Time is something difficult to understand. There are scientific concepts or ideas with regard to time but I do not understand any. People too have been obsessed by it so much so that some have tried but failed to invent a machine that could go back in time. The iconic film “Back to the Future” or the comedy series “Dr. Who” and many other movies deal with the concept of time travel. Would it not be very amazing if we could go back in time to correct all our mistakes so that we won’t suffer today the consequences of the our errors in the past? This however would have complicated ramifications. Going back in time would disrupt the present and we would be having difficulty in adjusting errors of the past are corrected. The British comedy sitcom “Blackadder” starring Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean) portrayed an instance where Edmund Blackadder together with his ever loyal sidekick Baldrick invented a time machine and when they went back in time altered historical events. They, however came back to the present which they have become practically lost because it is totally now totally different as a consequence of them altering events in the past. What we have are instruments or systems to tell the passage or measure time. we have the calendar and the clock. The law however needed to make its own definition of time so as not to cause confusion.
Legal Time
Article 13 of The Civil Code states: “When the laws speak of years, months, days or nights, it shall be understood that years are of three hundred sixty-five days each; months, of thirty days; days, of twenty-four hours; and nights from sunset to sunrise. If months are designated by their name, they shall be computed by the number of days which they respectively have.In computing a period, the first day shall be excluded, and the last day included.” In many of our laws and other legal issuances time is usually an essential element specially with respect to the date of effectivity. The effectivity clause usually states: “this law shall take effect after Fifteen (15) days of its publication in a newspaper of general circulation”. It is very important to know when the law takes effect and as the above article states, the day of publication shall be excluded and the law will then take effect the day following the last day. In contracts such as indebtedness, the computation of penalties or interests depend upon the period agreed upon. If the contract says that penalties and interests shall be imposed if the money is not returned after one month from the execution of the contract, it means that interest and penalties will be imposed if the money is not returned after thirty days. If, however, it says “after the month of December 2015” then interest and penalties will accrue after the 31st day of December and not necessarily after 30 days.
Being on Time
Under our laws, rules and jurisprudence, time is very essential. If the court grants a party a period of time within which to submit a pleading, submission of the ordered pleading after the stated period may no longer be considered by the court since it was filed out of time. In counting days non-working holidays, Saturdays, and Sundays will be included but if the last day falls on such days the next working day which follows will be considered as the last day. Obviously no one will be in court to receive the pleading to be filled during non-working holidays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Reconsiderations, appeals, and other remedies have often been denied because they were not filed on time. A litigant may even be barred from filling a case even if a clear right exists, because the time within which it should have been instituted has expired. This technicality can make a person victorious or a criminal free from any liability even without filing a single case.