"x x x.
Expropriation or the exercise of the power of eminent domain is the inherent right of the state and of those entities to which the power has been lawfully delegated to condemn private property to public use upon payment of just compensation.[31] Governed by Rule 67 of the Rules of Court, the proceedings therefor consist of two (2) stages: (a) the condemnation of the property after it is determined that its acquisition will be for a public purpose or public use; and, (b) the determination of just compensation to be paid for the taking of private property to be made by the court with the assistance of not more than three commissioners.[32] The nature of these two stages was discussed in the following wise in the case of Municipality of Biñan vs. Judge Garcia,[33] to wit:
1. There are two (2) stages in every action for expropriation. The first is concerned with the determination of the authority of the plaintiff to exercise the power of eminent domain and the propriety of its exercise in the context of the facts involved in the suit. It ends with an order, if not of dismissal of the action, "of condemnation declaring that the plaintiff has a lawful right to take the property sought to be condemned, for the public use or purpose described in the complaint, upon the payment of just compensation to be determined as of the date of the filing of the complaint." An order of dismissal, if this be ordained, would be a final one, of course, since it finally disposes of the action and leaves nothing more to be done by the Court on the merits. So, too, would an order of condemnation be a final one, for thereafter, as the Rules expressly state, in the proceedings before the Trial Court, "no objection to the exercise of the right of condemnation (or the propriety thereof) shall be filed or heard.
The second phase of the eminent domain action is concerned with the determination by the Court of "the just compensation for the property sought to be taken." This is done by the Court with the assistance of not more than three (3) commissioners. The order fixing the just compensation on the basis of the evidence before, and findings of, the commissioners would be final, too. It would finally dispose of the second stage of the suit, and leave nothing more to be done by the Court regarding the issue. Obviously, one or another of the parties may believe the order to be erroneous in its appreciation of the evidence or findings of fact or otherwise. Obviously, too, such a dissatisfied party may seek a reversal of the order by taking an appeal therefrom.
It cannot, therefore, be gainsaid that the outcome of the first phase of expropriation proceedings – be it an order of expropriation or an order of dismissal – finally disposes of the case and is, for said reason, final. The same is true of the second phase that ends with an order determining the amount of just compensation[34] which, while essential for the transfer of ownership in favor of the plaintiff, is but the last stage of the expropriation proceedings and the outcome of the initial finding by the court that the plaintiff has a lawful right to take the property sought to be expropriated, for the public use or purpose described in the complaint.[35] In the same manner that the order of expropriation may be appealed by any party by filing a record on appeal, a second and separate appeal may likewise be taken from the order fixing the just compensation. Indeed, jurisprudence recognizes the existence of multiple appeals in a complaint for expropriation because of said two stages in every action for expropriation.[36]
x x x."
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