St. Louis Realty vs. CA

ST. LOUIS REALTY CORPORATION, petitioner,
vs.
COURT OF APPEALS and CONRADO J. ARAMIL, respondents.

G.R. No. L-­46061
November 14, 1984

FACTS:

Petitioner, St. Louis Realty caused to be published with the permission of Arcadio S. Arcadio but without permission of private respondent Dr. Aramil, a neuropsychiatrist and faculty member of UERM Medical Center, in the issue of the Sunday Times of December 15, 1968 an advertisement with the heading “WHERE THE HEART IS”. The same advertisement was republished in the Sunday Times dated January 5, 1969.

Private respondent noticed the mistake and wrote a letter of protest. The letter was received by St. Louis Realty’s officer in charge of advertising. He stopped publication of the advertisement. However, no rectification or apology was made. Private respondent’s counsel demanded from St. Louis Realty actual, moral and exemplary damages of P110,000. It published in the issue of the Manila Times of March 18, 1969 a new advertisement with the Arcadio family and their real house but it did not publish any apology to Dr. Aramil and an explanation of the error. Dr. Aramil filed a complaint for damages. St. Louis Realty published in the issue of the Manila Times of April 15, 1969 a notice of rectification.

St. Louis Realty argued that the case was not covered by Article 26 of the Civil Code.

ISSUE:

Whether the case at bar is covered by Article 26 of the Civil Code.

HELD:

YES. St. Louis Realty’s employee was grossly negligent in mixing up the Aramil and Arcadio residences in a widely circulated publication like the Sunday Times. To suit its purpose, it never made any written apology and explanation of the mix-­up. It just contented itself with a cavalier “rectification “.

Persons, who know the residence of Doctor Aramil, were confused by the distorted, lingering impression that he was renting his residence from Arcadio or that Arcadio had leased it from him. Either way, his private life was mistakenly and unnecessarily exposed. He suffered diminution of income and mental anguish.