ARGUMENTS:

I. There is a SUBSTANTIAL COMPLIANCE with the requirements and

activities required in both subjects.

Substantial compliance means meeting the substantial or essential

requirements of something that satisfies its purpose or objective even though its
formal requirements are not complied with.
Also, it is an invention, equitable in nature, designed to avoid hardship in
cases where a party does all that can reasonably expected of it, but failed or faulted
in some minor aspects which cannot be described as the “essence” or the
“substance” of the requirements.

Applying “Substantial Compliance” in our case, every

requirement or activity that is supposed to be accomplished for
both subjects were sufficiently complied with. To begin with, we
have our attendance and if somebody in the class got absent, he/she
was required to submit an Affidavit of Undertaking and to submit
15 case digest before admitted to class the next meeting. We have
also our recitations, quizzes, some group work and a preliminary
and midterm examination. Nobody failed to accomplished all of
these. Furthermore, we also have conducted coastal clean-up in
Aparri, Cagayan, tree planting and various seminars in
Camalaniugan, Cagayan. We have also accomplished our narrative
reports on each seminars, only that we have a bit of delay in
submitting and that it was sent back few times for revision.

As contradistinguished to our failure to immediately submit the

documentation and narrative reports as our final requirement, the
actual completion of the above-mentioned activities should be
given more weight and consideration.

II. The LEGAL EDUCATION BOARD through its LEB Memorandum

Circular No. 56 s. of 2020.

As provided in Section 1 of the said Circular, the following

policies are encouraged and must be observed.
 1.) During this extraordinary health crisis, the inherent right to
life, health and integrity of the human person takes
precedence over academic goals.
2.) Any and all academic interventions that will be adopted at this
time must be premised on the values of compassion, empathic
understanding, and solidarity, with care to mitigate existing
technological, gender, and socio-cultural-economic
inequalities that may be exacerbated by the crisis.

3.) Law schools are encouraged to adopt innovative ways of

teaching and delivery of instruction that will enable continued
learning without imposing additional hardship or burden on
the students, faculty members and administrative officials and
personnel during these difficult times.

Further, Section 5 (2) of the same circular provides:

Law schools experiencing midterm disruption due to the

pandemic are encouraged to adopt a pass/no-fail policy for the
remainder of Academic Year 2019-2020. A no-fail policy shifts
the focus of schools from the completion of requirements to one
that emphasizes the desired course outcomes. It also prevents
students who are already disadvantaged technologically and
socioeconomically from being further disadvantaged.

Also, Sec. 5, par. (5) states that :

The policies under this Section may also be availed of by law

schools who have already concluded their Academic Year
2019-2020 before the issuance of this Memorandum Circular.

III. The alleged one-year grace period for the completion of incomplete
grades has not prescribed yet.

1. That according to the school policy, incomplete grades should be

fixed within one year from the entry of the incomplete grade in the
registrar. According to the registrar, our incomplete grades were
entered on September, 2020. However, due to the widespread of
Covid19 pandemic, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte issued
 Proclamation no. 929 declaring the country under the state of
calamity for six months which was extended until September 2021
by proclamation no. 1218. During this period, different physical
restrictions were implemented for the safety of the people. Just like
how the government offices and other institutions extended their
deadlines and provided grace periods, the prescription imposed by
the university should also not run against its students in support to
the national government’s advocacy of “we heal as one” act.

Given the fact that the declaration of the country under the state of
calamity interrupt the running of the prescription of one year, and
the national government’s advocacy of “we heal as one” act
specially section 4 paragraph z, the university should provide
grace periods and be lenient with its students in submission of
necessary documents for the completion of grades.

Wherefore, we the petitioners fervently appeal and pray to this honorable court to
reconsider the abovementioned decision dated January 22, 2022 and render a more
just and equitable verdict.