Interviews of SC associate justice candidates conclude

The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) on Thursday ended its two days of public interviews of candidates for the vacant Supreme Court associate justice post. The position was left vacant when then Associate Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno was appointed the Court's Chief Justice.

 

Eight candidates were interviewed on this last day, while four of the 15 aspirants were interviewed last Tuesday. Three others - De La Salle University Law Dean Jose Manuel I. Diokno, Securities and Exchange Commission chair Teresita J. Herbosa, and former Ateneo Law Dean Cesar L. Villanueva - no longer had to be interviewed as they had been interviewed last July 2012 for the then vacant chief justice post.

 

One of those interviewed on Thursday was chief government peace negotiator Marvic Leonen, who was among those who negotiated the historic framework agreement signed between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

 

Leonen assured the panel that the peace process would not get derailed if he did quit as the government's chief peace negotiator and gets appointed an associate justice. "Each member of my panel is capable of chairing the [peace] panel," he said.

 

Leonen was also the University of the Philippine’s Law dean, and it was in that capacity that he and a number of UP law professors were admonished by the Supreme Court last year for calling for the resignation of SC Associate Justice Mariano del Castillo over plagiarism issues.

 

Given this run-in with the SC, how would he work with the other magistrates if he does get appointed to the High Court? "You should respect those who disagree with you. I was able to negotiate with the MILF," explained Leonen.

 

He added, "If I become an associate justice, I want my decisions to be criticized. At least I know they are read.  And also, so that I can respond and so that there will be a lively exchange of ideas."

 

Also interviewed was former Judge Adoracion Cruz-Avisado of the General Santos City regional trial court. She said the high court's public information office must balance the public's need for judicial transparency and the need for confidentiality.

 

On supposed "flip-flopping" on the court’s final decision, Avisado said once a ruling is final, it should remain that way. She also stressed the need for law education in the Philippines to focus on ethics, as too much emphasis is placed on passing the Bar Exams.

 

Also interviewed were CA Associate Justices Isaias Dicdican and Magdangal M. De Leon. 

 

In his interview, De Leon said there was a need for judges to quickly read, analyze, and process cases for their speedy dispensation. He also suggested further training for members of the Office of the Solicitor General, which represents the government in cases.

 

Representing the JBC and presiding over the interviews were former Supreme Court associate justice Regino Hermosisima, former Court of Appeals associate justice Aurora Lagman, and Milagros Fernan-Cayosa. — DVM/HS, GMA News