THE Judicial Branch

The Philippine Judiciary is a hierarchical organization consisting of four levels, with the Supreme Court at the top tier exercising administrative supervision over all courts and court personnel and wielding jurisdiction to “review, revise, reverse, modify, or affirm on appeal or certiorari, as the law or the Rules of Court may provide, final judgments or orders of lower courts” cases specified in Article VIII, section 5(2) of the 1987 Constitution.  Within each level, the courts are coordinate and equal and do not enjoy review jurisdiction over each other’s decisions, resolutions, writs, and processes. The third level courts are collegiate courts, working in divisions of at least three Justices; the second and first level courts are single-judge courts and are the trial courts and finders of fact at the first instance.

Adjudication of Cases

Under Article VIII, §1, the judicial power is vested in “one Supreme Court and in such lower courts as may be established by law.” This judicial power is exercised through the judiciary’s primary role of adjudication, which includes the “duty of the courts of justice to settle actual controversies involving rights which are legally demandable and enforceable, and to determine whether or not there has been a grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction on the part of any branch or instrumentality of the government.”

The Supreme Court

At the top tier of the judicial hierarchy is the Supreme Court. It is presided over by a Chief Justice and is composed of 14 other Justices. The Court may adjudicate En Banc or in divisions of three, five or seven Justices each. Currently, the Supreme Court is organized into the En Banc and three divisions of five (5) Justices each.

Under the Constitution, it has supervision over the courts, judges, and court personnel. Its members sit until retirement at age 70 or unless sooner removed by reason of ill health, death or conviction after impeachment.

Decisions of the Court, whether sitting en banc or in division, are imbued with authoritativeness and, unless reconsidered by the Court, are considered part of the law of the land.

The Supreme Court has both original and appellate jurisdiction.  It exercises original jurisdiction (cases are directly filed with it in the first instance without first passing through any of the lower courts) over cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, and over petitions for certiorari, prohibition, mandamus, quo warranto, and habeas corpus. (Art. VIII, §5(1)). It also has original jurisdiction over writs of amparo, habeas data and the environmental writ of kalikasan. It exercises appellate jurisdiction to review, revise, reverse, modify, or affirm final judgments, and orders of the lower courts in: 

(a)    All cases in which the constitutionality or validity of any treaty, international or executive agreement, law, presidential decree, proclamation, order, instruction, ordinance, or regulation is in question.

(b)    All cases involving the legality of any tax, impost, assessment, or toll, or any penalty imposed in relation thereto.

(c)    All cases in which the jurisdiction of any lower court is in issue.

(d)    All criminal cases in which the penalty imposed is reclusion perpetua or higher.

(e)    All cases in which only an error or question of law is involved. (Art. VIII, §5(1), (2))

The Supreme Court has the power to promulgate rules concerning the protection and enforcement of constitutional rights, pleading, practice, and procedure in all courts (Constitution 1987, Art. VIII, Sec. 5[5]). These rules shall provide a simplified and inexpensive procedure for the speedy disposition of cases, be uniform for all courts of the same grade, and shall not diminish, increase or modify substantive rights (Art. VIII, Sec. 5[5]).

The Supreme Court, sitting En Banc, has administrative supervision over all courts and the personnel thereof (Constitution 1987, Art. VIII, Sec. 6). Justices of the third level courts and judges of the second and first level courts are appointed by the President of the Philippines from a shortlist provided by the Judicial and Bar Council. The Supreme Court can however assign temporarily judges of lower courts to other stations as public interest may request. Such temporary assignment shall not exceed six months without the consent of the judge concerned (Constitution 1987, Art. VIII, Sec. 5[3]). The Supreme Court has supervision over the Judicial and Bar Council, which has the principal function of recommending appointees to the judiciary. (Art. VIII, Sec. 8[5]).The Supreme Court appoints all officials and employees of the Judiciary in accordance with the Civil Service Law (Art. VIII, Sec. 5[6]). The Supreme Court can also order a change of venue or place of trial to avoid a miscarriage of justice (Constitution 1987, Art. VIII, Sec. 5[4]).

