Chief Justice urges OFWs to file complaints vs. ambulance chasers

Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo has urged overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to file complaints against lawyers who solicit clients and urge them to pursue claims.

He warned that erring Bar members have no place in the justice system.

“If you’ve seen that some of our OFWs and workers are being exploited by these ambulance-chasing lawyers, you are not estopped from filing a complaint with the Court or with the Integrated Bar of the Philippines,” he said in a statement.

“And then we can take action. But we want to make sure that the complainants are ready to provide evidence,” he added.

The Chief Justice said this during a meeting with Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Secretary Maria Susan Ople and other officials on Monday.

For his part, DMW Assistant Secretary Jerome Pampolina stressed that lawyers urging OFWs to file claims is a real and urgent problem. He proposed to intensify measures to instill discipline among lawyers against all unethical acts.

Gesmundo, meanwhile, said that Court is working with the DMW to reach out to OFWs and their families to ensure that access to justice is available to them. — Joahna Lei Casilao/BM, GMA Integrated News