Tagoloan Community College

COLLEGE OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE & PUBLIC SAFETY

Baluarte, Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental

Introductory Module for All Law and Law-Related Subjects

Brief Introduction to Law and the Philippine Legal System
Instructor: Atty. Mia B. Baquiano

Learning Objectives:
1) State the meaning of law, statute, implementing rules and regulations, ordinance,
jurisprudence, and treaty;
2) Explain the significance of knowing the basic laws;
3) Explain the purpose of the Constitution and its effects on statutes and other laws;
4) State the three great powers of the government.
5) Identify the different sources of laws in the Philippines.

1 Law, Defined
n Law is a system of rules that a society or government develops in order to deal with
crime, business agreements, and social relationships. 1
n It as a binding custom or practice in a community; a rule of conduct or action
prescribed or formally recognized as binding or enforced by a controlling authority.
n Law in its jural and generic sense refers to the whole body or system of law. In its
jural and concrete sense, law means a rule of conduct formulated and made
obligatory by legitimate power of the state.2 It includes: (a) statutes enacted by the
legislature; (b) Presidential decrees and executive orders issued by the President in
the exercise of his legislative power; (c) Presidential issuances in the exercise of his
ordinance power; (d) Rulings of the Supreme Court construing (applying and
interpreting) the law; (e) Rules and Regulations promulgated by administrative
bodies or executive officers pursuant to a delegated power; (f) Ordinances passed by
the sanggunians of local government units; and (g) Treaties.

2 The Three Great Powers of Government

1) The Executive Branch – “the power of the sword”

n The executive branch is headed by the President who functions as both the
head of state and the head of government.

n The president is also the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the

Philippines. The president is elected by popular vote to a term of six years.
The president, then, appoints (and may dismiss) his/her cabinet members
whom he/she presides over. The executive seat of government is administered
officially from Malacañang Palace—also the official residence of the president
—in Manila.

n The President may no longer run for re-election, unless he/she becomes
president through constitutional succession and has served for no more than
four years as president.
1
Collins.com
2
Ruben Agpalo, Statutory Construction
 n In general, the Executive Department enforces the law of the land.
n The second highest official, the vice-president is first in line to succession
should the president resign, be impeached or die in office. The vice-president
usually, though not always, may be a member of the president's cabinet. If
there is a vacancy in the position of Vice President, the President will appoint
any member of Congress (usually a party member) as new Vice President. The
appointment will be validated by a three-fourths vote of Congress voting
separately.3

2) The Legislative Branch – “the power of the purse”

n Composed of the Senators, the District Representatives (Congressmen and
Congresswomen), and the party list (sectoral) representatives;
n The Senate is also called the “upper house” and the House of Representatives is
called the “lower house.” The district and sectoral representatives are elected with a
term of three years. They can be reelected but they are no longer eligible to run for a
fourth consecutive term.
n The senators are elected to a term of six years. They can be reelected but they are no
longer eligible to run for a third consecutive term.4
n In the legislative department lies the power to make, amend, repeal or abrogate laws.

3) Judiciary Branch
n The judiciary branch of the government is headed by the Supreme Court, which has a
Chief Justice as its head and 14 Associate Justices, all appointed by the president on
the recommendation of the Judicial and Bar Council.5 Other court types of courts, of
varying jurisdiction around the archipelago, are the:
Lower Collegiate Courts
 Court of Appeals
 Court of Tax Appeals
 Sandiganbayan

Regular Courts
 Regional Trial Courts
 Metropolitan Trial Courts
 Municipal Trial Courts
 Municipal Trial Courts in Cities
 Municipal Circuit Trial Courts

Muslim Courts
 Sharia District Courts
 Sharia Circuit Courts

n The Supreme Court has the power to interpret the laws and the power to declare a
law as invalid if it is unconstitutional.

3 Sources of Philippine Laws

A. The Constitution
B. Statutes
C. Presidential Issuances
D. Administrative Rules and Regulations or Implementing Rules and Regulations
(IRRs)

3
https://www.philembassy.no/the-philippine-government
4
Supra.
5
Supra.
 E. Jurisprudence (Supreme Court Rulings)
F. Ordinances
G. Treaty

