Since the 2019 Amendments to the Rules of Civil Procedure, a motion to dismiss may only be filed on three grounds: lack of jurisdiction over the subject matter, litis pendentia, or a bar by prior judgment or prescription. To oppose one, file a written opposition within five calendar days of receipt addressing each ground squarely; the court will generally resolve the motion within fifteen calendar days, often without a hearing since hearings are now discretionary.
Since the 2019 Amendments to the Rules of Civil Procedure took effect, a “motion to dismiss” in Philippine courts is not the catch-all tool it used to be. Most of the old grounds — failure to state a cause of action, improper venue, lack of legal capacity to sue, non-compliance with a condition precedent, and lack of jurisdiction over the person of the defendant — are no longer proper subjects of a motion to dismiss at all. They are now raised as affirmative defenses in the defendant’s Answer instead. Knowing this distinction is the first and most important step in opposing a motion to dismiss, because it tells you whether the motion in front of you is even allowed to exist.
What grounds can still support a motion to dismiss
Under the current rules, a motion to dismiss may only be filed on three grounds:
- That the court has no jurisdiction over the subject matter of the claim;
- That there is another action pending between the same parties for the same cause (litis pendentia); and
- That the cause of action is barred by a prior judgment (res judicata) or by the statute of limitations (prescription).
Everything else that used to justify an outright motion to dismiss — including the once-popular “failure to state a cause of action” ground — must now be pleaded as an affirmative defense in the Answer. If you receive a motion to dismiss invoking a ground outside these three, your first move is not to argue the merits at all: point out that the motion itself is not a proper motion to dismiss under the current rules, and that the ground raised should have been pleaded as an affirmative defense instead.
Why this distinction matters for your strategy
If the motion validly falls within the three allowed grounds, your opposition has to engage the substance — jurisdiction, a pending related case, or timeliness. If it does not, your strongest opening argument is procedural: the motion is not authorized by the rules, full stop. Courts have been strict about this since the amendments took effect, because the Supreme Court intended the change to speed up litigation by cutting down on preliminary skirmishing at the pleading stage.
Step by step: filing your opposition
Once you have confirmed the motion is properly a motion to dismiss, here is the practical sequence for opposing it:
- Count your five calendar days. Under the rules on motions, the opposing party has five (5) calendar days from receipt of a litigious motion (which a motion to dismiss is) to file a written opposition. Mark this date the moment the motion is served on you or your counsel, and do not assume you will get an extension — courts are not required to grant one.
- Draft a focused Comment/Opposition. Address each ground raised, point by point. Avoid padding the opposition with arguments outside the three allowed grounds; keep the court’s attention on why the specific ground pleaded does not apply to your case.
- Anchor your jurisdictional argument to the complaint itself. If the motion argues lack of jurisdiction over the subject matter, remember that jurisdiction is generally determined by the allegations of the complaint, not by what the defendant claims in the motion. Quote the relevant paragraphs of the complaint that establish the nature of the action and, where applicable, the amount involved.
- For litis pendentia, attack the missing elements. This ground requires identity of parties (or at least parties representing the same interest), identity of rights asserted and reliefs prayed for, and such identity between the two cases that a judgment in one would amount to res judicata in the other. If any of these three elements is missing between your case and the other pending case, say so specifically and, where you can, attach the pleadings from the other case to prove the difference.
- For res judicata or prescription, test whether it is apparent on the face of the complaint. A dismissal on these grounds at this early stage is only proper if the bar is evident from the complaint and its attachments themselves — not from facts the movant is introducing for the first time in the motion. If the supposed prior judgment involved different parties, a different cause of action, or the prescriptive period has not actually lapsed based on the dates alleged, walk the court through the computation or the missing element.
- File and serve within the deadline. Submit your opposition to the court and furnish opposing counsel a copy on or before the fifth calendar day, using a mode of service the rules recognize (personal service, registered mail, or electronic service where the court and parties have agreed to it).
Will there be a hearing
Not necessarily. One of the more significant changes brought by the 2019 Amendments is that hearings on motions are no longer automatic. The court now has discretion to call a hearing only if it believes one is necessary to resolve the motion; otherwise, it can decide based on the motion, your opposition, and the record. This means your written opposition is often the only chance you get to be heard — there may be no oral argument to fall back on to clarify or expand your position. Write it as if it is the only document the judge will read before ruling.
