[ Act No. 3110, March 19, 1923 ]
AN ACT TO PROVIDE AN ADEQUATE PROCEDURE FOR THE RECONSTITUTION OF THE RECORDS OF PENDING JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS AND BOOKS, DOCUMENTS, AND FILES OF THE OFFICE OF THE REGISTER OF DEEDS, DESTROYED BY FIRE OR OTHER PUBLIC CALAMITIES, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Legislature assembled and by the authority of the same:
SECTION 1. As soon as practicable after the occurrence of any fire or other public calamity resulting in the loss of all or part of the records of judicial proceedings on file in the office of the clerk of a Court of First Instance, said officer shall send a notice by registered mail to the Secretary of Justice, the Attorney-General, the Director of Lands, the Chief of the General Land Registration Office, the clerk of the Supreme Court, the judge of the province, the register of deeds of the province, the provincial fiscal, and all lawyers who may be interested, stating the date on which such fire or public calamity occurred and whether the loss or destruction was total or partial, and giving a brief list of the proceedings not affected in case the loss or destruction was partial.
SEC 2. Upon receipt of the notice mentioned in the preceding section, the court shall issue or cause to be issued a general notice which shall be addressed and sent by registered mail to the lawyers and officers mentioned in the preceding section, and to such other persons as might be interested, advising them of the destruction of the records, with a brief list of the proceedings not affected in case the destruction was partial, and of the time fixed by this Act for the reconstitution of the destroyed records.
This notice shall also be published in the Official Gazette and in one of the newspapers most widely read in the province, once a week, for four consecutive weeks.
SEC. 3. The parties to civil cases, or their counsels, shall ' appear and file, within thirty days after having been notified in accordance with the next preceding section, an application for the reconstitution of the records in which they are interested, and the clerk of the court, upon receiving such application, shall send notice to all parties interested, or their counsels, of the day, hour, and place when the Court will proceed to the reconstitution, requesting them to present, on said day and hour, and at said place, all copies of motions, decrees, orders, and other documents in their possession, having reference to the record or records to be reconstituted.
SEC. 4. Civil cases pending trial shall be reconstituted' by means of the copies presented and certified under oath as correct by the counsels or the parties interested. In case it is impossible to find a copy of a motion, decree, order, document, or other proceeding of vital importance for the reconstitution of the record, the same may be replaced by an agreement on the facts entered into between the counsels or the parties interested, which shall be reduced to writing and attached to the proper record.
SEC. 5. In case the counsels or parties are unable to come to an agreement, the Court shall determine what may be proper in the interest of equity and justice, and may also consider the proceeding in question as non-existent and reconstitute only that part of the record which can stand without such proceeding, and continue proceedings upon the record so reconstituted.
SEC. 6. Testimony of witnesses taken in civil cases shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy thereof or a new transcript of the stenographic notes. If no authentic copy can be obtained and the stenographic notes have also been destroyed, the cases shall be tried de novo as if called for trial for the first time.
SEC. 7. If a civil case has already been decided, the decision shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy. In case an authentic copy cannot be found, the Court shall make a new decision, as if the case had never been decided.
SEC. 8. Special proceedings shall be reconstituted in the same manner as ordinary civil cases, with the sole addition that a copy of the statement to be made by the parties or their counsels, setting forth the status of the proceedings at the time when the fire or other public calamity occurred, shall be attached to the reconstituted record.
SEC. 9. Registration proceedings pending the issuance of a decree shall be reconstituted by means of copies furnished by the Chief of the General Land Registration Office. It shall be the duty of this officer, immediately upon receipt of the notice provided for in section one of this Act, to direct duly certified true copies of all destroyed registration proceedings pending at the time of the destruction, and of all decrees destroyed, to be sent to the clerk of the Court of First Instance concerned.
SEC. 10. Pending cadastral cases shall be reconstituted as follows:
The Court shall issue an order directing the person interested to file anew their replies, for which purpose reasonable time may be allowed. The order shall be published in the Official Gazette and by local notices during a period fixed in said order.
Immediately upon receipt of the notice provided for in section one of this Act, the Chief of the General Land Registration Office shall cause duly certified true copies of all destroyed cadastral proceedings to be sent to the clerk of the Court concerned.
The new replies filed by the parties interested and the copies furnished by the General Land Registration Office shall form the reconstituted record.
SEC. 11. The Director of Lands shall cooperate with the Chief of the General Land Registration Office in furnishing copies of the plans, certificates, reports, and other documents necessary for the reconstitution of destroyed registration or cadastral proceedings. The expense of the reconstitution of such records shall be reimbursable to said Bureau and office out of the public calamity or emergency funds.
SEC. 12. In case there is anything in the registration or cadastral proceedings which cannot be reconstituted by means of the procedure provided for in sections nine and ten hereof and which is of vital importance to the interested parties, the reconstitution procedure established for ordinary civil cases shall be used.
SEC. 13. Pending criminal actions shall be reconstituted by means of copies filed by the fiscal and the counsel for the defendant or the defendant himself, or certified by them under oath as being correct, and whatever cannot be reconstituted in this manner shall be reconstructed by means of the supplementary procedure, provided for the reconstitution of ordinary civil cases.
SEC. 14. The testimony of witnesses, if any has already been taken, shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy thereof or by a new transcript of the stenographic notes; but if it is impossible to obtain an authentic copy of the evidence and if the stenographic notes have been destroyed, the case shall be heard anew as if it had never been tried. Documentary evidence shall be replaced by secondary evidence.
SEC. 15. If the case has already been decided, the decision shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy. If an authentic copy is not obtainable, the case shall be decided anew, as if it had never been decided.
SEC. 16. A duly certified copy of the proper entries of the docket of the justice of the peace court concerned shall be attached to the reconstituted record and shall be sufficient evidence that a preliminary investigation was held.
SEC. 17. In case the records of the office of the provincial fiscal have also been destroyed, said provincial fiscal shall ascertain the criminal actions pending in the Court of First Instance and may for this purpose make use of the data obtainable from the dockets of the justice of the peace courts of the province, the reports of the provincial commander of the Constabulary, the records of the warden of the provincial jail and of the municipal police, and from any other sources that might be of assistance to him in the investigation.
SEC. 18. The provincial fiscal shall investigate the facts in each pending criminal action, and if he should find sufficient merits to sustain the action, he shall without loss of time file the proper information which, after being registered, shall, together with a certified copy of the proper entries in the docket of the justice of the peace court concerned, if any, form the reconstituted record, which shall be used as point of departure in the continuation of the proceedings.