The Supreme Court En Banc has the power to discipline judges of all the lower courts or order their dismissal by a vote of a majority of the members who actually took part in the deliberation on the issue in the case and voted thereon (Constitution 1987, Art. VIII, Sec. 11). The Supreme Court has supervision over the mandatory organization of all lawyers, the Integrated Bar of the Philippines. (Art. VIII, Sec. 5[5]). It  also has the sole power to admit qualified candidates to the practice of law and has the power to promulgate the rules  necessary for that purpose (Art. VIII, Sec. 5[5]).

The Judiciary shall enjoy fiscal autonomy. Appropriations for the Judiciary may not be reduced by the legislature below the amount appropriated for the previous year and, after approval, shall be automatically and regularly released (Art. VIII, Sec. 3).

The Supreme Court is given the authority to promulgate rules concerning legal assistance to the underprivileged (Art. VIII, Sec. 5[5]). This would be consistent with the guarantee under Article III, section 11 that “(f)ree access to the courts and quasi-judicial bodies and adequate legal assistance shall not be denied to any person by reason of poverty.”

It also has the authority to disapprove the rules of procedures of quasi-judicial bodies; existing rules of procedure shall remain effective however unless disapproved by the Supreme Court (Art. VIII, Sec. 5[5]); Antonio v. Commission on Elections; 373 Phil. 680 [1999]).

The Supreme Court, sitting En Banc, is the sole judge of all contests, relation to the election, returns, and qualifications of the President or Vice-President and may promulgate its rules for the purpose (Art. VII, Sec. 4). Faced with an appropriate case, the Court En Banc sits as a Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET).

The Senate and the House of Representatives shall each have an Electoral Tribunal which shall be the sole judge of all contests relating to the elections, returns, and qualifications of their respective Members. Each Electoral Tribunal shall be composed of nine Members, three of whom shall be Justices of the Supreme Court to be designated by the Chief Justice, and the remaining six shall be Members of the Senate or the House of Representatives, as the case may be, who shall be chosen on the basis of proportional representation from the political parties and the parties or organizations registered under the party-list system represented therein. The senior Justice in the Electoral Tribunal shall be its Chair (Art. VI, Sec. 17).

The Court of Appeals

At the third tier of the hierarchy are three collegiate courts, one of which is the Court of Appeals (CA). The CA is the primary appellate court of the Philippines, exercising its powers, functions and duties through 23 divisions of three members each. It sits in three stations--the City of Manila, Cebu and Cagayan de Oro. The CA’s 18th, 19th, and 20th Divisions comprise the CA Visayas Station and are located in Cebu City, while its 21st, 22nd, and 23rd Divisions comprise the CA Mindanao Station and are based in Cagayan de Oro City. The first 17 Stations are located in the City of Manila.

The CA is assigned to review cases elevated to it from the Regional Trial Courts (RTCs) as well as quasi-judicial agencies such as the Civil Service Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission, National Labor Relations Commission, and the Land Registration Authority. The CA also reviews cases where the sentence is reclusion perpetua or life imprisonment, as well as decisions of the Office of the Ombudsman in administrative disciplinary cases. The CA is a collegial court and sits en banc only to exercise administrative, ceremonial or other non-adjudicatory functions. Being an appellate court, it resolves cases based on the record of the proceedings from the trial court; in certain cases, however, the CA also conducts hearings and receives evidence such as, for instance, in applications for the writ of Amparo or Habeas Data, whether in the exercise of original jurisdiction or on remand from the Supreme Court.

The CA also has the original and exclusive jurisdiction to issue freeze orders over any monetary instrument or property under the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2001 or RA 9160. It is also the court with original and exclusive jurisdiction to allow surveillance and monitoring of communications under the Human Security Act of 2007 or RA 9372.

