Some 10,483 examinees showed up on the first day of 2024 Bar Examinations conducted in several local testing centers across the country, the Supreme Court (SC) said on Sunday.
The High Tribunal had an initial pool of 12,246 registrants for this year’s digitalized examinations chaired by SC Associate Justice Mario V. Lopez.
“During the application period, many prospective examinees were still completing their final year of law school or refresher courses. Unfortunately, some did not graduate and/or encountered unforeseen circumstances that led to withdrawals,” he said.
Lopez shared among the examinees this year were 155 senior citizens, with the oldest at 78 years old, as well as 313 examinees with special needs.
The application period spanned from January to April to give ample time for applicants to gather requirements and to avoid last minute rush, according to the SC magistrate.
“Regionalization has allowed us to establish 13 local testing centers across the country… two in Mindanao, three in Visayas, two in Luzon, and six in the National Capital Region,” Lopez added.
A total of 2,316 personnel were deployed across all testing centers to ensure the smooth conduct of the exams, he noted.
The first day covered Political and Public International Laws, as well as Commercial and Taxation Laws while Civil Law, Labor Law, and Social Legislations are scheduled on September 11; and Criminal Law, Remedial Law, Legal and Judicial Ethics with Practical Exercises are set on September 15.
Being one of the most difficult examinations, Lopez is also encouraging the examinees to balance physical and mental health.
Lopez underscored that the use of multiple examiners for each subject has accelerated the checking process as they anticipate releasing the results by early December.
He confirmed that the oath-taking ceremony and signing of the Roll of Attorneys are already scheduled on January 24, 2025.
Meanwhile, Lopez is hopeful that the remaining examination dates will also be a “sunny day” as two more tropical cyclones are expected to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) this month.
“We have contingency plans in case of typhoons or disastrous circumstances… This is something that is beyond our control. The local government is cooperating with us in preparation of this kind of circumstances,” he told Manila Standard.
