Courts of Original and Appellate Jurisdiction

[1] A court is one with original jurisdiction when actions or proceedings are originally filed with it. A court is one with appellate jurisdiction when it has the power of review over the decisions or orders of a lower court
[2] Metropolitan Trial Courts (MeTC), Municipal Circuit Trial Courts (MCTCs) and Municipal Trial Courts (MTCs) are courts of original jurisdiction without appellate jurisdiction. Regional Trial Court (RTC) is likewise a court of original jurisdiction with respect to cases originally filed with it; and appellate court with respect to cases decided by MTCs within its territorial jurisdiction (Sec. 22, BP 129).
[3] The Court of Appeals is primarily a court of appellate jurisdiction with competence to review judgments of the RTCs and specified quasi-judicial agencies (Sec. 9[3], BP 129). It is also a court of original jurisdiction with respect to cases filed before it involving issuance of writs of certiorari, mandamus, quo warranto, habeas corpus, and prohibition. CA is a court of original and exclusive jurisdiction over actions for annulment of judgments of RTCs (Sec. 9 [1],[2], BP 129). [4] The Supreme Court (SC) is fundamentally a court of appellate jurisdiction but it may also be a court of original jurisdiction over cases affecting ambassadors, public ministers and consuls, and in cases involving petitions for certiorari, prohibition and mandamus (Sec. 5[1], Art. VIII, Constitution).