Professional Documents
Culture Documents
(JBC)
Judicial and Bar Council
The Judicial and Bar Council’s (JBC) primary task is to
recommend appointees to the Judiciary and the Office of the
Ombudsman for the President’s perusal. The council aims to
enhance the quality of the search, screening, and selection
process, as well as insulate the process from undue influence
of any kind.
Ruling
The plea that SC would back off from assuming jurisdiction over the petition on the ground
that it involves a political question has to be brushed aside. It has long lost its appeal
especially in light of Section 1 of Article VIII of the 1987 Constitution. The term "political
question" connotes what it means in ordinary parlance, namely, a question of policy. It refers
"to those questions which under the Constitution are to be decided by the people in their
sovereign capacity; or in regard to which full discretionary authority has been delegated to
the legislative or executive branch of the government." Petitioners claim that under Section
10, Article X of the 1987 Constitution they have a right to approve or disapprove R.A. No.
8528 in a plebiscite before it can be enforced. It ought to be self-evident that whether or not
petitioners have the said right is a legal not a political question. For whether or not laws
passed by Congress comply with the requirements of the Constitution pose questions that
this Court alone can decide.
Composition
1 Chief Justice and 14 Associate Justices
(Sec. 4, Article VIII, 1987 Phil Constitution)
Mode of Sitting
Supreme Court may
1) Sit en banc
2) Or, in its discretion, in
divisions of three, five, or
seven Members. Section 8.
JUDICIAL AND BAR
COUNCIL
Any vacancy 1. The
shall Judicial
be filled within ninety days
fromBar
and the Council
occurrence thereof.
is under the
supervision of the SC. A. Is
Appointment
The Members of the Supreme Court shall be
appointed by the President from a list of at
least three nominees prepared by the Judicial
and Bar Council for every vacancy, without
need of confirmation by the Commission on
Appointments.
(Sec. 9, Article VIII, 1987 Phil Constitution)
Qualifications
Members of the Supreme Court are required to
have proven competence, integrity, probity
and independence; they must be natural-born
citizens of the Philippines, at least forty years
old, with at least fifteen years of experience as
a judge of a lower court or law practice in the
Philippines.
(Sec. 7, Article VIII, 1987 Phil Constitution)
Salaries
1) Salaries of SC Justices and judges of lower
courts shall be fixed by law.
1) Only by IMPEACHMENT.
All cases involving the legality of any tax, impost, assessment, or toll, or
any penalty imposed in relation thereto;
MANZANO Issue
166. SCRA 246 (1988) Whether the downgrading of Santiago City from an independent
component city to a mere component city requires the approval of
the people of Santiago City in a plebiscite.
Ruling
Yes, the Constitution requires a plebiscite. Section 10, Article X of
the 1987 Constitution provides: No province, city, municipality, or
barangay may be created, or divided, merged, abolished, or its
boundary substantially altered except in accordance with the criteria
established in the local government code and subject to approval by
a majority of the votes cast in a plebiscite in the political units
directly affected.
Manner of sitting and votes required
(Sec. 4, Article VIII, 1987 Phil Constitution)
(Rule 56, Sec. 7 (1997 Rules on Civil Procedure)
(Rule 125, Sec. 3 (2000 Rules on Criminal Procedure)
Sources:
Political Law by Isagani A. Cruz
The 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines (A Commentary) by Joaquin G. Bernas, S.J.
Political Law Reviewer (Ateneo Central Bar Operations 2001)