Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta and several other Supreme Court justice witnessed on Sunday the start of the 2019 Bar examinations held at University of Sto. Tomas in Espana, Manila, which proceeded peacefully and without a hitch.
Aside from Peralta and Associate Justice Estela Perlas-Bernabe, the chairperson of the 2019 Bar Examinations, also went to the UST, which served as the venue of the Bar exams for the four Sundays of November (Nov. 3, 10, 17 and 24). Also present were Associate Justices Mario Victor “Marvic” Leonen, Alfred Benjamin Caguioa, and Jose Reyes Jr. and Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez.
SC Public Information Office Chief Brian Keith Hosaka said the SC magistrates expressed wished them luck.
“All systems go for the 2019 Bar Exams. The Justices CJ Peralta, Bernabe, Leonen, Caguioa, and Jose Reyes Jr. went around UST and wished the BAR examinees luck,” Hosaka said in a text message to reporters.
“They are all hoping that many will be able to pass the BAR Exams because we need more lawyers in the country,” Hosaka said, noting that at present there are about 65,0000 active lawyer-members of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.
The Bar exam would cover eight subjects namely Political Law, Labor Law, Civil Law, Taxation Law, Mercantile Law, Criminal Law, Remedial Law, and Legal and Judicial Ethics and Practical Exercises.
The 8,245 number of Bar examinees this year is higher than the 8,155 number of Bar candidates last year.
Out of the 8,155 who took the exams last year, only 1,800 or 22.07 percent passed.
Meanwhile, the Manila City Police District said the start of the Bar exams on Sunday was generally peaceful.
The MPD has deployed more than 600 personnel in and around the UST to ensure the security of the bar takers.
The MPD also set up command posts while the city government also provided additional personnel to ensure the successful conduct of the Bar examinations.
The authorities also closed to traffic P. Noval, Dapitan, AH Lacson Avenue and Espana Boulevard from 5 a.m. to 8a.m. and from 5 p.m. onwards.
The road closure will also be implemented in the remaining Sundays – on November 10, 17 and 24 — of the examination. Parking on the said roads were also prohibited.
Earlier, the SC announced that a total of 8, 245 examinees are set to take the first Sunday of the Bar.
This include a total of 168 from the University of the Philippines College of Law who were ferried into UST early Sunday morning onboard three buses.
The first Sunday of the Bar covers Political and International Law in the morning and Labor Law and Social Legislation in the afternoon.
The second Sunday will cover Civil Law and Taxation while the third Sunday is Mercantile Law and Criminal Law.
The last Sunday will cover Remedial Law and Legal and Judicial Ethics. In the 2018 Bar examinations, 1, 800 of the 8, 158 examinees passed what is dubbed as the most grueling licensure examinations in the country with a graduate from Ateneo de Manila University topping the exams.
Meanwhile, Malacañang has urged more than 8,000 aspiring lawyers to “rise to the challenge” as Bar examinations began on Sunday.
“To our bar candidates, good luck as we wish you all the best. Believe in yourselves and give your best shot. Make your family, school, and community proud,” Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said in a statement.
“This is your moment. Rise to the challenge!” he added.
The aspiring lawyers will take their Bar exams for three Sundays at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila during the whole month of November.
“We offer our sincere prayers to our legal aspirants who toiled day and night poring over their law books, court decisions, and jurisprudence in preparation for this life-changing moment,” Panelo said, who also serves as President Rodrigo Duterte’s chief legal counsel.