The Judicial and Bar Council will meet today (Monday) to open the search for the next chief justice following the ouster of Maria Lourdes Sereno as top magistrate.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, an ex-officio member of JBC, said the seven-member council will adopt a resolution formally opening the nomination and acceptance of application for the chief justice post.
Guevarra said the start of the vetting process is pursuant to the order of the Supreme Court in its May 11 decision that invalidated the appointment of Sereno in 2012.
“The JBC will meet on Monday to take up the chief justice vacancy. It will direct the publication of a notice stating that it will now accept applications or nominations for the vacant chief justice position,” Guevarra said.
The JBC’s move comes after the Supreme Court issued an entry of judgment late last week, which declared the ruling on the quo warranto case as final and executory that can no longer be subject of further appeal.
Voting 8-6, as they did in the May 11 decision, justices decided to deny Sereno’s motion for reconsideration for lack of merit and failure to raise new arguments.
The Court upheld its finding that Sereno’s appointment in 2012 was invalid and that she was disqualified for the chief justice post due to lack of proven integrity because of her failure to file all her Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net worth when she was still teaching law in the University of the Philippines and when she applied for the chief justice post.
The 1987 Constitution requires that the chief justice position be filled within 90 days from vacancy or from the finality of the Supreme Court ruling last Tuesday, June 19.
This means President Duterte needs to appoint Sereno’s replacement by Sept. 16.
The Constitution also requires the chief justice, just like associate justices of Supreme Court, to be a natural-born citizen, to be at least 40 years old, to have experience as a judge or in private law practice for at least 15 years, and to be a person with proven competence, integrity, probity and independence.
Acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio, the most senior magistrate in the Court, has already declared he will decline all nominations for the top judicial post.
Carpio will sit as ex-officio chair of the JBC with Guevarra and Oriental Mindoro Rep. and House justice committee chairman Reynaldo Umali as ex-officio members.
The regular members of the council are retired SC justice Jose Catral-Mendoza, retired judge Toribio Ilao, and lawyers Jose Mejia and Milagros Fernan-Cayosa.
After Carpio, the two most senior justices in the Court—Associate Justices Presbitero Velasco Jr. and Teresita Leonardo-De Castro—are expected to retire in July and October this year, respectively.
The fourth member in seniority rank, Associate Justice Diosdado Peralta, still has four years before retirement.
Apart from the chief justice post, the JBC will also tackle the upcoming vacancies to be left by the retirement of Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales and SC Associate Justice Presbitero Velasco Jr. in July and August respectively.
The council conducted public interviews for both positions last week.