A cacophony of discordant voices were echoed over the issue of proposing amendments to the 1987 constitution to clip the powers of the Supreme Court and to allow the President Benigno Simeon Aquino to run for a second term. The 1987 constitution allows amendments to the constitution. It is within the power of the legislative branch to…
Nine years ago to this month, the 9th Congress of the Republic of the Philippines decreed the death of the Central Bank created under RA 265 and resurrected it through Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas under Republic Act 7653. The demise of the old bank regulator was never explained by the proponents to the public – it was better…
During my active years in trial, I have a client who issued as payment for his rental a check without funds. The apartment owner was the late Chief Justice Felix Makasiar. My client left the premises and would like to redeem his check by paying cash. The late chief justice would want that aside from the…
Not in my lifetime did I dream that lead counsel Justice Serafin Cuevas could be this simpleton to commit the blunder of a neophyte trial lawyer — calling a witness he did not prep and ask her questions the answers of which he had not expected. Or perhaps, the veteran lawyer and jurist was misled by his…
The Corona Dilemma I am writing a book about the impeachment of Chief Justice Renato Corona because this historical political exercise effectively divides the nation between those who believe in the myth that there is nothing wrong with the judiciary and those who believe that there is something wrong with it and CJ Corona represents everything…
Last clear chance is a doctrine in torts law wherein a plaintiff can recover damages from defendant even if the plaintiff was the one negligent if he can show that the defendant had the last clear opportunity to avoid the accident. Example: Driver ‘A’ was drunk and was zigzagging on the road. Driver ‘B’ was on the same…
Defense lawyer Serafin Cuevas, my venerable professor in civil procedure described the position of Senator Frank Drilon that the impeachment body was beyond the reach of the Supreme Court as “bankrupt” and without jurisprudential support. He gloated over the Francisco v. House of Representatives as an authority to the proposition that the Court has an oversight function…
On April 15, 1970, Congressman Gerald Ford (R-Mich) rose to demand an investigation of Associate Justice William O. Douglas on four specific charges: 1. Douglas had sold an article to Fact magazine and had received payment for it when the publisher, Ralph Ginzburg, was involved in litigation in federal courts which ultimately reached the Supreme Court. …
A week before the impeachment trial of CJ Renato Corona, I emailed Congressman Neil Tupas, Jr., through his House website. My email could have been routed to his “spam” folder because I have not received any response; or simply, the team thought that they have every base already covered hence an outside help is not needed. But…
Whatever goodwill Senator Juan Ponce Enrile had earned during the first day of the impeachment proceedings totally evaporated today when he ruled that the motions for “subpoena duces tecum and ad testificandum” filed by the prosecution against the family of Chief Justice Renato Corona are covered by “self-incrimination clause,” “marital and familial privilege” and therefore the Senate cannot issue the subpoenas. …
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