SEC. 19. If the provincial fiscal does not find sufficient merits to sustain the accusation, he shall present to the court a motion for dismissal, specifying all the facts of the case and all steps taken by him in the investigation required in section seventeen hereof. This motion for dis- missal, after being registered, shall, together with a certified copy of the proper entries in the docket of the justice of the peace court concerned, if any, form the reconstituted record, which shall be used as point of departure in the continuation of the proceedings.
SEC. 20. If the provincial fiscal finds that evidence has already been taken in the case, which has not been destroyed or which can be reproduced by a new transcription of the proper stenographic notes, he may, in view of such evidence, enter into an agreement with the defendants, or with their counsel, as to the substantial facts alleged in the information, and may reproduce it in this form. In case he does not come to an agreement with the defendants or their counsel, the Court, in view of the evidence, shall deter- mine in what terms the information shall be reproduced, and shall give the defendants an opportunity to file a demurrer against the information so reproduced or introduce additional evidence.
If the defendants have no counsel and state to the Court that they desire one, the court shall assign to them a counsel who shall represent them in the proceedings for the reproduction of the information.
SEC. 21. Upon the reproduction of the information in the manner set forth in the next preceding section, the defendant shall be informed thereof, and if he enters a plea of not guilty, the proper hearing shall be held, in which shall be admitted all evidence previously introduced and such additional evidence, if any, as may be lawfully offered by the parties.
SEC. 22. If the case has already been decided, the decision shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy, and in case it is impossible to obtain an authentic copy, the case shall be decided anew, as if it had never been decided.
SEC. 23. The provincial fiscal shall give absolute preference to the reconstitution of criminal actions in which the defendants are confined awaiting decision, and shall act with all possible dispatch .
SEC. 24. All informations reproduced by the provincial fiscal shall be entitled "Reproduced Information," and at the end thereof shall appear the date on which they were actually reproduced and a statement to the effect that they were reproduced in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
SEC. 25. The records of civil actions, special proceedings, and registration and cadastral proceedings which at the time of their destruction were ready to be sent to the Supreme Court of the Philippine Islands on appeal, shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy of the bill of exceptions or appeal record, which, together with the reconstituted evidence, shall form the reconstituted record for the purposes of the appeal.
SEC. 26. If it is not possible to obtain an authentic copy of the bill of exceptions or appeal record, or if the evidence cannot be reconstituted, the records referred to in the next preceding section shall be reconstituted by means of the other procedure established in the preceding sections.
SEC. 27. The records of criminal actions which at the time of their destruction were ready to be sent to the Supreme Court of these Islands on appeal, shall be reconstituted in the manner established in sections thirteen to twenty-four. At any event, if there shall be any question as to the appeal record or the time within which the same was filed, the court may authorize the defendant to reproduce it within a reasonable time.
SEC. 28. In case it has been possible to save or preserve the dockets of the clerk's office relative to the civil actions, registration and cadastral proceedings, criminal actions, and special proceedings, destroyed, which were pending at the time of their destruction, the entries in said dockets shall be proof of the judicial proceedings therein made of record and shall prevail over any agreement entered into between the parties or their counsels.
SEC. 29. In case the parties interested in a destroyed record fail to petition for the reconstitution thereof within the six months next following the date on which they were given notice in accordance with section two hereof, they shall be understood to have waived the reconstitution and may file their respective actions anew without being entitled to claim the benefits of section thirty-one hereof.
SEC. 30. When it shall not be possible to reconstitute a destroyed judicial record by means of the procedure established in this Act or for any reason not herein provided for, the interested parties may file their actions anew, upon payment of the proper fees, and such actions shall be registered as new actions and shall be treated as such.
SEC. 31. For all legal effects, the time that has elapsed from the initiation of the destroyed record until the date when its reconstitution was declared impossible, shall not be counted against the interested party or his heirs and other successors in interest.
SEC. 32. All reconstituted civil and criminal actions and [special proceedings, and those initiated anew after the calamity, shall be registered and entered in the respective docket and shall be numbered consecutively in the chronological order of their reconstitution and filing. Reconstituted cases shall be numbered with figures preceded by a dash and a capital letter R.
SEC. 38. In case it has been possible to save or preserve the dockets of the civil and criminal actions and special proceedings, the reconstituted records shall be numbered as they were in said dockets, with the sole addition of a dash and a capital letter R preceding their respective numbers, and without prejudice to their being-registered and entered in the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases" prescribed in section thirty-five hereof.
Sec. 34. Reconstituted registration and cadastral proceedings shall be registered and entered in their respective dockets under the same numbers they had before the calamity occurred, with the sole addition of a dash and a capital letter R, preceding their respective numbers. Records of a like nature presented after the calamity shall, take the numbers of the destroyed and reconstituted records.
SEC. 35. Independently from the ordinary dockets for all criminal and civil actions and special proceedings reconstituted or newly filed, the clerk of the court shall open a special docket for all reconstituted cases which shall be denominated "Docket of Reconstituted Cases."
SEC. 36. On the first pages of the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases," the clerk of the court shall spread a certificate setting forth that notice was duly given as required in sections one and two of this Act, transcribing the same in full, and shall paste thereon a copy of the publication in a newspaper of the notice prescribed in section two, with the statement that such publication was also made in the Official Gazette, and specifying the volume and page number.
SEC. 37. All civil and criminal actions and special proceedings reconstituted in accordance with this Act shall be registered and entered in the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases" and shall be given the same numbers under which they appear in their respective ordinary dockets, and in the entry of each case mention shall be made of the agreements and all other proceedings had for the reconstitution of the record, and, if possible, the register number which it bore before the fire or public calamity shall be stated.
SEC. 38. Reconstituted registration and cadastral proceedings shall not be registered or entered, but briefly noted in the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases."
SEC. 39. In case of the failure of the reconstitution of a record, the clerk of the court shall make a statement to this effect in the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases," setting forth all the proceedings had and the order of the court declaring such reconstitution to have failed.
SEC. 40. The proceedings for the continuation of the re- constituted record shall not be spread upon the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases," but upon the respective ordinary dockets.
SEC. 41. All terms fixed by law or regulation shall cease to run from the date of the destruction of the records and shall only begin to run again on the date when the parties or their counsels shall have received from the clerk of the court notice to the effect that the records have been reconstituted.
