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RULE 124 - PROCEDURE IN THE COURT OF
APPEALS
Section 1. Title of the case. – In all criminal cases
appealed to the
Court of Appeals, the party appealing the case
shall be called the
"appellant" and the adverse party the "appellee,"
but the title of the case shall remain as it was in
the court of origin.
Sec. 2. Appointment of counsel de officio for th
e accused. – If it
appears from the record of the case as transmit
ted that (a) the
accused is confined in prison, (b) is without co
unsel de parte on appeal, or (c) has signed the
notice of appeal himself, ask the clerk of court of the
Court of Appeals shall designate a counsel de
officio.
An appellant who is not confined in prison may,
upon request, be assigned a counsel de
officio within ten (10) days from receipt of the
notice to file brief and he establishes his right
thereto.
Sec. 3. When brief for appellant to be filed. –
Within thirty (30) days from receipt by the
appellant or his counsel of the notice from
the clerk of court of the Court of Appeals that t
he evidence, oral and documentary, is already
attached to the record, the appellant shall file
seven (7) copies of his brief with the clerk of court
which shall be accompanied by proof of service of
two (2) copies thereof
upon the appellee.
Sec. 4. When brief for appellee to be filed; reply
brief of the appellant. – Within thirty (30) days
from receipt of the brief of the appellant, the
appellee shall file seven (7) copies of the brief of the
appellee with the clerk of court which shall be
accompanied by proof of service of two (2) copies
thereof upon the appellant.
Within twenty (20) days from receipt of the brief of
the appellee, the appellant may file a reply brief
traversing matters raised in the former but not
covered in the brief of the appellant.
Sec. 5. Extension of time for filing briefs. –
Extension of time for the filing of briefs will not
be allowed except for good and sufficient
cause and only if the motion for extension is fil
ed before the expiration of the time sought to be
extended.
Sec. 6. Form of briefs. – Briefs shall either be
typewritten in double space on legal size good
quality unglazed paper, 330 mm. in length by 216
mm. in width.
Sec. 7. Contents of brief. – The briefs in
criminal cases shall have the same contents as
provided in sections 13 and 14 of Rule 44. A certified
true copy of the decision or final order appealed
from shall be appended to the brief of the appellant.
Sec. 8. Dismissal of appeal for abandonment
or failure to prosecute. – The Court of Appeals
may, upon motion of the appellee
or motu proprio and with notice to the appellant
in either case, dismiss the appeal if the appellant
fails to file his brief within the
time prescribed by this Rule, except where the
appellant is represented by a counsel de officio.
The Court of Appeals may also, upon motion of
the appellee or
motu proprio, dismiss the appeal if the appellant
escapes from
prison or confinement, jumps bail or flees to a f
oreign country during the pendency of the appeal.
WHEN CAN THE COURT OF APPEALS DISMISS AN
APPEAL?
1. The Court of Appeals may, upon motion of the
appellee or motu proprio and with notice to the appellant
in either case, dismiss the
appeal if the appellant fails to file his brief within th
e time
prescribed by this Rule, except where the appellant is
represented by a counsel de officio.
2. The Court of Appeals may also, upon motion of
the appellee or
motu proprio, dismiss the appeal if the appellant es
capes from prison or confinement
3. The Court of Appeals may also, upon motion of
the appellee or motu proprio, dismiss the appeal if the
appellant jumps bail
4. The Court of Appeals may also, upon motion of
the appellee or motu proprio, dismiss the appeal if the
appellant flees to a foreign country during the pendency
of the appeal
5. The Court of Appeals may also, motu propio
dismiss the appeal if the appellant fails to prosecute
6. The Court of Appeals may also, motu propio
dismiss the appeal if the appellant abandons his appeal
Sec. 9. Prompt disposition of appeals. – Appeals of
accused who are under detention shall be given
precedence in their disposition over
other appeals. The Court of Appeals shall hear and
decide the
appeal at the earliest practicable time with due regard to
the rights of the parties. The accused need not be
present in court during the hearing of the appeal.
Sec. 10. Judgment not to be reversed or modified
except for substantial error. –
No judgment shall be reversed or modified unless
the Court of Appeals, after an examination of the record
and
of the evidence adduced by the parties, is of the opinion
that terror was committed which injuriously affected the
substantial rights of the appellant.
WHEN CAN JUDGMENT BE REVERSED OR
MODIFIED?
 It can only be reversed or modified when there
has been substantial errors
Sec. 11. Scope of judgment. –
The Court of Appeals may reverse, affirm or modify
the judgment and increase or reduce the penalty
imposed by the trial court, remand the case to the
Regional Trial Court for new trial or retrial, or dismiss
the case.
WHAT IS THE SCOPE OF JUDGMENT OF THE
COURT OF APPEALS?
1. Reverse, affirm, or modify the judgment
2. Increase or reduce the penalty imposed by the trial
court
3. Remand the case to the RTC for new trial or retrial
4. Dismiss the case
WHY CANNOT THE CA REVISE THE JUDGMENT
OF THE LOWER COURT?
 The power to revise is not given because it is
changing the manner of the penning of the judgment of
the trial judge
 It is violative of the rule that the judge must w
rite the decision personally
MUST ALL BE ALLEGED IN THE APPEAL IN ORDER
TO REVIEW THE CASE IN ITS ENTIRETY?
 No.
 An appeal in criminal proceedings throws the whole d the law
case open for review. It is the duty of the appellate court involved, shall render judgment imposing the penalty
to correct such errors
as might be found in the appealed judgment, wheth reclusion perpetua, or life imprisonment as the circu
er they are assigned or not.
Sec. 12. Power to receive evidence. –
The Court of Appeals shall have the power to try
cases and conduct hearings, receive evidence
and perform any and all acts necessary to resolve
factual issues
raised in cases (a) falling within its original jurisdicti
on, (b) involving claims for damages arising from
provisional remedies, or (c) where the court grants a
