Short answer. Yes, as a general rule. Section 2 of Rule 1 states that the Rules apply in all courts, with only one narrow carve-out: cases where the Supreme Court itself provides otherwise, whether through a special rule, circular, or exception it issues for a particular type of proceeding or court.
What the law says
These Rules shall apply in all the courts, except as otherwise provided by the Supreme Court.
Rule 1, Section 2 — In what courts applicable. Read the full provision →
The default is universal application
Rule 1's very short second section sets the baseline for the entire body of the Rules of Civil Procedure: they apply in all the courts. That covers the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, the Regional Trial Courts, and the first-level courts (Metropolitan and Municipal Trial Courts) alike, without carving out any court by name. A litigant does not need to first check whether a particular court 'opted in' — the Rules are the default procedural framework everywhere in the judicial system unless something else specifically displaces them for that court or that case.
The only exception is one the Supreme Court itself makes
The section immediately qualifies that universal rule with a single exception: 'except as otherwise provided by the Supreme Court.' That phrase reserves to the Court alone the power to carve out departures — for example, through special rules for particular case types, circulars adjusting procedure for a specific court level, or rules on summary or simplified procedure. A litigant or lawyer cannot argue that the ordinary Rules don't apply to their case simply because it feels different or unusual; only an actual Supreme Court issuance can create that exception.
Why this matters practically
Because application is presumed rather than case-by-case, the practical question for a litigant is almost never 'do the Rules apply here' but rather 'has the Supreme Court carved out something different for this kind of case.' Related provisions in the same Rule address exactly that — cases the Rules do not reach, and how the Rules are to be read and construed. Section 2 is the anchor that makes those exceptions meaningful: without a default of universal coverage, there would be nothing for an exception to depart from.
Who this binds and what carve-outs look like in practice
Section 2 binds every court in the system to apply the Rules unless the Supreme Court has issued a specific, identifiable departure — it does not authorize a trial or appellate judge to informally set the Rules aside based on their own sense that a case calls for different treatment. The Supreme Court's own carve-outs are not hypothetical: the Rules on Summary Procedure for certain first-level court cases, and the special rules for small claims, are examples of exactly the kind of Supreme-Court-issued exception Section 2 contemplates, displacing the ordinary Rules of Civil Procedure for the specific proceedings they cover. A party litigating in a court subject to one of these special procedures should apply that procedure instead of the general Rules where the two conflict, since the special rule is itself the Supreme-Court-made exception this section anticipates, not a violation of the default it sets.
Related provisions
- Rule 1, Section 2 — In what courts applicable
- Rule 1, Section 4 — In what cases not applicable
- Rule 1, Section 6 — Construction