SEC. 42. All bonds executed in civil and criminal cases and special proceedings shall be renewed as soon as the respective cases have been duly reconstituted.
SEC. 43. In case of the partial loss or destruction of a judicial record, the destroyed portion may be reconstituted in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
SEC. 44. Judicial records destroyed or lost from causes other than fire or public calamity may also be reconstituted in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
SEC. 45. Nothing contained in this Act shall be construed to repeal or modify the provisions of section three hundred and twenty-one of Act Numbered One hundred and ninety.
SEC. 46. It shall be the duty of the clerk of the court to state in the proper dockets and in the minutes of the sessions of the court the names of the stenographers who have taken notes of the evidence introduced in the cases tried, and to send to the provincial fiscal full copies of the decisions rendered by the court in criminal actions.
SEC. 47. It shall be the duty of the provincial fiscal to keep authentic copies of all informations filed by him and of all decisions sent to him by the clerk of the court.
SEC. 48. Justice of the peace courts, in reconstituting the records of cases pending in said courts and destroyed by fire or any other public calamity, shall follow substantially and wherever possible, the procedure established for the reconstitution of records in the Courts of First Instance.
SEC. 49. Justice of the peace courts shall not be required to issue the notice provided for in section one hereof, but that provided for in section two, which shall be addressed and sent by registered mail to the provincial board, the provincial fiscal, the provincial commander of the Constabulary, the municipal president and councilors, the local health officer, the municipal treasurer, the chief of police, and the barrio lieutenants.
SEC. 50. Copies of this notice shall be posted for ten consecutive days in three public places of the poblacion of the municipality, and in three public places in each and all of the barrios of the municipality.
Such notice shall, moreover, be published by bandillo during the ten days mentioned in the next preceding section in the poblacion of the municipality and in each and all of the barrios thereof.
SEC. 51. The parties to civil actions or their counsels shall be given ten days' time for applying for the reconstitution of the records of the cases in which they may be interested.
SEC. 52. The duties imposed upon the provincial fiscal shall, with regard to the reconstitution of criminal actions pending in the justice of the peace courts, be imposed upon the proper prosecuting officer.
SEC. 53. It shall not be necessary for justice of the peace courts to open a special docket for reconstituted cases.
SEC. 54. As soon as practicable after the occurrence of any fire or other public calamity resulting in the loss of all or part of the records of judicial proceedings on file in the Supreme Court, the clerk of said Court shall send a notice by registered mail to the Governor-General, the Judges of the Supreme Court, the Secretary of Justice, the Attorney-General, all Courts of First Instance, the Director of Lands, the Chief of the General Land Registration Office, the Fiscal of the City of Manila, the provincial fiscals, and all lawyers who may be interested, stating the date on which such fire or public calamity occurred and whether the loss or destruction was total or partial, and giving a brief list of the proceedings not affected in case the loss or destruction was partial.
SEC. 55. Upon receipt of the notice mentioned in the preceding section, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court shall issue or cause to be issued a general notice which shall be addressed and sent by registered mail to the lawyers and officers mentioned in the preceding section, advising them of the destruction of the records of the Supreme Court, with a brief list of the proceedings not affected in case the destruction was partial, and of the time fixed by this Act for the reconstitution of the destroyed records. This notice shall also be published in the Official Gazette and in one of the newspapers most widely read in these Islands, once a week during eight consecutive weeks.
SEC. 56. Application for the reconstitution of the records of cases of the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court shall be made within six months from the month in which the interested parties were notified in accordance with the next preceding section, and such reconstitution shall be accomplished by the same procedure as established for the reconstitution of cases pending in the Courts of First Instance.
SEC. 57. Parties interested in any civil action, registration or cadastral proceeding, or special proceeding appealed to the Supreme Court may apply for the reconstitution thereof by filing, within six months' time, a petition accompanied by a printed copy of the bill of exceptions or appeal record.
SEC. 58. Upon receipt of the petition mentioned in the next preceding section, the clerk of the Supreme Court shall notify all interested parties and their respective counsels of the day, hour, and place at which the Supreme Court or its commissioner will proceed to the reconstitution, and on said day and hour and at said place, the parties or their counsels shall present to the Supreme Court or its commissioner all papers they may have in their possession relative to the cases to be reconstituted.
SEC. 59. The case may be reconstituted by means of an authentic printed copy of the bill of exceptions or appeal record, a copy of the briefs if any have already been presented, an authentic copy of the transcript of the stenographic notes of the testimony taken, an authentic copy of the judgment if any has already been rendered by the Supreme Court, and copies of the resolution, writs, and other documents of vital importance.
Destroyed documentary evidence shall be reconstituted by means of secondary evidence which may be presented to any judge of the Supreme Court or any other officer commissioned by said Court, who may be the judge of the Court of First Instance from which the case came.
SEC. 60. If no copy of any resolution, writs or other document of vital importance can be filed or found, the parties shall substitute an agreement in lieu thereof, and in default of such agreement, the Supreme Court shall determine what may be proper in the interest of equity and justice and may even consider the proceeding or document in question as nonexistent and reconstitute only that part of the case which can stand without such proceeding or document, and continue the proceeding on the basis of the record so re- constituted.
SEC. 61. If an authentic copy of the decision rendered by the Supreme Court is not obtainable, the case shall be decided anew.
SEC. 62. If it is not possible to obtain authentic copies of the briefs already filed and the case was pending decision at the time of the calamity, or if it is necessary to decide it anew, the Supreme Court shall order new briefs to be submitted and may grant reasonable time therefor.
SEC. 63. If an authentic printed copy of the bill of exceptions or appeal record is not obtainable or if the bill of exceptions or appeal record presented were about to be printed at the time of the destruction, the Supreme Court shall direct the Court of First Instance concerned to order the preparation of a new bill of exceptions or appeal record and may grant reasonable time therefor.
SEC. 64. If an authentic copy of the transcript of the stenographic notes of the testimony taken cannot be filed, the Supreme Court shall direct the proper stenographer to make another transcription. And if the stenographic notes taken by the stenographer have also been destroyed, the Supreme Court shall direct the proper Court of First Instance to proceed to hear the case anew, which shall then be considered as ready for a hearing in said Court of First Instance.
SEC. 65. If the decision rendered by the Supreme Court is not appealable or has already become final, an authentic copy of such decision shall be proof of its contents and shall form the reconstituted record, without prejudice to attaching thereto such copies as may be obtainable of the bill of exceptions or appeal record and the briefs filed.
