The creation of the combined 150 positions for judges-at-large for regional trial courts and municipal trial courts will substantially declog and speed up the resolutions of cases in various courts nationwide, Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez said on Sunday.
“The creation of 150 positions of judges-at-large is a welcome development as it gives the Supreme Court the needed flexibility to immediately assign judges where they are badly needed,” Marquez said, even the Supreme Court welcomed President Duterte’s signing last Aug. 30 of Republic Act 11459 that created Judges-At-Large Act 2019 intended to address the problem of congestion of court cases.
The newly signed law would lead to the creation of 100 and 50 judges-at-large for RTCs and MTCs, respectively.
“We still have areas where the courts are overburdened. We can easily assign judges-at-large as assisting judges,” Marquez said.
According to Marquez, those who would be appointed as judges-at-large could also be temporarily assigned to vacant courts where they could act as the presiding judges, while waiting for the appointment and assumption of the permanent judges.
Under the law, these judges would have no permanent salas and may be assigned to assist judges. They would be entitled to salaries, privileges, allowances, benefits, rank and title befitting of either an RTC judge or MTC judge, depending on where they were assigned.
Only natural-born citizens, at least 30 years old and practicing law or held a public office that requires admission to law practice for at least five years can be appointed MTC judges-at-large.