What happens after you file
Once your opposition is filed — or once the five-day period to file one lapses without an opposition being filed — the court is expected to resolve the motion within fifteen (15) calendar days. That is a relatively tight window compared to the old rules, and it reflects the same policy goal behind the amendments: fewer delays at the pleading stage.
If the motion is denied, the case moves forward and the defendant still has to file an Answer, raising as affirmative defenses whatever grounds were not proper subjects of the motion to dismiss in the first place. If the motion is granted, the consequence depends on the ground: a dismissal for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, litis pendentia, or prescription/res judicata may or may not bar refiling, depending on the specific ground and the court’s ruling, and the losing party’s remedy is typically an appeal or, in appropriate cases, a motion for reconsideration.
Common mistakes to avoid when opposing a motion to dismiss
- Treating it like the old, broader motion to dismiss. Arguments built around the pre-2019 grounds (failure to state a cause of action, improper venue, and the like) simply do not respond to a properly filed motion under the current rules, and citing them wastes your limited opposition.
- Missing the five-day window because you are waiting for more documents. File your opposition on time with what you have, and supplement later with the court’s leave if truly necessary, rather than risk having the motion resolved without your side on record.
- Arguing facts outside the complaint for jurisdiction. Since jurisdiction over the subject matter is tested against the complaint’s own allegations, evidence outside the four corners of the pleading is usually beside the point at this stage.
- Ignoring service technicalities. A motion that was not properly served, or an opposition that was not properly served on all parties, can create avoidable complications; double-check proof of service on both ends.
Other prohibited motions worth knowing about
The same provision of the rules that limits motions to dismiss to the three grounds above also lists other motions that are now prohibited altogether — among them, a motion for a bill of particulars filed after the court has ordered the pleading to be answered, a motion to hear affirmative defenses (since these are now generally resolved based on the pleadings, with a hearing only where the court deems one necessary), and a motion for reconsideration of the court’s action on affirmative defenses. If your opponent files something dressed up as a motion but falling into one of these categories, the same procedural response applies: flag it as prohibited rather than engaging its substance on the merits.
Why counsel matters at this stage
Because the opposition window is only five calendar days and a hearing is no longer guaranteed, there is very little room to fix a weak or late opposition later in the case. Engaging counsel as soon as you are served with a motion to dismiss — rather than after the opposition deadline has already passed — gives you the best chance to identify whether the motion is even properly filed, marshal the right portions of the complaint and the record, and file a response that gives the court everything it needs to rule in your favor without a hearing.
Why getting this right early matters
A motion to dismiss, even a narrow one under the current three grounds, can end a case before it truly begins — or, if wrongly framed, can be used to stall a legitimate claim while the parties argue about a threshold issue. Because the opposition window is short and hearings are no longer guaranteed, the quality of your written opposition carries more weight than it used to. Identifying quickly whether the motion is even a valid one under the 2019 Amendments, then building a tight, record-based response to the specific ground invoked, is usually the difference between a case that survives the pleading stage and one that does not.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a motion to dismiss still be filed on the ground that the complaint fails to state a cause of action? No. Since the 2019 Amendments, failure to state a cause of action is raised as an affirmative defense in the Answer, not through a separate motion to dismiss.
How many days do I have to oppose a motion to dismiss? Five calendar days from receipt of the motion, under the general rule on litigious motions, unless the court orders otherwise.
Will there be a hearing on the motion to dismiss? Not necessarily. Hearings on motions are now discretionary, so the court may resolve the motion based on the pleadings and your written opposition alone.
What happens if I miss the five-day opposition deadline? The court may resolve the motion without your opposition on record, so it is important to file promptly, or to seek the court's leave immediately if you cannot meet the deadline.
This commentary is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For guidance specific to your situation, please consult a licensed attorney.
A motion to dismiss looks routine, but under the current rules it either fits one of three narrow boxes or it does not belong in front of the court at all — spotting which one you are dealing with is half the fight.