new trial based only on the ground of
newly-discovered evidence.
CAN THE COURT OF APPEALS ACCEPT EVIDEN
CE DURING AN APPEAL?
 Generally, an appellate court doesn’t accept new
evidence during
an appeal. Its decision is based on the records an
d other documents forwarded to it by the lower courts
 It can accept evidence though in the resolution
of contentious factual issues, which are raised in
cases:
1. Falling within its original jurisdiction
2. Involving claim for damages arising from provisi
onal remedies
3. Where the court grants a new trial based on the
ground of newly-discovered evidence
Sec. 13. Quorum of the court; certification or appea
l of cases to Supreme Court. – Three (3) Justices of
the Court of Appeals shall constitute a quorum for the
sessions of a division. The unanimous
vote of the three (3) Justices of a division shall be
necessary for
the pronouncement of a judgment or final resolution,
which shall
be reached in consultation before the writing of the
opinion by a member of the division. In the event that
the three (3) Justices can not reach a unanimous vote,
the Presiding Justice shall direct the
raffle committee of the Court to designate two (2) a
dditional Justices to sit temporarily with them, forming a
special division of
five (5) members and the concurrence of a majority
of such division shall be necessary for the
pronouncement of a judgment or
final resolution. The designation of such additional
Justices shall be made strictly by raffle and rotation
among all other Justices of the Court of Appeals.
Whenever the Court of Appeals find that the pen
alty of death,
reclusion perpetua, or life imprisonment should be i
mposed in a
case, the court, after discussion of the evidence an
of death,
mstance warrant. However, it shall refrain from entering
the judgment and
forthwith certify the case and elevate the entire record
thereof to the Supreme Court for review.
HOW DOES THE CA DECIDE THE CASE?
 Three (3) Justices of the Court of Appeals shal
l constitute a quorum for the sessions of a division.
 The unanimous vote of the three (3) Justices of a
division shall be
necessary for the pronouncement of a judgment
or final
resolution, which shall be reached in consultation be
fore the writing of the opinion by a member of the
division.
 In the event that the three (3) Justices can not
reach a unanimous vote, the Presiding Justice shall
direct the raffle committee of the
Court to designate two (2) additional Justices to sit
temporarily
with them, forming a special division of five (5) members
and the concurrence of a majority of such division shall
be necessary for
the pronouncement of a judgment or final resolutio
n. The
designation of such additional Justices shall be mad
e strictly by
raffle and rotation among all other Justices of the
Court of Appeals.
 NB: There is tyranny of the minority. In case
one of the three justices in a division disagrees, he
wins even if it is 2 against 1. A.M. No. 00-5-03-SC
RE: AMENDMENTS TO THE REVISED RULES
OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE TO GOVERN DEATH
PENALTY CASES RESOLUTION
Acting on the recommendation of the Committee on
Revision of the
Rules of Court submitting for this Court's considerati
on and
approval the Proposed Amendments to the Revised
Rules of
Criminal Procedure To Govern Death Penalty Cases
, the Court Resolved to APPROVE the same.
The amendments shall take effect on October 15, 2004
following its
publication in a newspaper of general circulation not
later than September 30, 2004.
September 28, 2004.
Davide, Jr., C.J., Puno, Panganiban, Quisumbing, Y
nares-Santiago, Sandoval-Gutierrez, Carpio, Austria-
Martinez, Corona, Carpio-Morales, Callejo, Sr., and
Tinga, JJ., concur. Azcuna and Chico-Nazario, JJ., on
leave.
AMENDED RULES TO GOVERN REVIEW OF DEATH
PENALTY CASES
Rule 122, Sections 3 and 10, and Rule 124, Sections 12
and 13, of the Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure, are
amended as follows:
Rule 122
Sec. 3. How appeal taken.—
(a) The appeal to the Regional Trial Court, or to the
Court of Appeals in cases decided by the Regional
Trial Court in the exercise of its original jurisdiction,
shall be by
notice of appeal filed with the court which rendered the
judgment or final order appealed from and by serving a
copy thereof upon the adverse party.
(b) The appeal to the Court of Appeals in cases
decided by the Regional Trial Court in the exercise of
its appellate jurisdiction shall be by petition for review
under Rule 42.
(c) The appeal in cases where the penalty imposed by
the Regional
Trial Court is reclusion perpetua, life imprisonment o
r where a
lesser penalty is imposed for offenses committed on
the same
occasion or which arose out of the same occurrence that
gave rise
to the more, serious offense for which the penalty
of death,
reclusion perpetua, or life imprisonment is imposed,
shall be by
notice of appeal to the Court of Appeals in accorda
nce with paragraph (a) of this Rule.
(d) No notice of appeal is necessary in cases where the
Regional
Trial Court imposed the death penalty. The Court of
Appeals shall automatically review the judgment as
provided in Section 10 of this
Rule. (3a)
xxx
Sec. 10. Transmission of records in case of death
penalty. — In all
cases where the death penalty is imposed by the tr
ial court, the
records shall be forwarded to the Court of Appeals
for automatic
review and judgment within twenty days but not ear
lier than
fifteen days from the promulgation of the judgment
or notice of denial of a motion for new trial
or reconsideration. The transcript
shall also be forwarded within ten days after the filing
thereof by the stenographic reporter. (10a)
xxx
Rule 124
Sec. 12. Power to receive evidence.—
The Court of Appeals shall have the power to try
cases and conduct hearings, receive evidence
and perform all acts necessary to resolve factual is
sues raised in
cases falling within its original and appellate jurisdiction,
including the power to grant and conduct new trials or
further proceedings. Trials or hearings in the Court of
Appeals must be continuous and
must be completed within three months, unless exte
nded by the Chief Justice. 12(a)
to the Supreme Court by notice of appeal filed with the
Court of Appeals.
WHAT IF THE DECISION APPEALED TO THE
CA IS PURELY QUESTIONS OF LAW?
 The CA may certify it to the SC directly

