Edcel Lagman Opposes the Permit to Review Marcos Estate Tax Case
Albay Representative Edcel Lagman expressed concern about the possible review of the estate tax case of the Marcos family.
Lagman is against the potential introduction of cases where the Supreme Court will make the final decision. He contends that Supreme Court judgments that have been made final and executory shouldn’t be reconsidered whenever a sitting justice so chooses.
“If final and executory decisions of the Supreme Court can be reopened in perpetuity, then litigations would be interminable or endless and the hallowed doctrine of res judicata is abandoned with impunity,” said Lagman.
After Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo of the SC stated that the decision was not final and may alter depending on the makeup of the court, Lagman made the comment. According to the seasoned lawmaker, the phrase “res judicata” refers to the conclusiveness of a verdict or the prohibition against the same parties pursuing a subject further after it has been decided by a competent court.
“If the finality of a decision depends on the changing composition of the Supreme Court, then cases could not be put to rest and differing temperaments and outlooks of justices could rule the day,” added Lagman.
Lagman emphasized that the SC’s ruling on the Marcoses’ estate tax liability became final on March 9, 1999. Based on the report, the Marcoses allegedly received permission to return to the nation in 1991 so they could take part in the legal proceedings brought against them.
“Imelda Marcos even ran for President in 1992, seven years before the finality of the tax case,” the congressman pointed out. “Verily, the Marcoses were in the Philippines to contest their estate tax liability,” he said.
When asked about President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s recent declaration that he wants to revive the P203 billion estate tax case involving his family, Gesmundo had this opinion. The Supreme Court’s decision on the Marcoses’ inheritance tax debt, which increased from P23 billion to P203 billion as a result of interest and surcharges, became final and executory on March 9, 1999.
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