UST prof questions legality of Legal

Education Board, law admission

exam
By
 Ma. Consuelo D.P. Marquez, Maria Crisanta M. Paloma
 -
April 28, 2017
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Pimentel
A PROFESSOR from the Faculty of Civil Law has challenged the constitutionality of the
Legal Education Board (LEB), and the nationwide law admission exam that it administers,
before the Supreme Court.

In a petition filed before the high tribunal last April 7, Oscar Pimentel and 16 others claimed
that Republic Act (RA) 7662, the Legal Education Reform Act, is unconstitutional.

“We argued that Congress cannot create an administrative office or board that can exercise
the power vested in the Supreme Court by the Constitution,” Pimentel told the Varsitarian.
“Dapat Supreme Court ang masusunod. [The] law [is] unconstitutional [because] it goes
against the power of the Supreme Court,” he said.

Article 8, Section 5 of the 1987 Constitution states that the Supreme Court shall have the
power over “admission to the practice of law, the integrated bar, and legal assistance to the
underprivileged.”

The LEB conducted last April 16 the Philippine Law School Admission Test (PhiLSAT), a
nationwide law school aptitude exam.

RA 7662 mandated the “creation and composition” of the LEB, which will be “attached
solely for budgetary purposes and administrative support to the Department of Education,
Culture and Sports.”

“Those powers and functions are given to an entity that is not linked to the Supreme Court
itself…How will you be able to regulate the LEB when it is not connected to your office?”
Pimentel asked.

Restrain implementation

Pimentel, who teaches criminal and remedial law, said his petition primarily seeks to stop
the PhilSAT because of the burden it brings upon students.

“[`Y]ung isang mali pa diyan [ay] `yung pagbibigay nila ng power to promulgate rules and
regulations such as the giving of entrance examinations… [A]ng gusto talaga namin [ay]
`yung i-stop `yung Philsat kasi nakikita namin [na] burden sa mga estudyante,” he said.

Pimentel is a retired Makati Regional Trial Court judge. He obtained his Bachelor of Laws
and Associate in Arts degrees from UST. He also teaches at the Ateneo University School of
Law and Arellano University School of Law.
Other petitioners against the LEB were Errol Comafay, Rene Gorospe, Edwin Sandoval, Elgin
Michael Perez, Arnold Cacho, Irene Tolentino and former Varsitarian staff member Kristine
Jane Liu.

Last April 19, the Supreme Court gave the LEB 10 days to respond to the petition.

Law dean supports LEB

Civil Law Dean Nilo Divina expressed support for the LEB, saying the office provided a more
efficient admissions examination for aspiring law students.

“[UST has] been very supportive of the LEB. In fact, the University agreed to host the PhilSAT
last April 16. It may pose some inconvenience because you need to pay an additional fee
and go to testing centers [but] we see the objective as quite noble,” he said.

“Not all law schools conduct their own admission test so that’s the idea itself. It’s the
nationwide examination to determine who are fit to law schools,” Divina said.

Last Dec. 29, the LEB issued Memorandum Order No. 7, series of 2016 calling for a
“nationwide uniform law school test in all law schools in the country.”

UST was designated as a testing for the first-ever PhilSAT last April 16, hosting 4,022
examinees in Manila. A total of 8,120 examinees took the test in 10 testing sites in the
Philippines.