Sec. 13. Certification or appeal of case to the Supreme
Court.—(a)
Whenever the Court of Appeals finds that the penal
ty of death
should be imposed, the court shall render judgment
but refrain
from making an entry of judgment and forthwith cert
ify the case and elevate its entire record to the
Supreme Court for review.
Sec. 14. Motion for new trial. – At any time after the
appeal from the lower court has been perfected and
before the judgment of the Court of Appeals convicting
the appellant becomes final, the latter
may move for a new trial on the ground of newly-
discovered
evidence material to his defense. The motion shall
conform with the provisions of section 4, Rule 121.

(b) Where the judgment also imposes a lesser penalty CAN THE CA CONDUCT A NEW TRIAL?
for offenses
committed on the same occasion or which arose ou  Yes, the ground for new trial is based on newl
t of the same occurrence that gave rise to the more y-discovered
severe offense for which the evidence and the motion shall conform with the pro
penalty of death is imposed, and the accused appe visions of Section 4, Rule 121
als, the appeal
shall be included in the case certified for review to,
the Supreme Court. WHAT IS NEWLY-DISCOVERED EVIDENCE?
(c) In cases where the Court of Appeals imposes  This is material evidence that can change the
reclusion perpetua, life imprisonment or a lesser penalty, outcome of the judgment when admitted
it shall render and
enter judgment imposing such penalty. The judgmen
t may be WHEN SHOULD THE NEWLY-DISCOVERED
appealed to the Supreme Court by notice of appeal EVIDENCE BE DISCOVERED?
filed with the Court of Appeals.
 The evidence must be discovered after the perf
ection of appeal,
WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE WHEN THE CA FINDS but before the CA renders its judgment, because af
THAT THE PENALTY ter the perfection of the appeal, the trial court loses
TO BE IMPOSED IS DEATH, RECLUSION PERPE its jurisdiction. On
TUA, OR LIFE IMPRISONMENT? the other hand, prior perfection of an appeal, t
he party discovering the new evidence may file a
 Whenever the Court of Appeals finds that the p motion for new trial with the trial court anyway.
enalty of death
should be imposed, the court shall render judgment INSTEAD OF FILING A MOTION FOR NEW TRIAL,
but refrain from making an entry of judgment and CAN A PARTY FILE A MOTION FOR
forthwith certify the case and elevate its entire record to RECONSIDERATION INSTEAD?
the Supreme Court for review.  No since a motion for reconsideration only covers
 Where the judgment also imposes a lesser pen errors of facts or laws and not newly-
alty for offenses committed on the same occasion or discovered evidence, which pertains exclusively as a
which arose out of the same occurrence that gave rise ground for new trial
to the more severe offense for which the penalty of
death is imposed, and the accused appeals, the appeal
shall be included in the case certified for review to, the WHY IS THE PERIOD FOR FILING A MOTION FOR
Supreme Court. NEW TRIAL FROM A DECISION OF THE RTC
 In cases where the Court of Appeals imposes DIFFERENT FROM THAT OF THE CA?
reclusion perpetua,
life imprisonment or a lesser penalty, it shall render  For the reason that at some point in time, the case
and enter judgment imposing such penalty. The must end.
judgment may be appealed
Sec. 15. Where new trial conducted. – When a new trial original and appealed civil cases shall be applied to
is granted, the Court of Appeals may conduct the criminal cases
hearing and receive evidence as provided in section 12 insofar as they are applicable and not inconsistent
of this Rule or refer the trial to the court of origin. with the provision of this Rule.