SEC. 66. Upon receipt of the notice provided for in sections fifty-four and fifty-five hereof, the Courts of First Instance shall cause a complete list to be made of all criminal actions appealed to the Supreme Court, which list shall contain the names of the stenographers who have reported each case. Copies of this list shall be sent to the provincial fiscal, the Attorney-General, and the clerk of the Supreme Court.
SEC. 67. Upon the preparation of the list provided for in the next preceding section, the Courts of First Instance shall proceed to reconstitute all criminal actions included in said list, in accordance with the rules and procedure established in sections thirteen to forty-five hereof, and every time they declare any record reconstituted or its reconstitution a failure, they shall report the same to the Supreme Court.
SEC. 68. As soon as the reconstituted record is ready to be submitted to the Supreme Court on appeal, the proper clerk of court shall send it, in accordance with the existing legal procedure, to the clerk of the Supreme Court, for ¦further appeal proceedings.
SEC. 69. In case the Court of First Instance is successful in restoring the record to the condition in which it was when forwarded under appeal, such record, together with an authentic copy of the briefs, if any have been filed, and with an authentic copy of the decision, if any has been rendered by the Supreme Court, shall form the reconstituted record in the Supreme Court.
SEC. 70. If an authentic copy of the decision rendered by the Supreme Court is not obtainable, the case shall be decided anew.
SEC. 71. If authentic copies of the briefs filed are not obtainable and the case was pending decision at the time of the calamity, or if it is necessary to decide it anew, the Supreme Court shall direct new briefs to be filed and may allow a reasonable time for this purpose.
SEC. 72. If a criminal action has already been decided by the Supreme Court and the decision has become final or is not appealable, an authentic copy thereof shall be proof of its contents and shall form the reconstituted record, without prejudice to copies of the information, the decision of the court below, and the briefs filed being attached to it.
COMMON PROVISIONS
SEC. 73. Civil and criminal actions, registration and cadastral proceedings, and special proceedings pending appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States shall be reconstituted in accordance with the rules and procedure provided for in the preceding sections, and the appeal shall take its course as soon as the reconstituted record is ready for it.
SEC. 74. In case there is any question as to the appeal record or the time within which the same was filed, the Supreme Court may authorize its reproduction within such time as it may deem reasonable.
SEC. 75. When, as result of a fire or other public calamity, the documents, books, and files of the office of the register of deeds are destroyed, the register of deeds shall report such facts immediately to the Chief of the General Land Registration Office and shall, if possible, forward to the same a list of the register books, decrees, and certificates of title destroyed.'
SEC. 76. The Chief of the General Land Registration Office shall send or cause to be sent to the register of deeds copies of the destroyed registration decrees and certificates of title.
SEC. 77. Upon receipt of the copies mentioned in the next preceding section, the register of deeds shall cause to be published in the Official Gazette and in one of the papers most widely read in the Philippine Islands, and in the province, if any, for a period of six months, a notice to all owners of property registered under the Torrens system, requiring them to present in the office of the register of deeds copies of the original certificates of title or certificates of transfer in their possession, in order that the annotation made upon the same may be spread upon the copies received from the General Land Registration Office, and upon such new certificates of transfer as may be issued.
SEC. 78. The register of deeds shall not make any new annotation upon the back of any reconstituted certificate of title or certificate of transfer, until the previous annotations have been transcribed thereon.
SEC. 79. The register of deeds shall cause to be published, in the manner mentioned in section seventy-seven, a notice to holders of chattel mortgages to present such copies of documents relative to the same as they may have, in the office of the register of deeds.
SEC. 80. Upon the presentation of the copies mentioned in the next preceding section, the register of deeds shall enter them anew in the book of records of chattel mortgages, under Act Numbered Fifteen hundred and eight, under the date appearing on said copies.
SEC. 81. The register of deeds shall use a book of records of chattel mortgages separate from the one he shall open for the registration of new mortgages, filed after the fire or public calamity, and shall register the new mortgages in chronological order, beginning with number one, unless it has been possible to save the book of records of chattel mortgages, in which case the existing enumeration shall be followed in future entries.
SEC. 82. The register of deeds shall adopt the same rules and procedure for the reconstitutions of entries made under Act Numbered Twenty-eight hundred and thirty-seven and Act Numbered Twelve hundred and twenty-eight, and amendments thereof.
SEC. 83. With regard to entries made under the Spanish Mortgage Law, the register of deeds shall cause to be published, in the manner mentioned in section seventy-seven hereof, a notice to all persons having in their possession any instrument registered under said law, requiring them to present the same at the office of the register of deeds, for re-registration.
SEC. 84. Entries made in accordance with the Spanish Mortgage Law shall be given the same numbers as appear at the foot of the instrument.
SEC. 85. The register of deeds shall open a record book for reconstituted registrations.
SEC. 86. It shall not be necessary for the register of deeds, upon extending the reconstituted entries to make any entry' in the entry book; but in the column for remarks or at the foot of each reconstituted entry he shall put a note setting forth that such entry has been reconstituted in accordance wih this Act.
SEC. 87. The register of deeds shall not charge any fees whatsoever for the reconstitution of entries.
SEC. 88. Reconstituted entries shall have the same validity and legal effects as the original entries.
SEC. 89. For the purposes of the reconstitution of the documents of the office of the register of deeds, the latter shall, whenever possible, require the interested parties to present the original documents, and shall make a copy thereof, which shall be certified correct and authentic and made in accordance with this Act.
SEC. 90. Copies so made and certified shall be filed in the proper envelopes or bundles and shall have the same validity and legal effects as their originals.
SEC. 91. The Supreme Court, the Secretary of Justice, the Attorney-General, and the Chief of the General Land Registration Office shall issue regulations, circulars, and instructions, and prescribe the books and blanks necessary to carry into effect the provisions of this Act, and shall promulgate the rules and take the measures necessary to avoid future destructions of the judicial records and the books or documents of the office of the register of deeds.
SEC. 92. This Act shall take effect on its approval.
Approved, March 19, 1923.
SECTION 1. As soon as practicable after the occurrence of any fire or other public calamity resulting in the loss of all or part of the records of judicial proceedings on file in the office of the clerk of a Court of First Instance, said officer shall send a notice by registered mail to the Secretary of Justice, the Attorney-General, the Director of Lands, the Chief of the General Land Registration Office, the clerk of the Supreme Court, the judge of the province, the register of deeds of the province, the provincial fiscal, and all lawyers who may be interested, stating the date on which such fire or public calamity occurred and whether the loss or destruction was total or partial, and giving a brief list of the proceedings not affected in case the loss or destruction was partial.
