THE CNMI Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal of John Sablan Pangelinan in connection with the damages he was ordered to pay for interference in a probate.
In a ruling issued on Dec. 3, 2021, Chief Justice Alexandro C. Castro, Associate Justice Perry B. Inos Jr., and Justice Pro Tempore Robert T. Torres Jr. also said that Pangelinan’s “repeated attempts to appeal non-final orders despite our obvious lack of jurisdiction have stymied the proceedings.”
There is no need for further delay, the justices said, adding that Pangelinan may be sanctioned if he files another appeal before the trial court determines the amount that the plaintiffs will receive for damages.
Previously, Pangelinan asked the CNMI Superior Court to dismiss the claim of damages against him.
He said the plaintiffs’ “procrastination in getting their June 22, 2020 motion heard is evidence demonstrating their [lack] of emotional distress” and is “undeserving of any award.”
“In other words,” he added, “anybody with a $7,614,492.65 emotional distress damages claim would be in whiff to round up all evidence and wind down the claims to a lightning conclusion.”
The case stemmed from the lawsuit filed by Secundina and Selina Pangelinan against John S. Pangelinan. They accused him of abusing the legal system to extort money from them by interfering in a probate matter despite not being a creditor.
According to the complaint, Norberto Pangelinan, Secundina’s husband and John S. Pangelinan’s cousin, passed away in August 2015. Norberto owned three parcels of land in Tanapag. Before he died, he entered into an agreement to lease the property to Peak Development LLC for 55 years for a total rent of $3.2 million.
Norberto also entered into an agreement to sell his reversionary interest in the Tanapag property to Pedro Kileleman, but before the transactions could close Norberto passed away.
Secundina Pangelinan initiated a probate for the estate of Norberto so that the lease and sale transaction could be properly completed. During the probate, Norberto’s cousin, John Pangelinan, challenged Norberto’s title to the Tanapag property without any evidentiary or legal support, the plaintiffs said.
On May 21, 2020, Superior Court Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho found that John Pangelinan committed the tort of abuse of process in the estate of Norberto Pangelinan.
The judge also found John Pangelinan liable to pay the plaintiffs for the pecuniary loss that the mother and daughter experienced as a result of his interference.
The judge ordered Secundina and Selina Pangelinan to file their request for damages and/or other remedies against John Pangelinan.
Secundina and Selina Pangelinan, through attorney Janet King, then filed a motion for damages, cost of litigation and attorney’s fees.
They want John Pangelinan to pay them $7.61 million in damages for interfering with the probate of a $3.2 million estate belonging to Secundina’s deceased husband.
King also requested the court to issue an order holding John Pangelinan liable to pay the plaintiffs $90,281.92 for attorney’s fees and costs; $256,446.85 for damages in the form of investment interest; $798,580.97 for emotional distress, and $2,661,936.58 for punitive damages.
In addition, Secundina and Selina Pangelinan also want the court to hold John Pangelinan liable to pay them $3.8 million for tortious interference.
John Pangelinan appealed the ruling of Judge Camacho, but the CNMI Supreme Court dismissed the appeal and also denied his motion for substantive relief.
In John Pangelinan’s other appeal, the high court ruled that the disputed land belongs to Secundina Untalan Pangelinan and daughter Selina Marie Pangelinan.
The justices likewise affirmed the ruling of Judge Camacho that John Pangelinan has no standing in his claims regarding the Tanapag property and that he is not an heir of the decedent.
