Who's an Indispensable Party?
Without the presence of a indispensable party, the judgment of a court cannot attain real finality (De Castro vs. CA). The presence of indispensable parties is a condition for the exercise of juridical power and, when an indispensable party is not before the court, the action should be dismissed.
The absence of indispensable party renders all subsequent actions of the court null and void for want of authority to act, not only to the absent parties but even as to those present. Two essential tests of an indispensable party:
(a) Can a relief be afforded to the plaintiff without the presence of the other party, and;
(b) Can the case be decided on its merits without prejudicing the rights of the other party?
A person is not an indispensable party if his interest in the controversy or subject matter is separable from the interest of the other parties, so that it will not necessarily be directly or injuriously affected by a decree which does complete justice between them. Also, a person is not an indispensable party if his presence would merely permit complete relief between him and those already parties to the action, or if he has no interest in the subject matter of the action.
Although, normally, a joinder of action is permissive (Sec. 6, Rule 3), the joinder of a party becomes compulsory when the one involved is an indispensable party. Clearly, the rule directs a compulsory joinder of an indispensable party (Sec. 7, Rule 3).