Also at the third tier are two special courts, the Sandiganbayan and the Court of Tax Appeals, which, like the CA are collegial courts. But unlike the CA, both have very specific jurisdictions.

The Court of Tax Appeals

The Court of Tax Appeals is a special collegiate court composed of a Presiding Justice and eight Associate Justices; it may sit en banc or in three divisions of three Justices each. RA 9282, which took effect on March 30, 2004, has elevated the status of the CTA to that of the Court of Appeals.

The CTA has exclusive jurisdiction to review on appeal decisions in cases involving disputed assessments, refunds of internal revenue taxes, fees, or other charges, penalties in relation thereto, or other matters arising under the National Internal Revenue Code. It also exercises original jurisdiction over all criminal offenses arising from violations of the Tax or Tariff Codes and other laws administered by the Bureau of Internal Revenue or the Bureau of Customs.

The Sandiganbayan

The Sandiganbayan is an anti-graft court that has jurisdiction to try public officers with a salary grade of 27 and above (including any co-accused who are private persons) charged with criminal cases involving violation of the country’s laws on graft and corruption, particularly RA 3019, as amended, otherwise known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and corresponding civil cases for recovery of civil liability arising from the offense. Likewise, the Sandiganbayan is vested with appellate jurisdiction over final judgments, resolutions or orders of the RTC whether in the exercise of their original or appellate jurisdiction over crimes and civil cases falling within the original exclusive jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan but which were committed by public officers below Salary Grade 27.

Private individuals can be tried in cases before the Sandiganbayan if they are alleged to be in conspiracy with the public officer. The decisions of the Sandiganbayan are directly appealable to the Supreme Court.

Prior to April 16, 2015, the Sandiganbayan was composed of a Presiding Justice and 14 Associate Justices who sit in five divisions of three Justices each. On April 16, 2015,  Republic Act No. 10660, “An Act Strengthening the Functional and Structural Organization of the Sandiganbayan,” expanding the Sandiganbayan and enabling it to speed up disposition of high-profile cases was passed by Congress and signed into law by the President.

Under RA 10660, the appointment of six additional justices comprising two additional divisions are provided. With the operation of RA 10660, there are now 21 Sandiganbayan justices sitting in seven divisions of three members each (Section 1 of RA 10660).

The Trial Courts of the First and Second Level

In the first tier are the Courts of the First Level consisting of the Metropolitan Trial Courts (MeTCs), which are established in Metropolitan Manila; the Municipal Trial Courts in Cities (MTCCs), in every city which does not form part of Metropolitan Manila; the Municipal Trial Courts (MTCs), established in each of the other cities or municipalities; and Municipal Circuit Trial Courts (MTCCs), created in each circuit comprising such cities and/or municipalities as grouped by law.

At the same level are the Shari’a Circuit Courts (SCC). Shari’a Courts have been established in Islamic regions and provinces to interpret and apply the Code of Muslim Personal Laws (under Presidential Decree No. 1083). Their decisions are appealable to the Shari’a Appellate Court which, however, has yet to be organized.

The second tier consists of the Regional Trial Courts (RTCs) established in each of the thirteen (13) regions in the Philippines. Each RTC may be composed of a single sala or of several branches. RTCs have both original and appellate jurisdiction. In exercising the former jurisdiction, RTCs act as trial courts receiving evidence in the first instance from the parties to a case falling within its jurisdiction; in exercising the latter jurisdiction, the RTCs act as a court of appeal over the decisions of the Courts of the First Level.

Also on the same level are the Shari’a District Courts (SDC), whose decisions are appealable to the still-to-be organized Shari’a Appellate Court. Pending such organization, SDC Decisions are reviewed by the Supreme Court through the special civil action of certiorari under Rule 65 if the issue is one of jurisdiction or through a petition for review on certiorari by way of appeal under Rule 45 of the Rules of Court.