Sec. 16. Reconsideration. –

A motion for reconsideration shall be
filed within fifteen (15) days from notice of the deci
sion or final order of the Court of Appeals with copies
thereof served upon the
adverse party, setting forth the grounds in support t
hereof. The
mittimus shall be stayed during the pendency of the
motion for
reconsideration. No party shall be allowed a second
motion for
reconsideration of a judgment or final order.

WHEN SHOULD A MOTION FOR

RECONSIDERATION BE FILED?
 A motion for reconsideration shall be filed within
fifteen (15) days from notice of the decision or final order
of the Court of Appeals
with copies thereof served upon the adverse party,
setting forth the grounds in support thereof.
 The mittimus shall be stayed during the pendency
of the motion for reconsideration.
 No party shall be allowed a second motion for
reconsideration of a judgment or final order.

WHAT IS THE MEANING OF MITTIMUS?

 It is the process issued by the court after conviction
to carry out the final judgment such as commanding a
prison warden to hold the accused in accordance with
the terms of the judgment
ec. 17. Judgment transmitted and filed in trial court. –
When the entry of judgment of the Court of Appeals is
issued, a certified true copy of the judgment shall be
attached to the original record which
shall be remanded to the clerk of the court from which
the appeal was taken.

WHAT SHOULD BE DONE AFTER THE JUDGMEN

T OF THE CA HAS BECOME FINAL?
 When the judgment of the CA becomes final, a
certified true copy
of the judgment shall be attached to the original re
cord which shall be remanded to the clerk of the court
from which the appeal was taken.

Sec. 18. Application of certain rules in civil procedu

re to criminal cases. – The provisions of Rules 42, 44
to 46 and 48 to 56 relating to procedure in the Court of
Appeals and in the Supreme Court in