Daily Serving of Legal Matters

On August 08, 2019, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed into law Republic Act No. 11362 or the "Community Service Act" in lieu of the imprisonment for penalties of arresto menor  and arresto mayor. But it was only on Tuesday, October 6, 2020, that the Supreme Court approved the guidelines in the imposition of community service as a penalty, which promotes restorative justice and jail decongestion.  These guidelines are contained in A.M. No. 20-06-14-SC which was promulgated by the SC En Banc, which would take effect on November 2, 2020 after the required publication. So, by November 2, 2020, this community service for minor offenses shall take effect. What are these minor offenses?    These are the offenses having an imposable penalty of arresto menor and arresto mayor. Arresto menor involves an imprisonment of one (1) day to thirty (30) days while the arresto mayor is an imprisonment of thirty (30) days and one (1) day to six (60) months. What would constitute comm...

On April 26, 2019, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed into law Republic Act No. 11332 or otherwise known as the "Mandatory Reporting of Notifiable Diseases and Health Events of Public Concern Act". Section 3 of this Act gives the definition of a disease which refers to an illness due to a specific toxic substance, occupational exposures or infectious agent, which affects a susceptible individual, either directly or indirectly, as from an infected animal or person, or indirectly through an intermediate host, vector, or the environment. As provided, this Act shall prohibit the following: 1.  Unauthorized disclosure of private and confidential information pertaining to a patient's medical condition or treatment; 2.  Tampering of records or intentionally providing misinformation; 3.  Non-operation of the disease surveillance and response systems; 4.  Non-cooperation of persons and entities that should report and/or respond to notifiable diseas...

I, _________________, of _______________, do solemnly swear/ that I will maintain allegiance/ to the Republic of the Philippines; I will support and defend its Constitution/ and obey the laws/ as well as the legal orders of the duly constituted authorities therein;  I will do no falsehood/ nor consent to its commission;  I will not wittingly or willingly promote/ or sue any groundless, false or unlawful suit/ nor give aid nor consent to the same;  I will not delay any man's cause for money or malice/ and will conduct myself as a lawyer according to the best of my knowledge and discretion/ with all good fidelity/ as well as to the courts/ as to my clients and I impose upon myself this voluntary obligation,/ without any mental reservation/ or purpose of evasion.  SO HELP ME GOD.

This is a case of Atty. Mane v. Judge Belen which stems from a letter-complaint dated May 19, 2006 of Atty. Melvin D.C. Mane charging Judge Medel Arnaldo B. Belen, Presiding Judge of Branch 36, Regional Trial Court, Calamba City, of demeaning, humiliating, and berating him during the hearing on February 27, 2006 of Civil Case No. 3514-2003-C, "Rural Bank of Cabuyao, Inc. v. Samuel Malabanan, et al" in which he was counsel for the plaintiff. To prove his claim, Atty. Mane cited the remarks of Judge Belen in the course of the proceedings conducted on February 27, 2006: COURT:      … Sir, are you from the College of Law of the University of the Philippines? ATTY. MANE:      No, Your Honor, from Manuel L. Quezon, Your Honor. COURT:      No, you're not from UP. ATTY. MANE:      I am very proud of it. COURT:      Then you're not from UP.   Then you cannot equate yourself to ...

On March 24, 2020, the Philippine President, Rodrigo Roa Duterte, signed into law Republic Act No. 11469 or otherwise known as "Bayanihan to Heal As One Act".  It is act declaring the existence of a national emergency arising from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation and a national policy in connection therewith, and authorizing the President of the Republic of the Philippines for a limited period and subject to restrictions, to exercise powers necessary and proper to carry out the declared national policy and for other purposes. This law also enumerates criminal acts.  Thus: Sec. 6. Penalties. In addition to acts or omissions already penalized by existing laws, the following offenses shall be penalized by existing laws, the following offenses shall be punishable with imprisonment of two (2) months or a fine of not less than Ten Thousand Pesos (P10,000.00) but not more One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00), or both, such imprisonment and fine, at the discretion ...

Limitations on the power of the lawmaking body to enact penal legislation. The Bill of Rights of the 1987 Constitution imposes the following limitations: 1.  No ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall be enacted. (Art. III, Sec. 22) 2.  No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense without due process of law. (Art. III, Sec. 14) The first limitation prohibits the passage of retroactive laws which are prejudicial to the accused. An ex post facto law is one which: 1.  makes criminal an act done before the passage of the law and which was innocent when done, and punishes such an act; 2.  aggravates a crime, or makes it greater than it was, when committed; 3.  changes the punishment and inflicts a greater punishment than the law annexed to the crime when committed; 4.  alters the legal rules of evidence, and authorizes conviction upon less or different testimony than the law required at the time of the commission of the offense; 5....