SEC 2. Upon receipt of the notice mentioned in the preceding section, the court shall issue or cause to be issued a general notice which shall be addressed and sent by registered mail to the lawyers and officers mentioned in the preceding section, and to such other persons as might be interested, advising them of the destruction of the records, with a brief list of the proceedings not affected in case the destruction was partial, and of the time fixed by this Act for the reconstitution of the destroyed records.
This notice shall also be published in the Official Gazette and in one of the newspapers most widely read in the province, once a week, for four consecutive weeks.
PENDING CIVIL CASES
SEC. 3. The parties to civil cases, or their counsels, shall ' appear and file, within thirty days after having been notified in accordance with the next preceding section, an application for the reconstitution of the records in which they are interested, and the clerk of the court, upon receiving such application, shall send notice to all parties interested, or their counsels, of the day, hour, and place when the Court will proceed to the reconstitution, requesting them to present, on said day and hour, and at said place, all copies of motions, decrees, orders, and other documents in their possession, having reference to the record or records to be reconstituted.
SEC. 4. Civil cases pending trial shall be reconstituted' by means of the copies presented and certified under oath as correct by the counsels or the parties interested. In case it is impossible to find a copy of a motion, decree, order, document, or other proceeding of vital importance for the reconstitution of the record, the same may be replaced by an agreement on the facts entered into between the counsels or the parties interested, which shall be reduced to writing and attached to the proper record.
SEC. 5. In case the counsels or parties are unable to come to an agreement, the Court shall determine what may be proper in the interest of equity and justice, and may also consider the proceeding in question as non-existent and reconstitute only that part of the record which can stand without such proceeding, and continue proceedings upon the record so reconstituted.
SEC. 6. Testimony of witnesses taken in civil cases shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy thereof or a new transcript of the stenographic notes. If no authentic copy can be obtained and the stenographic notes have also been destroyed, the cases shall be tried de novo as if called for trial for the first time.
SEC. 7. If a civil case has already been decided, the decision shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy. In case an authentic copy cannot be found, the Court shall make a new decision, as if the case had never been decided.
PENDING SPECIAL PROCEEDINGS
SEC. 8. Special proceedings shall be reconstituted in the same manner as ordinary civil cases, with the sole addition that a copy of the statement to be made by the parties or their counsels, setting forth the status of the proceedings at the time when the fire or other public calamity occurred, shall be attached to the reconstituted record.
PENDING REGISTRATION. PROCEEDINGS
SEC. 9. Registration proceedings pending the issuance of a decree shall be reconstituted by means of copies furnished by the Chief of the General Land Registration Office. It shall be the duty of this officer, immediately upon receipt of the notice provided for in section one of this Act, to direct duly certified true copies of all destroyed registration proceedings pending at the time of the destruction, and of all decrees destroyed, to be sent to the clerk of the Court of First Instance concerned.
PENDING CADASTRAL CASES
SEC. 10. Pending cadastral cases shall be reconstituted as follows:
The Court shall issue an order directing the person interested to file anew their replies, for which purpose reasonable time may be allowed. The order shall be published in the Official Gazette and by local notices during a period fixed in said order.
Immediately upon receipt of the notice provided for in section one of this Act, the Chief of the General Land Registration Office shall cause duly certified true copies of all destroyed cadastral proceedings to be sent to the clerk of the Court concerned.
The new replies filed by the parties interested and the copies furnished by the General Land Registration Office shall form the reconstituted record.
PROVISIONS COMMON TO THE RECONSTITUTION OF PENDING REGISTRATION AND CADASTRAL PROCEEDINGS
SEC. 11. The Director of Lands shall cooperate with the Chief of the General Land Registration Office in furnishing copies of the plans, certificates, reports, and other documents necessary for the reconstitution of destroyed registration or cadastral proceedings. The expense of the reconstitution of such records shall be reimbursable to said Bureau and office out of the public calamity or emergency funds.
SEC. 12. In case there is anything in the registration or cadastral proceedings which cannot be reconstituted by means of the procedure provided for in sections nine and ten hereof and which is of vital importance to the interested parties, the reconstitution procedure established for ordinary civil cases shall be used.
PENDING CRIMINAL ACTIONS
SEC. 13. Pending criminal actions shall be reconstituted by means of copies filed by the fiscal and the counsel for the defendant or the defendant himself, or certified by them under oath as being correct, and whatever cannot be reconstituted in this manner shall be reconstructed by means of the supplementary procedure, provided for the reconstitution of ordinary civil cases.
SEC. 14. The testimony of witnesses, if any has already been taken, shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy thereof or by a new transcript of the stenographic notes; but if it is impossible to obtain an authentic copy of the evidence and if the stenographic notes have been destroyed, the case shall be heard anew as if it had never been tried. Documentary evidence shall be replaced by secondary evidence.
SEC. 15. If the case has already been decided, the decision shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy. If an authentic copy is not obtainable, the case shall be decided anew, as if it had never been decided.
SEC. 16. A duly certified copy of the proper entries of the docket of the justice of the peace court concerned shall be attached to the reconstituted record and shall be sufficient evidence that a preliminary investigation was held.
SEC. 17. In case the records of the office of the provincial fiscal have also been destroyed, said provincial fiscal shall ascertain the criminal actions pending in the Court of First Instance and may for this purpose make use of the data obtainable from the dockets of the justice of the peace courts of the province, the reports of the provincial commander of the Constabulary, the records of the warden of the provincial jail and of the municipal police, and from any other sources that might be of assistance to him in the investigation.
SEC. 18. The provincial fiscal shall investigate the facts in each pending criminal action, and if he should find sufficient merits to sustain the action, he shall without loss of time file the proper information which, after being registered, shall, together with a certified copy of the proper entries in the docket of the justice of the peace court concerned, if any, form the reconstituted record, which shall be used as point of departure in the continuation of the proceedings.
SEC. 19. If the provincial fiscal does not find sufficient merits to sustain the accusation, he shall present to the court a motion for dismissal, specifying all the facts of the case and all steps taken by him in the investigation required in section seventeen hereof. This motion for dis- missal, after being registered, shall, together with a certified copy of the proper entries in the docket of the justice of the peace court concerned, if any, form the reconstituted record, which shall be used as point of departure in the continuation of the proceedings.