A. The 1987 Philippine Constitution

n A constitution is a written instrument by which the fundamental powers of
government are established, limited and defined, and by which the powers are
distributed among several departments for their safe and useful exercise for the
benefits of the people.6
n Constitution refers to the basic principles and laws of a nation, state, or social group
that determine the powers and duties of the government and guarantee certain rights
to the people in it. It is a written instrument embodying the rules of a political or
social organization.7
n The 1987 Philippine Constitution was drafted during the reign of President Corazon
Aquino.
n The 1987 Constitution established a representative democracy with power divided
among three separate and independent branches of government namely the
Executive, a bicameral Legislature, and the Judiciary. There are three independent
constitutional commissions as well to wit, the Commission on Audit, the Civil Service
Commission, and the Commission on Elections. Integrated into the Constitution was
a full Bill of Rights, which guaranteed fundamental civil and political rights, and it
provided for free, fair, and periodic elections. Up to this date, the 1987 Philippine
Constitution is still in effect.
n The Constitution is the basic and paramount law to which all other laws must
conform and to which all persons, including the highest officials of the lands, must
defer.8

B. Statutes
n A statute is an act of legislature as an organized body, expressed in the form, and
passed according to the procedure, required to constitute it as part of the law of the
land.
n A statute may be public or private:
o Public statute – one which binds or affects the public at large or the whole
community. A Public statute may be:
a) General – one which applies to the whole state and operates
throughout the state alike upon all the people or all of a class.
(Example: The Family Code, The Revised Penal Code)
b) Special – one which relates to a particular persons or things of a
class or to a particular community, individual, or thing. (The
Magna Carta for ___)
c) Local – one whose operation is confined to a specific place or
locality. (Example: Ordinances)
o Private statute – one which applies only to a specific person or subject.

C. Presidential Issuances
n Presidential issuances are those which the President issues in the exercise of his
ordinance power. They are executive orders, administrative orders, proclamations,
6
Manila Prince Hotel v GSIS, Feb.3, 1997
7
www.merriam-webster.com
8
Biraogo vs Philippine Truth Commission, G.R. No. 192935, Dec. 7, 2010
 memorandum orders, memorandum circulars, and general or special orders. These
issuances have the force and effect of law.
(a) Executive Orders - these are acts of the President providing for rules of a general
or permanent character in implementation or execution of constitutional or
statutory powers shall be promulgated in executive orders. Examples:
▪ E.O. No. 25, commonly known as the smoking ban
▪ E.O. No. 292 which strengthen the DOT’s powers and functions
(b) Administrative Orders – acts of the President which relate to particular aspects
of governmental operations in the pursuance of his duties as administrative head.
(c) Proclamations – acts of the President fixing a date or declaring a statute or
condition of public moment or interest, upon the existence of which the
operation of a specific law or regulation is made to depend.
(d) Memorandum Orders – are acts of the President on matters of administrative
detail or subordinate or temporary interest which only concern a particular
officer or office of the Government.
(e) Memorandum Circulars – acts of the President on matters relating to internal
administration which the President desires to bring to the attention of all or some
of the department’s agencies, bureaus or offices of the Government, for
information and compliance.
(f) General or specific orders – acts of the President in his capacity as Commander-
in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

C. Administrative Rules and Regulations

n Also called “Implementing Rules and Regulations” or “IRR,” are rules and
regulations issued by administrative or executive officers in accordance with, and as
authorized by law. They have the force and effect of law and the sole purpose which is
to carry out the general provisions of the law. Examples:
o The Omnibus Rule to Implement the Labor Code of the Philippines;
o Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of R.A. 10611 or the Food Safety
Act;
o IRR of Section xx of R.A. 11469 otherwise known as the “Bayanihan to Heal
As One Act.

D. Supreme Court Rulings (Jurisprudence, or case law)

n Article 8 of the Civil Code provides that Judicial decisions applying or interpreting
the laws or the Constitution shall form part of the legal system of the Philippines.
The decisions referred to by this article are rulings made by the Supreme Court.
Decisions of the SC interpreting or applying the law assume the same authority as the
statutes to which they apply or interpret until they are abandoned by an en-banc
resolution.
Examples:
o The case of Grace Poe: Mary Grace Natividad S. Poe-Llamanzares Vs.
Comelec And Estrella C. Elamparo, G.R. No. 221697, March 8, 2016 where
the Supreme Court decided that she is a natural-born Filipino and has met
the 10-year residency requirement for presidential candidates. 
o The case of Rhonda Vivares and Spouses Margarita and Suzara vs. St.
Theresa’s College, et. al., G.R. No. 202666, 29 September 2014.
This case involves students of a conservative institution who took pictures of
themselves clad in their brassieres and showing that they are drinking liquors and
smoking cigarettes, which were then uploaded on Facebook. When the school saw
 these pictures, the students were disciplined for violating rules specified in the
Student Handbook and consequently, the school barred the sanctioned students from
participating in the graduation rites. Infuriated, the parents of these students
questioned the actions of the school and it reached the Supreme Court. In this case,
the right to informational privacy was raised, which according to Justice Puno, one of
the three strands of the right to privacy, and it is usually defined as the right of
individuals to control information about themselves. 
The Supreme Court held that STC did not violate petitioners’ daughters’ right to
privacy as the subject digital photos were viewable either by the minors’ Facebook
friends, or by the public at large.9

