Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo has reaffirmed the Supreme Court’s (SC) commitment to the rule of law and it “stands in unity” with members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) “in its quest for the best possible future for our region.”
“At this point in our history, I lead a strong and united Court that is firmly committed to protect the rule of law, to guarantee the rights of our people, and to honor our obligations to the larger
community of nations,” Gesmundo said, in his speech before his ASEAN counterparts during the 10th Council of ASEAN Chief Justices meeting held in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia last November 4.
“The Philippine Supreme Court stands in unity with our ASEAN neighbors in our common quest for the best possible future for our region,” he added.
After two years of meeting with the member states virtually, the annual meeting was finally conducted in person this year in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with the Judiciary of Malaysia as host from November 4 to November 5, 2022.
Gesmundo also highlighted the procedural rules promulgated and the projects undertaken by the Philippine Supreme Court in 2022, namely: the Amendments to Rule 140 of the Rules of Court, the Rule on Facilitated Naturalization of Refugees and Stateless Persons, the Rule on Expedited Procedures in the First Level Courts, the Benchbook for Family Courts, the Benchbook for Commerical Courts, and the Rule on International Child Abduction Cases.
Likewise, the Filipino top magistrate discussed the recently launched Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations 2022-2027 (SPJI), the Supreme Court’s blueprint for action in the next five years.
The Chief Justice described the SPJI as “a documentation of the roadmap for both our internal and external stakeholders in groundbreaking reform initiatives targeted to achieve three (3) objectives: Efficiency, Innovation, and Access, to bring about the overall goal of delivering responsive and real-time justice.”
Gesmundo also tackled the Court’s efforts to make the lawyers’ Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability up to date and relevant through revisions that include adding a chapter on the responsible use of social media, among others.
Gesmundo underscored the Court’s shift to technology-based systems and infrastructure, as illustrated by the high success rate of online hearings following the Court’s issuance of
the Guidelines for the Conduct of Video Conference Hearings (VCH).
“Seeing the benefits we have reaped from VCH, we will submit a Concept Note to propose, as a possible area for ASEAN collaboration under the Working Group on Future Work, the adoption of common principles and guidelines for the conduct of video conference hearings involving parties and witnesses outside the territory of a State where the action is pending, but still within the ASEAN,” Gesmundo stressed.
Joining the Chief Justice were Senior Associate Justice Marvic M.V.F. Leonen, Philippine Representative to the Working Group (WG) on Case Management and Court Technology; Associate Justice Mario V. Lopez; Associate Justice Jhosep Y. Lopez, Philippine Representative to the WG on ASEAN Judiciaries Portal; Associate Justice Japar B. Dimaampao; Associate Justice Jose Midas P. Marquez, Philippine Representative to the WG on ASEAN+ Meetings; Associate Justice Antonio T. Kho, Jr.; Associate Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh, Philippine Co-Representative to the WG on Study Group on Future Work on CACJ; Philippine Judicial Academy Chancellor Rosmari D. Carandang, Philippine Representative to the WG on Judicial Education and Training; Court Administrator Raul B. Villanueva, Philippine Alternate Representative to the WG on Facilitating Civil Processes within ASEAN; Court of Appeals Associate Justice Angelene Mary W. Quimpo-Sale, Philippine Representative to the WG to the International Hague Network of Judges; Deputy Clerk of Court and Judicial Reform Program Administrator Laura C.H. del Rosario, Philippine Alternate Representative to the WG on ASEAN+ Meetings, Chairperson, Philippine Permanent Secretariat on CACJ Affairs, and Liaison Officer, CACJ Philippines; Deputy Clerk of Court and Chief Technology Officer Atty. Jed Sherwin G. Uy, Philippine Alternate Representative to the WG on Case Management and Court Technology and Member, Philippine Secretariat on CACJ Affairs; and other Court Attorneys.