SEC. 20. If the provincial fiscal finds that evidence has already been taken in the case, which has not been destroyed or which can be reproduced by a new transcription of the proper stenographic notes, he may, in view of such evidence, enter into an agreement with the defendants, or with their counsel, as to the substantial facts alleged in the information, and may reproduce it in this form. In case he does not come to an agreement with the defendants or their counsel, the Court, in view of the evidence, shall deter- mine in what terms the information shall be reproduced, and shall give the defendants an opportunity to file a demurrer against the information so reproduced or introduce additional evidence.
If the defendants have no counsel and state to the Court that they desire one, the court shall assign to them a counsel who shall represent them in the proceedings for the reproduction of the information.
SEC. 21. Upon the reproduction of the information in the manner set forth in the next preceding section, the defendant shall be informed thereof, and if he enters a plea of not guilty, the proper hearing shall be held, in which shall be admitted all evidence previously introduced and such additional evidence, if any, as may be lawfully offered by the parties.
SEC. 22. If the case has already been decided, the decision shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy, and in case it is impossible to obtain an authentic copy, the case shall be decided anew, as if it had never been decided.
SEC. 23. The provincial fiscal shall give absolute preference to the reconstitution of criminal actions in which the defendants are confined awaiting decision, and shall act with all possible dispatch .
SEC. 24. All informations reproduced by the provincial fiscal shall be entitled "Reproduced Information," and at the end thereof shall appear the date on which they were actually reproduced and a statement to the effect that they were reproduced in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
COMMON PROVISIONS
SEC. 25. The records of civil actions, special proceedings, and registration and cadastral proceedings which at the time of their destruction were ready to be sent to the Supreme Court of the Philippine Islands on appeal, shall be reconstituted by means of an authentic copy of the bill of exceptions or appeal record, which, together with the reconstituted evidence, shall form the reconstituted record for the purposes of the appeal.
SEC. 26. If it is not possible to obtain an authentic copy of the bill of exceptions or appeal record, or if the evidence cannot be reconstituted, the records referred to in the next preceding section shall be reconstituted by means of the other procedure established in the preceding sections.
SEC. 27. The records of criminal actions which at the time of their destruction were ready to be sent to the Supreme Court of these Islands on appeal, shall be reconstituted in the manner established in sections thirteen to twenty-four. At any event, if there shall be any question as to the appeal record or the time within which the same was filed, the court may authorize the defendant to reproduce it within a reasonable time.
SEC. 28. In case it has been possible to save or preserve the dockets of the clerk's office relative to the civil actions, registration and cadastral proceedings, criminal actions, and special proceedings, destroyed, which were pending at the time of their destruction, the entries in said dockets shall be proof of the judicial proceedings therein made of record and shall prevail over any agreement entered into between the parties or their counsels.
SEC. 29. In case the parties interested in a destroyed record fail to petition for the reconstitution thereof within the six months next following the date on which they were given notice in accordance with section two hereof, they shall be understood to have waived the reconstitution and may file their respective actions anew without being entitled to claim the benefits of section thirty-one hereof.
SEC. 30. When it shall not be possible to reconstitute a destroyed judicial record by means of the procedure established in this Act or for any reason not herein provided for, the interested parties may file their actions anew, upon payment of the proper fees, and such actions shall be registered as new actions and shall be treated as such.
SEC. 31. For all legal effects, the time that has elapsed from the initiation of the destroyed record until the date when its reconstitution was declared impossible, shall not be counted against the interested party or his heirs and other successors in interest.
SEC. 32. All reconstituted civil and criminal actions and [special proceedings, and those initiated anew after the calamity, shall be registered and entered in the respective docket and shall be numbered consecutively in the chronological order of their reconstitution and filing. Reconstituted cases shall be numbered with figures preceded by a dash and a capital letter R.
SEC. 38. In case it has been possible to save or preserve the dockets of the civil and criminal actions and special proceedings, the reconstituted records shall be numbered as they were in said dockets, with the sole addition of a dash and a capital letter R preceding their respective numbers, and without prejudice to their being-registered and entered in the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases" prescribed in section thirty-five hereof.
Sec. 34. Reconstituted registration and cadastral proceedings shall be registered and entered in their respective dockets under the same numbers they had before the calamity occurred, with the sole addition of a dash and a capital letter R, preceding their respective numbers. Records of a like nature presented after the calamity shall, take the numbers of the destroyed and reconstituted records.
SEC. 35. Independently from the ordinary dockets for all criminal and civil actions and special proceedings reconstituted or newly filed, the clerk of the court shall open a special docket for all reconstituted cases which shall be denominated "Docket of Reconstituted Cases."
SEC. 36. On the first pages of the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases," the clerk of the court shall spread a certificate setting forth that notice was duly given as required in sections one and two of this Act, transcribing the same in full, and shall paste thereon a copy of the publication in a newspaper of the notice prescribed in section two, with the statement that such publication was also made in the Official Gazette, and specifying the volume and page number.
SEC. 37. All civil and criminal actions and special proceedings reconstituted in accordance with this Act shall be registered and entered in the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases" and shall be given the same numbers under which they appear in their respective ordinary dockets, and in the entry of each case mention shall be made of the agreements and all other proceedings had for the reconstitution of the record, and, if possible, the register number which it bore before the fire or public calamity shall be stated.
SEC. 38. Reconstituted registration and cadastral proceedings shall not be registered or entered, but briefly noted in the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases."
SEC. 39. In case of the failure of the reconstitution of a record, the clerk of the court shall make a statement to this effect in the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases," setting forth all the proceedings had and the order of the court declaring such reconstitution to have failed.
SEC. 40. The proceedings for the continuation of the re- constituted record shall not be spread upon the "Docket of Reconstituted Cases," but upon the respective ordinary dockets.
SEC. 41. All terms fixed by law or regulation shall cease to run from the date of the destruction of the records and shall only begin to run again on the date when the parties or their counsels shall have received from the clerk of the court notice to the effect that the records have been reconstituted.
SEC. 42. All bonds executed in civil and criminal cases and special proceedings shall be renewed as soon as the respective cases have been duly reconstituted.
