Dear Atty. Maan,

In the past few months, we have noticed cash shortages during the audit of our daily sales.

Recently, we obtained a voice recording where one of our employees admitted fault, stating, “ako nga yung kumuha pero hindi naman ganun kalaki ang nakuha kong pera” referring to taking cash from our cash register.

Can we use this voice recording to file a case against the said employee, Atty?

Angeline

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Dear Angeline,

Generally, the admissibility of a voice recording as evidence depends on various factors, including how it was obtained and its relevance to the case.

Under Republic Act 4200, also known as the Anti-Wiretapping Act, it is generally illegal to record a private conversation without the consent of all parties involved. Section 1 of the said law provides:

“SECTION 1. It shall be unlawful for any person, not being authorized by all the parties to any private communication or spoken word, to tap any wire or cable, or by using any other device or arrangement, to secretly overhear, intercept, or record such communication or spoken word by using a device commonly known as a dictaphone or dictagraph or walkie-talkie or tape recorder, or however otherwise described:

It shall also be unlawful for any person, be he a participant or not in the act or acts penalized in the next preceding sentence, to knowingly possess any tape record, wire record, disc record, or any other such record, or copies thereof, of any communication or spoken word secured either before or after the effective date of this Act in the manner prohibited by this law; or to replay the same for any other person or persons; or to communicate the contents thereof, either verbally or in writing, or to furnish transcriptions thereof, whether complete or partial, to any other person: Provided, that the use of such record or any copies thereof as evidence in any civil, criminal investigation or trial of offenses mentioned in section 3 hereof, shall not be covered by this prohibition.”

In summary, RA 4200, or the Anti-Wiretapping Law, essentially penalizes the act of wiretapping or recording a conversation without the consent of all parties involved. Similarly, it prohibits the court from admitting as evidence any recorded audio under the doctrine of the “fruit of the poisonous tree,” a rule that renders illegally obtained evidence inadmissible in court.

Hope this helps.

Atty. Mary Antonnette Baudi