Filipinas Port Services v. Go

I. SHORT TITLE: FILIPINAS PORT SERVICES V.
GO
II. TOPIC: Board of Directors/Trustees. Officers
III. FULL TITLE: Filipinas Port Services, Inc., represented by stockholders, Eliodoro Cruz and
Mindanao Terminal and Brokerage Services, Inc. v. Victoriano S. Go, Arsenio Lopez Chua Edgar
Trinidad, Hermengildo M. Trinidad, Jesus Sybico, Mary Jean Co, Henry Chua, Joselito Jayme,
Ernesto Jayme, and Eliezer De Jesus - G.R. No. 161886, March 16. 2007, J. Garcia
IV. STATEMENT OF THE FACTS

Eliodoro C. Cruz (Cruz) was president of Filipinas Port Services, Inc. (Filport) since 1968. He lost
his bid for re-election in 1991. A year thereafter, Cruz wrote a letter to the corporation’s Board of
Directors questioning the creation of six (6) positions and the election of certain members of the
board thereto.
V. STATEMENT OF THE CASE

It would seem that Cruz was unhappy with the Board’s action or actions on the matter, for a year
later he filed a petition with the (SEC), joined by (MinTerBro) as co-petitioner, what he calls a
“derivative suit‟ supposedly in representation of Filport and its stockholders.
It is Cruz’s contention that the creation of an executive committee is not provided for in the by-
laws and the increase in the emoluments of several members of the board is greatly
disproportionate to the volume and character of work of said directors. Further, he questions the
re-creation of the positions of Assistant Vice President for corporate planning, operations, finance
and administration and additional positions where those holding said offices are not doing any
work but earning compensation. These acts of mismanagement according to Cruz are detrimental
to the corporation and its stockholders and so the board must account for the amounts incurred in
creating these positions and made to pay damages.
The derivative suit hibernated with the SEC for a long period of time. With the enactment of R.A.
No. 8799, the case was first turned over to the RTC of Manila, sitting as a corporate court. Upon
motion of the parties, it was transferred to RTC Davao. Though the RTC found that Filport’s
Board of Directors had the power to create positions not provided for in the by-laws and the
increases in salaries are reasonable, nevertheless it ordered the directors holding the positions of
Assistant Vice President for Corporate Planning, Special Assistant to the President and Special
Assistant to the Board Chairman to refund to the corporation the salaries they have received as
such officers “considering that Filipinas Port Services is not a big corporation requiring multiple
executive positions” and that said positions “were just created for accommodation.”
Upon appeal to the Court of Appeals (CA), the RTC decision was reversed and set aside and thus
the so called derivative suit was dismissed.
VI. ISSUE
Whether the creation of an executive committee and other offices in the corporation with
corresponding remunerations are within the powers of the Board of Directors.
VII. RULING
The governing body of a corporation is its board of directors. Section 23 of the Corporation Code
explicitly provides that unless otherwise provided therein, the corporate powers of all corporations
formed under the Code shall be exercised, all business conducted and all property of the
corporation shall be controlled and held by a board of directors. Thus, with the exception only of
some powers expressly granted by law to stockholders, the board of directors has the sole authority
to determine policies, enter into contracts, and conduct the ordinary business of the corporation
within the scope of its charter.
The raison d’etre behind the conferment of corporate powers on the board of directors is not lost
on the Court. Indeed, the concentration in the board of the powers of control of corporate
business and of appointment of corporate officers and managers is necessary for efficiency in any
large organization. Stockholders are too numerous, scattered and unfamiliar with the business of a
corporation to conduct its business directly. And so the plan of corporate organization is for the
stockholders to choose the directors who shall control and supervise the conduct of corporate
business.
In the present case, the board’s creation of the positions of Assistant Vice Presidents for Corporate
Planning, Operations, Finance and Administration, and those of the Special Assistants to the
President and the Board Chairman, was in accordance with the regular business operations of
Filport as it is authorized to do so by the corporation’s by-laws, pursuant to the Corporation Code.
Likewise, the fixing of the corresponding remuneration for the positions in question is provided
for in the same by-laws of the corporation, viz:
xxx The Board of Directors shall fix the compensation of the officers and agents of the
corporation.
Unfortunately, the bylaws of the corporation are silent as to the creation by its board of directors of
an executive committee. Under Section 3515 of the Corporation Code, the creation of an
executive committee must be provided for in the bylaws of the corporation.
Notwithstanding the silence of Filport’s bylaws on the matter, we cannot rule that the creation of
the executive committee by the board of directors is illegal or unlawful. One reason is the absence
of a showing as to the true nature and functions of said executive committee considering that the
"executive committee," referred to in Section 35 of the Corporation Code which is as powerful as
the board of directors and in effect acting for the board itself, should be distinguished from other
committees which are within the competency of the board to create at anytime and whose actions
require ratification and confirmation by the board.16 Another reason is that, ratiocinated by both
the two (2) courts below, the Board of Directors has the power to create positions not provided for
in Filport’s bylaws since the board is the corporation’s governing body, clearly upholding the power
of its board to exercise its prerogatives in managing the business affairs of the corporation.
VIII. DISPOSITIVE PORTION

WHEREFORE, the petition is DENIED and the challenged decision of the CA is AFFIRMED in
all respects.

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I. SHORT TITLE: FILIPINAS PORT SERVICES V.

II. TOPIC: Board of Directors/Trustees. Officers

IV. STATEMENT OF THE FACTS

V. STATEMENT OF THE CASE

VIII. DISPOSITIVE PORTION

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