time. — In computing any period of time prescribed or allowed by these Rules, or by order of the court, or by any applicable statute, the day of the act or event from which the designated period of time begins to run is to be excluded and the date of performance included. If the last day of the period, as thus computed, falls on a Saturday, a Sunday, or a legal holiday in the place where the court sits, the time shall not run until the next working day (Section 1 of Rule 22 of the Rules of Court). x x x In Alma Russel vs. Teofista Ebasan, the Supreme Court ruled that when petitioner filed her petition for review with the appellate court on May 15, 2007, the same was well within the extended period for the filing thereof. This is true because petitioner’s Fifteen (15) days from April 28, 2007 would be May 13, 2007. This was, however, a Sunday. On the other hand, May 14, 2007, the following day, was a legal holiday—the holding of the national and local elections. Therefore, the filing of petition the petition on May 15, 2007 was done within the reglementary period. (ALMA B. RUSSEL vs. TEOFISTA EBASAN and AGAPITO AUSTRIA, G.R. No. 184542, April 23, 2010, NACHURA, J.:)