‘Justice is hope’: Here are Leonen’s 9 promises as aspiring chief justice

'Whoever is appointed, this reality remains: our people still suffer.... On our watch, we cannot fail them. I will not fail them,' says Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen

MANILA, Philippines – Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen gave not one, not two, but nine promises on Thursday, October 22, as he vies to become the country’s 28th Supreme Court (SC) chief justice.

Leonen was the first of five candidates to face the Judicial and Bar Council for its public interviews. Leonen said his plan includes a promise to enhance the expertise of judges and ensure that justice is accessible to everyone — especially the marginalized.

1. Improvement of judges
   • Continuation of Unified Legal Aid Service (mandatory free legal service of lawyers), developmental and social change lawyering, program of remote hearings and translation.
   • More exposure for judges to jails and communities
   • “Judges at every level must remain open to the possibility that their premises are mistaken,” Leonen said.
     
2. Transparency in resolving cases
   • When a case is submitted for decision, Leonen said the parties should be told the date by which the SC is expected to decide on it. If the date won’t be met, the parties should be told why.
     
3. Continued digitalization of courts
   • Leonen said the entire justice system should be digitalized — from the Department of Justice’s prosecution, trials at regional trial courts, to the appellate courts and SC.
     
4. Accountability in public office
   • Quicker resolution of corruption cases
   • “Every case already filed by the Office of the Ombudsman arising from large-scale corruption decided at first instance before the end of 2027, the horizon of our Strategic Plan,” Leonen said.
     
5. Consultation with business sector
   • Review of regulatory actions and reporting of alleged exactions or extortions by any court official or employee
     
6. Creation of more courts
   • Leonen said at least 10 halls of justice should be built in the country’s poorest provinces.
   • “Where no building will ever be close enough, our court will travel, as it did from Bongao to Simunul, Tawi-Tawi,” he added.
     
7. Court’s independence
   • If he becomes chief justice, Leonen said the SC will publicize any attempts at interference, who the court officials and employees met, about what, and what was asked.
     
8. Creation of laws for those who need it
   • Review Batas Pambansa Bilang 129 and consolidate the Rules of Court and the special rules into a Philippine Code of Pleading and Practice.
   • Rules on the customary law of the indigenous peoples
   • Writ of Kalayaan, which will compel “agencies responsible for a detention facility to act on its conditions, together and in the open”
     
9. A review of the legal profession
   • Review on the admission to the Bar
   • Improvements for Shari’ah (Islamic law) counselors and lawyers

Leonen said he will continue Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo’s plan to innovate the judiciary.

“I offer all these, with my faults and weaknesses, which I constantly try to overcome. The ideas we debate today and the personalities who will appear before you pale in comparison to this: our people still suffer,” the aspiring chief justice said.

“Whoever is appointed, this reality remains: our people still suffer. Yet they still come to our courts, holding their folders and their receipts, because they have decided that this is where their grievance belongs. On our watch, we cannot fail them. I will not fail them,” he added.

What type of chief justice will Leonen be?

Leonen said that in these times of political and economic challenges, the Philippines needs a chief magistrate who is independent and ready to make hard decisions for the people.

He believes a chief justice should protect the confidentiality of SC deliberations, encourage other justices to speak up about their opinions, explain the Court’s decisions fully, and protect dissent.

“All this because the judiciary should be where government is held to its conscience, the Constitution. A judiciary beholden to powerful interests — past, present, or future — does not deserve its name,” the senior magistrate said.

Leonen said he will be, if ever, an independent chief justice, as proven by his track record. He said he has been senior associate justice for nearly 14 years and has worked with 5 chief justices and 37 associate justices.

According to him, he has been an acting chief justice on many occasions and has chaired the SC’s 2nd and 3rd Divisions, among others.

“I have voted, on principle, against the legal positions of the President who appointed me, and of every President who has sat since. I have also written unanimous decisions that clarified the framework and limits of the discretion of powerful departments and officials in government,” Leonen said.

“I do not say this to my credit. It is the only assurance worth anything to the public,” he added

Leonen said the court’s success will be measured by whether the poorest litigants can rely on it, if they can tell their families the justice system gave them a fighting chance in a case. He also believes that court decisions should reach and be understood by everyone.

The chief magistrate added that lawyers should think of empowering people. As officers of the court, Leonen said they should explain what the law is, why the law is the way it is, and what could be done about it.

“Justice is hope. Hope is honored when a remedy is owed to a named person, by a date, and then delivered. Anything short of that reduces hope to a mere sentiment. Our people have been offered sentiments for a very long time,” Leonen said. – Rappler.com