Court sheriff axed for demanding litigants cover his expenses

MANILA, Philippines - The Supreme Court (SC) has dismissed from service a Manila court sheriff who collected money from litigants to cover his expenses without approval from the court.

In an 11-page decision released yesterday, the high court found Sheriff Emerson Pilipiña of the office of the clerk of court of Manila regional trial court guilty of dishonesty and gross neglect of duty.

Upholding the finding of the Office of the Court Administrator, the SC said Pilipiña demanded from a party P5,000 to cover for his expenses in the implementation of the writ of execution and another P2,000 a few months to defray his gasoline expenses.

“The rule requires the sheriff executing writs or processes to estimate the expenses to be incurred. Upon the approval of the estimated expenses, the interested party has to deposit the amount with the clerk of court and ex-officio sheriff. The expenses shall then be disbursed to the executing Sheriff subject to his liquidation within the same period for rendering a return on the process or writ. Any unspent amount shall be refunded to the party who made the deposit,” the SC said.

The court also found that Pilipiña’s submission of the sheriff’s report was filed only on Sept. 9, 2008, or about 11 months delayed as the writ was assigned to him on Oct. 4, 2007.

It also pointed out that the Rules of Court provide that it is mandatory for sheriffs to execute and make a return on the writ of execution within 30 days from receipt of the writ and every 30 days thereafter until it is satisfied in full or its effectivity expires.

The SC also forfeited his retirement benefits and barred him from re-entering government service.