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Victoria Manufacturing Corp. Employees Union vs. Victoria Manufacturing Corp.

VICTORIA MANUFACTURING CORPORATION EMPLOYEES UNION, PETITIONER, VS. VICTORIA MANUFACTURING CORPORATION, RESPONDENT.

G.R. No. 234446 | 2019-07-24

D E C I S I O N
 
A. REYES, JR., J.:
 
Like courts, administrative boards and officers vested with quasi-­judicial power may only exercise jurisdiction over matters that their enabling statutes confer in them. This rule applies even though the parties hold out to the administrative agency concerned that it has jurisdiction over a particular dispute. Generally, lack of jurisdiction may be raised at any time, and is a defense that cannot be lost. However, by way of narrow exception, the doctrine of estoppel by laches, which rests on considerations of public policy, may effectively bar jurisdictional challenges. But it must be...