A preliminary investigation is not a trial — it is a paper-driven screening process meant to decide whether a case is even strong enough to bring to court, and it runs on a series of short, fixed deadlines. This page walks through that sequence and the clock attached to each stage.
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The investigating officer has ten days to dismiss the complaint or subpoena the respondent
Within ten (10) days after the complaint is filed, the investigating officer either dismisses it for lack of ground to proceed, or issues a subpoena to the respondent attaching a copy of the complaint and its supporting affidavits and documents.
The Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure (effective December 1, 2000, as amended), Rules 110-127, RULE 112. Read the source →
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The respondent then has ten days to file a counter-affidavit
Within ten (10) days of receiving the subpoena, the respondent must submit a counter-affidavit and the affidavits of their own witnesses; a motion to dismiss cannot be filed in place of it. If the respondent cannot be subpoenaed, or is subpoenaed but does not submit a counter-affidavit within that ten-day period, the investigating officer resolves the complaint based solely on the evidence the complainant presented.
The Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure (effective December 1, 2000, as amended), Rules 110-127, RULE 112. Read the source →
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A clarificatory hearing, if the officer sets one, must start within ten days and finish within five
The investigating officer may set a hearing to clarify facts or issues from a party or witness, though the parties have no right to examine or cross-examine at it. Where held, the hearing must begin within ten (10) days of the counter-affidavits and supporting documents being submitted, or of the expiration of the period to submit them, and it must be terminated within five (5) days.
The Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure (effective December 1, 2000, as amended), Rules 110-127, RULE 112. Read the source →
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The officer then has ten more days to rule on probable cause
Within ten (10) days after the investigation is concluded, the investigating officer determines whether there is sufficient ground to hold the respondent for trial.
The Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure (effective December 1, 2000, as amended), Rules 110-127, RULE 112. Read the source →
Each stage's ten-day window is measured from the event that starts it, not from the filing of the original complaint, so the full investigation routinely runs well past a month once every stage is used. A respondent who misses the counter-affidavit deadline does not get the investigation dismissed — the officer simply proceeds on what the complainant filed.