Legal Profession 1-SC Xyza Faye Foronda 1) Who are entitled to practice law?

Rule 138, Section 1, Rules of Court - Any person who has been duly licensed as a member of the bar in accordance with the statutory requirements and who is in good and regular standing is entitled to practice law. a) A person who has been admitted to the bar furnished satisfactory proof of educational, moral and other qualifications passed the bar examinations took the lawyers oath before the Supreme Court itself signed the roll of attorneys and received from the clerk of court of the Supreme Court a certificate of the license to practice

b) After his admission to the bar, a lawyer must remain in good and regular standing, which is a continuing requirement for the practice of law - He must remain a member of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines - He must regularly pay all IBP membership dues and other lawful assessments as well as the annual privilege tax - He must faithfully observe the rules and ethics of the legal profession - He must be continually be subject to judicial disciplinary control 2) Importance of regulation in admission to the bar

The practice of law is a privilege impressed with public interest. The interest of the public requires that the function be faithfully discharged and rendered only by those who are qualified, fit and honest who possess good moral character. Only by proper regulation of the practice of law will the interest of the public be adequately safeguarded. The practice of law is so intimately affected with public interest that it is both a right and a duty of the state to control and regulate it in order to promote the public welfare. The Constitution vests this power of control and regulation in the Supreme Court. 3) Who are the public officials prohibited from engaging in the practice of law?

The public officials who are absolutely prohibited from engaging in the private practice of law include: - Judges and other officials or employees of the courts - Of the Office of the Solicitor General - Of other Government Prosecution Offices - President, Vice-President, Members of the Cabinet and their deputies and assistants - Members of the Constitutional Commissions - Civil Service Officers or Employees whose duties require that their entire time be at the disposal of the government Under the Local Government Code, all governors, city and municipal mayors are prohibited from practicing their profession or engaging in any occupation other than the exercise of their functions as local chief executives.

Members of sanggunian may engage in the practice of law, except in the following: (1) They shall not appear as counsel before any court in any civil case wherein a local government unit or any office, agency or instrumentality of the government is the adverse party (2) They shall not appear as counsel in any criminal case wherein an officer or employee of the national or local government is accused of an offense committed in relation to his office (3) They shall not collect any fee for their appearance in administrative proceedings involving the local government unit of which he is an official (4)They shall not use property and personnel of the Government except when the sanggunian member concerned is defending the interest of the government A civil service officer or employee whose duty or responsibility does not require his entire time to be at the disposal of the Government may not engage in the private practice of law without the written permit from the head of the department concerned; consequently, he may, with such written permit, exercise his profession as a lawyer. 4) Law Students Practice

A se nior la w st udent, who is enroll ed in a reco gni ze d la w s ch ool s cli nica l ed uc atio n pr ogram approved by t he Supr eme Court ma y appear bef ore any court without compensation, to represent indigent clients accepted by the Legal Clinic of the law school. The student shall be under the direct supervision and control of an IBP member duly accredited by the law school. 5) The Bar Examinations

The power of the Supreme Court to regulate the practice of law includes: 1) A u t h o r i t y t o d e f i n e t h e t e r m 2) Prescribe the qualifications of a candidate to and the subjects of the bar examinations 3) Deci de who will be admit te d to pr acti ce 4) Discipline, suspend or disbar any unfit and unworthy member of the bar 5) Reinstate any disbarred or indefinitely suspended attorney 6) Ord ain the inte grati on of the Phili pp ine Ba r 7) Punish for contempt any person for unauthorized practice of law and 8) In general, exercise overall supervision of the legal profession. In re Cunanan, 94 Phil. 543 *** The Legislature, in the exercise of its police power, may however, enact laws regulating thepractice of law to protect the public and promote the public welfare. But the legislature may not pass a law that will control the Supreme Court in the performance of its function to decide who may enjoy the privilege of practicing law, and any law of that kind is unconstitutional as an invalid exercise. *** Any le gisl ative or exe cuti ve judgmen t s ub stituti ng that of the Su pre me Cou rt in ma tt er s concerning the admission to the practice of law or the suspension, disbarment or reinstatement of an attorney infringes upon and constitutes an invalid exercise of the legislative or executive power. *** The legi slat ure ma y pas s a la w pre scri bin g a dditi on al q uali ficati on s f or ca ndi dat es f or admission to practice or filling up deficiencies in the requirements for admission to the bar. Such a

law may not, however, be given retroactive effect so as to entitle a person, not otherwise qualified, to be admitted to the bar, nor will such a law preclude the Supreme Court from fixing other qualifications or requirements for the practice of law. The Supreme Court acts through a Bar Examination Committee to the Exercise of his judicial function to admit candidates to the legal profession. Notes on the Bar Examination Committee: Composed of one (1) member of the Supreme Court who acts as Chairman and eight (8) members of the bar. The 8 members who act as examiners for the 8 bar subjects with one subject assigned to each. The Ba r Confidant acts as a sort of liaso n o ffic er b etwee n th e c ourt an d th e Bar Chairman on the other hand, and the individual members of the committee on the other. He is at the same time a deputy clerk of court. Admission of examinees is always subject to the final approval of the court. Requirements for all applicants for admission to the Bar: 1) C i t i z e n o f t h e P h i l i p p i n e s ; 2) A t l e a s t 2 1 y e a r s o f a g e ; 3) O f g o o d m o r a l c h a r a c t e r ; Good moral character is a continuing qualification required of every member of the Bar, it is not only a qualification precedent to the practice of law. (Narag, 291SCRA 451, June 29, 1998) 4) Philippine resident; 5) Production before the Supreme Court satisfactory evidence of a) good moral character; and b) no charges against him, involving moral turpitude, have been filed or are pending in any court in the Philippines Academic Requirements for Candidates: 1. Bachelors degree in Arts or Sciences (Pre-Law course) 2.Completed Course on a. C i v i l L a w b. C o m m e r c i a l L a w c. R e m e d i a l L a w d. P u b l i c I n t e r n a t i o n a l L a w e. P r i v a t e I n t e r n a t i o n a l L a w f. P o l i t i c a l L a w g. L a b o r a n d S o c i a l L e g i s l a t i o n h. M e d i c a l J u r i s p r u d e n c e i. T a x a t i o n j. L e g a l E t h i c s