APO CEMENT CORPORATION vs.

MINGSON MINING INDUSTRIES CORPORATION

FACTS
APO cement corporation submitted a Mineral Production Sharing Agreement to take over Allied 1
and 2 from Luvimin. However, the said mining claims are said to be overlapping with the Yellow
Eagle II and VII belonging to Mingson.

Mingson then prayed that DENR should grant them instead the mining claims since it encroached
their Yellow Eagle claims. This was granted.

APO filed an MR which was eventually granted by the legal division of DENR through a resolution.
DENR Regional Office Director also affirmed the resolution but subjected it to the review of the
Panel of Arbitrators (POA) from Geosciences Bureau which were tasked to resolve the issue
involving the claims.

POA upheld the former DENR resolutions awarding the claims to APO, reiterating the findings
therein without requiring the parties to file any pleading or setting the matter for hearing.

Mingson appealed POA’s decision on the ground that it denied them the opportunity to be heard
which is thus repugnant to due process. Mingson’s appeal was granted. Hence, APO elevated the
matter to CA.

ISSUE
WON Mingson was denied due process when POA issued its decision without requiring parties to
submit any pleading or setting the matter for hearing

HELD
The court ruled in favor of Mingson.

The CA dismissed APO’s appeal and sustained the DENR MAB’s finding that Mingson was not
afforded by the POA its right to due process because the applicable procedures found in the rules of
DENR were not followed.

Furthermore, the Implementing Rules of the Philippine Mining Act of 1995, requires that the parties
involved in mining disputes be given the opportunity to be heard.

“The violation of a party’s right to due process raises a serious jurisdictional issue which cannot be
glossed over or disregarded at will. Where the denial of the fundamental right of due process is
apparent, a decision rendered in disregard of that right is void for lack of jurisdiction.”

Hence, since Mingson’s due process rights were violated, the POA’s Decision is considered null and
void.