Jamaine Punzalan

Article (news)

Adrian Ayalin

ABS-CBN News

MANILA — The Court of Appeals Special 12th Division has ordered the Department of Agrarian Reform and Land Bank of the Philippines to pay Hacienda Luisita P28.488 billion in compensation for 4,500 hectares of land covered by agrarian reform in Tarlac province.In a decision promulgated on April 25, 2025, the court granted the petition for review filed by the Cojuangco family-owned estate against DAR and LBP.The petition for review covered parcels of land in Tarlac City, La Paz and Concepcion that were ordered to be transferred to DAR under  Republic Act No. 6657 or the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law.“Respondents are ordered to pay petitioner the total amount of Php28,488,944,278.71 as just compensation as of 30 April 2025, without prejudice to the accrual of interest until fully paid,” the court said in the decision penned by Associate Justice Raymond Reynold Lauigan.The appellate court found that the Tarlac City Regional Trial Court acting as a Special Agrarian Court or RTC-SAC erred when it issued its February 15, 2023 decision and August 11, 2023 resolution dismissing the petition for judicial determination of just compensation filed by Hacienda Luisita.In the RTC-SAC decision, the court affirmed the decision of the Department of Agrarian Reform Adjudication Board which adopted the valuations fixed by Land Bank and denied the claim of Hacienda Luisita for additional compensation and interests.Landbank fixed the valuation at P304.033 million plus interest of P167.468 million from 1989 to 1999.  But in its ruling, the CA said the RTC-SAC did not correctly assess and determine the just compensation to be paid to Hacienda Luisita under the law.“Bearing in mind that ultimately, just compensation is about a fair and full equivalent for the loss sustained by the landowner, reliable and actual data should have been considered, with consideration to the pertinent DAR regulations applicable in the instant case,” the court said.The court further said that while DAR and Landbank relied on sugar production industry data from the Sugar Regulatory Commission, Hacienda Luisita’s contention was that the valuation should be based on its actual production values. The court noted that Hacienda Luisita made the necessary submissions of documents to the Landbank such as Audited Financial Statements and Accounting Records.“Verily, this court cannot uphold the misguided interpretation by respondents of what the just computation should be and their reliance on the industry data despite the presence of actual production data, through documents forwarded by petitioner to LBP as already admitted by respondents&#x27; witnesses,” the court said.The court noted that the base value of the property was P1.029 billion with November 21, 1989 as the date of coverage.But the court also noted that payments, less than the amount of valuation, were only made in 2013.The court said that aside from the requirement of just compensation for expropriated property, the payment must also be made without delay.“Otherwise, absent any prompt and full payment, compensation could not be considered ‘just’ inasmuch as the property owner is made to suffer the consequences of being immediately deprived of his land while being made to wait before actually receiving the amount necessary to cope with loss,” the court said.<div>LANDBANK REPLIES</div>LANDBANK meanwhile, said it had already been dropped as a party respondent to theHacienda Luisita case by the CA in its decision on April 30, 2024.<div style="line-height:1"> </div>&quot;The latest CA decision on the case, dated April 25, 2025, ordering the payment ofP28.49 billion in just compensation to HLI is chargeable against the Agrarian ReformFund (ARF), which is owned by the National Government and administered by theDepartment of Agrarian Reform (DAR). LANDBANK’s designated role is as custodianof the ARF, in charge of carrying out disbursement instructions by the DAR.The CA decision is not yet final and executory. A Motion for Reconsideration was filedby the DAR in May 2025 and is awaiting resolution. If sustained by the CA, DAR mayelevate the case to the Supreme Court (SC),&quot; the state-owned lender said in a statement. <div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/07/04/18/sc-says-hacienda-luisita-has-fully-complied-with-distribution-of-land-sale-proceeds">SC says Hacienda Luisita has &#x27;fully complied&#x27; with distribution of land sale proceeds</a></div>

The Court of Appeals Special 12th Division has ordered the Department of Agrarian Reform and Land Bank of the Philippines to pay Hacienda Luisita P28.488 billion in compensation for 4,500 hectares of land covered by agrarian reform in Tarlac province.

The Court of Appeals Special 12th Division has ordered the Department of Agrarian Reform and Land Bank of the Philippines to pay Hacienda Luisita P28.488 billion in compensation for 4,500 hectares of land covered by agrarian reform in Tarlac province.

DAR, Landbank ordered to pay Hacienda Luisita P28 billion compensation

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DAR, Landbank ordered to pay Hacienda Luisita P28 billion compensation

Adrian Ayalin,

ABS-CBN News

Published June 18, 2025 09:37 AM PHT

|

Updated June 19, 2025 11:31 AM PHT

Read More:

DAR

Land Bank

Hacienda Luisita

Court of Appeals

Tarlac

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