SEC. 43. In case of the partial loss or destruction of a judicial record, the destroyed portion may be reconstituted in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
SEC. 44. Judicial records destroyed or lost from causes other than fire or public calamity may also be reconstituted in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
SEC. 45. Nothing contained in this Act shall be construed to repeal or modify the provisions of section three hundred and twenty-one of Act Numbered One hundred and ninety.
SEC. 46. It shall be the duty of the clerk of the court to state in the proper dockets and in the minutes of the sessions of the court the names of the stenographers who have taken notes of the evidence introduced in the cases tried, and to send to the provincial fiscal full copies of the decisions rendered by the court in criminal actions.
SEC. 47. It shall be the duty of the provincial fiscal to keep authentic copies of all informations filed by him and of all decisions sent to him by the clerk of the court.
'PROCEDURE FOR RECONSTITUTION OP JUSTICE OF THE PEACE COURT RECORDS
SEC. 48. Justice of the peace courts, in reconstituting the records of cases pending in said courts and destroyed by fire or any other public calamity, shall follow substantially and wherever possible, the procedure established for the reconstitution of records in the Courts of First Instance.
SEC. 49. Justice of the peace courts shall not be required to issue the notice provided for in section one hereof, but that provided for in section two, which shall be addressed and sent by registered mail to the provincial board, the provincial fiscal, the provincial commander of the Constabulary, the municipal president and councilors, the local health officer, the municipal treasurer, the chief of police, and the barrio lieutenants.
SEC. 50. Copies of this notice shall be posted for ten consecutive days in three public places of the poblacion of the municipality, and in three public places in each and all of the barrios of the municipality.
Such notice shall, moreover, be published by bandillo during the ten days mentioned in the next preceding section in the poblacion of the municipality and in each and all of the barrios thereof.
SEC. 51. The parties to civil actions or their counsels shall be given ten days' time for applying for the reconstitution of the records of the cases in which they may be interested.
SEC. 52. The duties imposed upon the provincial fiscal shall, with regard to the reconstitution of criminal actions pending in the justice of the peace courts, be imposed upon the proper prosecuting officer.
SEC. 53. It shall not be necessary for justice of the peace courts to open a special docket for reconstituted cases.
PROCEDURE FOR RECONSTITUTION IN THE SUPREME COURT
SEC. 54. As soon as practicable after the occurrence of any fire or other public calamity resulting in the loss of all or part of the records of judicial proceedings on file in the Supreme Court, the clerk of said Court shall send a notice by registered mail to the Governor-General, the Judges of the Supreme Court, the Secretary of Justice, the Attorney-General, all Courts of First Instance, the Director of Lands, the Chief of the General Land Registration Office, the Fiscal of the City of Manila, the provincial fiscals, and all lawyers who may be interested, stating the date on which such fire or public calamity occurred and whether the loss or destruction was total or partial, and giving a brief list of the proceedings not affected in case the loss or destruction was partial.
SEC. 55. Upon receipt of the notice mentioned in the preceding section, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court shall issue or cause to be issued a general notice which shall be addressed and sent by registered mail to the lawyers and officers mentioned in the preceding section, advising them of the destruction of the records of the Supreme Court, with a brief list of the proceedings not affected in case the destruction was partial, and of the time fixed by this Act for the reconstitution of the destroyed records. This notice shall also be published in the Official Gazette and in one of the newspapers most widely read in these Islands, once a week during eight consecutive weeks.
ORIGINAL CASES
SEC. 56. Application for the reconstitution of the records of cases of the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court shall be made within six months from the month in which the interested parties were notified in accordance with the next preceding section, and such reconstitution shall be accomplished by the same procedure as established for the reconstitution of cases pending in the Courts of First Instance.
CIVIL ACTIONS, REGISTRATION AND CADASTRAL PROCEEDINGS, AND SPECIAL PROCEEDINGS UNDER APPEAL
SEC. 57. Parties interested in any civil action, registration or cadastral proceeding, or special proceeding appealed to the Supreme Court may apply for the reconstitution thereof by filing, within six months' time, a petition accompanied by a printed copy of the bill of exceptions or appeal record.
SEC. 58. Upon receipt of the petition mentioned in the next preceding section, the clerk of the Supreme Court shall notify all interested parties and their respective counsels of the day, hour, and place at which the Supreme Court or its commissioner will proceed to the reconstitution, and on said day and hour and at said place, the parties or their counsels shall present to the Supreme Court or its commissioner all papers they may have in their possession relative to the cases to be reconstituted.
SEC. 59. The case may be reconstituted by means of an authentic printed copy of the bill of exceptions or appeal record, a copy of the briefs if any have already been presented, an authentic copy of the transcript of the stenographic notes of the testimony taken, an authentic copy of the judgment if any has already been rendered by the Supreme Court, and copies of the resolution, writs, and other documents of vital importance.
Destroyed documentary evidence shall be reconstituted by means of secondary evidence which may be presented to any judge of the Supreme Court or any other officer commissioned by said Court, who may be the judge of the Court of First Instance from which the case came.
SEC. 60. If no copy of any resolution, writs or other document of vital importance can be filed or found, the parties shall substitute an agreement in lieu thereof, and in default of such agreement, the Supreme Court shall determine what may be proper in the interest of equity and justice and may even consider the proceeding or document in question as nonexistent and reconstitute only that part of the case which can stand without such proceeding or document, and continue the proceeding on the basis of the record so re- constituted.
SEC. 61. If an authentic copy of the decision rendered by the Supreme Court is not obtainable, the case shall be decided anew.
SEC. 62. If it is not possible to obtain authentic copies of the briefs already filed and the case was pending decision at the time of the calamity, or if it is necessary to decide it anew, the Supreme Court shall order new briefs to be submitted and may grant reasonable time therefor.
SEC. 63. If an authentic printed copy of the bill of exceptions or appeal record is not obtainable or if the bill of exceptions or appeal record presented were about to be printed at the time of the destruction, the Supreme Court shall direct the Court of First Instance concerned to order the preparation of a new bill of exceptions or appeal record and may grant reasonable time therefor.
SEC. 64. If an authentic copy of the transcript of the stenographic notes of the testimony taken cannot be filed, the Supreme Court shall direct the proper stenographer to make another transcription. And if the stenographic notes taken by the stenographer have also been destroyed, the Supreme Court shall direct the proper Court of First Instance to proceed to hear the case anew, which shall then be considered as ready for a hearing in said Court of First Instance.