n The Constitution grants the Supreme Court the power to “promulgate rules
concerning the protection and enforcement of constitutional rights, pleading,
practice, and procedure in all courts, the admission to the practice of law, the
Integrated Bar, and legal assistance to the underprivileged. Pursuant to this rule-
making power, the Supreme Court established the Rules of Court which are called
procedural or remedial law. The power to repeal these laws are lodged in the
Supreme Court as well.
Substantive Law versus Remedial Law
n Substantive laws are those which create, define, and regulate rights and duties the
violation of which can give rise to a cause of action or a right of action in a court of
law. Examples of these laws are the:
o Family Code
o Intellectual Property Code
o Civil Code
o Labor Code
o Revised Penal Code.
n Substantive laws are generally enacted by the legislature (Congress).
n Remedial laws are those which provide the method for aiding and protecting
certain rights. Remedial or procedural laws must not modify substantive rights.
Examples are:
o The Rules of Civil Procedure
o The Rules of Procedure in Environmental Cases
o The Rules of Evidence
o The Rules of Procedure in Child Abuse Cases.
n Procedural laws are promulgated by the Supreme Court.

E. Ordinances
n An ordinance is a piece of legislation enacted by the legislative body of a local
government unit. In the Philippines there are three kinds or ordinances:
(a) Barangay ordinance—passed by the sangguniang barangay (barangay
council) by a majority vote of its members. The ordinance binds the members
or constituents of that particular barangay.
(b) Municipal ordinance—is enacted by the sangguniang bayan (municipal
council) by the affirmative vote of a majority of the members present and
voting which will constitute a quorum.
(c) City ordinance—is enacted by the sangguniang panglungsod (city council
or kagawads) through the affirmative vote of a majority of its members
present and there being a quorum. The approved ordinance shall be
submitted to the city mayor who shall return it within ten (10) days from

9
http://lawtechworld.com/blog/blog/2017/08/2014-case-digest-vivares-v-st-theresas-college
 receipt thereof his veto or approval.
(d) Provincial ordinance—is enacted by the sangguniang panlalawigan
(provincial council) by a vote of a majority of the members present

F. Treaty
n A treaty, a binding formal agreement, contract, or other written instrument that
establishes obligations between two or more subjects of international
law, primarily states and international organizations.10
n The term treaty is used generically to describe a variety of instruments, including
conventions, agreements, arrangements, protocols, covenants, charters, and acts. In
the strict sense of the term, however, many such instruments are not treaties. The
key distinguishing feature of a treaty is that it is binding.11
n Treaties are expected to be executed in good faith, in keeping with the principle
of pacta sunt servanda a Latin phrase which means “agreements must be kept,”
arguably the oldest principle of international law. Without this principle, which is
explicitly mentioned in many agreements, treaties would be neither binding nor
enforceable.12
Examples:
o The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
 The Philippines’ sovereign claim over the West Philippine Sea where the
Kalayaan Islands Group and the Scarborough Shoal lie is based on the
maritime limits of archipelagic states defined in the UNCLOS. Under the
UNCLOS, the West Philippine Sea forms part of our Exclusive Economic
Zone. China asserts its historical claim of sovereignty over the same
maritime area to be part of the South China Sea, using as basis the 9-
Dashed line. Ironically, China is also a signatory to the UNCLOS. China
prohibited fishing by Filipino fishermen, caused fishing vessels to exploit
marine life, and built artificial islands that destructed reefs in the area.
The Philippines instituted arbitration proceedings before the
International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea. The ITLOS held that
Philippines has rightful claims over the WPS however, China rejected the
arbitration ruling.
o Extradition Treaty between the Philippines and the United States of America
 An extradition treaty is an international agreement in which the requested
state agrees, at the request of the requesting state and under specified
conditions, to turn over persons who are within its jurisdiction and who
are charged with crimes against, or are fugitives from, the requesting
state.13 The treaty provides among others what are considered as
extraditable offenses, provides for the procedure of extradition, and other
provisions which the Philippines and the US agreed to.

~oOo~

10
https://www.britannica.com/event/Lisbon-Treaty
11
Supra.
12
Supra.
13
https://lawphil.net/international/treaties/extrad.html