SEC. 65. If the decision rendered by the Supreme Court is not appealable or has already become final, an authentic copy of such decision shall be proof of its contents and shall form the reconstituted record, without prejudice to attaching thereto such copies as may be obtainable of the bill of exceptions or appeal record and the briefs filed.
CRIMINAL ACTIONS UNDER APPEAL
SEC. 66. Upon receipt of the notice provided for in sections fifty-four and fifty-five hereof, the Courts of First Instance shall cause a complete list to be made of all criminal actions appealed to the Supreme Court, which list shall contain the names of the stenographers who have reported each case. Copies of this list shall be sent to the provincial fiscal, the Attorney-General, and the clerk of the Supreme Court.
SEC. 67. Upon the preparation of the list provided for in the next preceding section, the Courts of First Instance shall proceed to reconstitute all criminal actions included in said list, in accordance with the rules and procedure established in sections thirteen to forty-five hereof, and every time they declare any record reconstituted or its reconstitution a failure, they shall report the same to the Supreme Court.
SEC. 68. As soon as the reconstituted record is ready to be submitted to the Supreme Court on appeal, the proper clerk of court shall send it, in accordance with the existing legal procedure, to the clerk of the Supreme Court, for ¦further appeal proceedings.
SEC. 69. In case the Court of First Instance is successful in restoring the record to the condition in which it was when forwarded under appeal, such record, together with an authentic copy of the briefs, if any have been filed, and with an authentic copy of the decision, if any has been rendered by the Supreme Court, shall form the reconstituted record in the Supreme Court.
SEC. 70. If an authentic copy of the decision rendered by the Supreme Court is not obtainable, the case shall be decided anew.
SEC. 71. If authentic copies of the briefs filed are not obtainable and the case was pending decision at the time of the calamity, or if it is necessary to decide it anew, the Supreme Court shall direct new briefs to be filed and may allow a reasonable time for this purpose.
SEC. 72. If a criminal action has already been decided by the Supreme Court and the decision has become final or is not appealable, an authentic copy thereof shall be proof of its contents and shall form the reconstituted record, without prejudice to copies of the information, the decision of the court below, and the briefs filed being attached to it.
COMMON PROVISIONS
SEC. 73. Civil and criminal actions, registration and cadastral proceedings, and special proceedings pending appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States shall be reconstituted in accordance with the rules and procedure provided for in the preceding sections, and the appeal shall take its course as soon as the reconstituted record is ready for it.
SEC. 74. In case there is any question as to the appeal record or the time within which the same was filed, the Supreme Court may authorize its reproduction within such time as it may deem reasonable.
RECONSTITUTION OF THE DOCUMENTS AND BOOKS OF THE OFFICE OF THE REGISTER OF DEEDS
SEC. 75. When, as result of a fire or other public calamity, the documents, books, and files of the office of the register of deeds are destroyed, the register of deeds shall report such facts immediately to the Chief of the General Land Registration Office and shall, if possible, forward to the same a list of the register books, decrees, and certificates of title destroyed.'
SEC. 76. The Chief of the General Land Registration Office shall send or cause to be sent to the register of deeds copies of the destroyed registration decrees and certificates of title.
SEC. 77. Upon receipt of the copies mentioned in the next preceding section, the register of deeds shall cause to be published in the Official Gazette and in one of the papers most widely read in the Philippine Islands, and in the province, if any, for a period of six months, a notice to all owners of property registered under the Torrens system, requiring them to present in the office of the register of deeds copies of the original certificates of title or certificates of transfer in their possession, in order that the annotation made upon the same may be spread upon the copies received from the General Land Registration Office, and upon such new certificates of transfer as may be issued.
SEC. 78. The register of deeds shall not make any new annotation upon the back of any reconstituted certificate of title or certificate of transfer, until the previous annotations have been transcribed thereon.
SEC. 79. The register of deeds shall cause to be published, in the manner mentioned in section seventy-seven, a notice to holders of chattel mortgages to present such copies of documents relative to the same as they may have, in the office of the register of deeds.
SEC. 80. Upon the presentation of the copies mentioned in the next preceding section, the register of deeds shall enter them anew in the book of records of chattel mortgages, under Act Numbered Fifteen hundred and eight, under the date appearing on said copies.
SEC. 81. The register of deeds shall use a book of records of chattel mortgages separate from the one he shall open for the registration of new mortgages, filed after the fire or public calamity, and shall register the new mortgages in chronological order, beginning with number one, unless it has been possible to save the book of records of chattel mortgages, in which case the existing enumeration shall be followed in future entries.
SEC. 82. The register of deeds shall adopt the same rules and procedure for the reconstitutions of entries made under Act Numbered Twenty-eight hundred and thirty-seven and Act Numbered Twelve hundred and twenty-eight, and amendments thereof.
SEC. 83. With regard to entries made under the Spanish Mortgage Law, the register of deeds shall cause to be published, in the manner mentioned in section seventy-seven hereof, a notice to all persons having in their possession any instrument registered under said law, requiring them to present the same at the office of the register of deeds, for re-registration.
SEC. 84. Entries made in accordance with the Spanish Mortgage Law shall be given the same numbers as appear at the foot of the instrument.
SEC. 85. The register of deeds shall open a record book for reconstituted registrations.
SEC. 86. It shall not be necessary for the register of deeds, upon extending the reconstituted entries to make any entry' in the entry book; but in the column for remarks or at the foot of each reconstituted entry he shall put a note setting forth that such entry has been reconstituted in accordance wih this Act.
SEC. 87. The register of deeds shall not charge any fees whatsoever for the reconstitution of entries.
SEC. 88. Reconstituted entries shall have the same validity and legal effects as the original entries.
SEC. 89. For the purposes of the reconstitution of the documents of the office of the register of deeds, the latter shall, whenever possible, require the interested parties to present the original documents, and shall make a copy thereof, which shall be certified correct and authentic and made in accordance with this Act.
SEC. 90. Copies so made and certified shall be filed in the proper envelopes or bundles and shall have the same validity and legal effects as their originals.
FINAL PROVISION
SEC. 91. The Supreme Court, the Secretary of Justice, the Attorney-General, and the Chief of the General Land Registration Office shall issue regulations, circulars, and instructions, and prescribe the books and blanks necessary to carry into effect the provisions of this Act, and shall promulgate the rules and take the measures necessary to avoid future destructions of the judicial records and the books or documents of the office of the register of deeds.
DATE OF TAKING EFFECT'
SEC. 92. This Act shall take effect on its approval.
Approved, March 19, 1923.