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CANTILLER V POTENCIANO
FACTS
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ISSUE:
WON the Legal Clinic is engaged in the practice of law
Whether such is allowed
Whether or not the advertisement may be allowed
HELD:
1. Yes the legal clinic is engaged in practice of law however such
practice is not allowed. The Legal Clinic is mostly composed of
paralegals. The various services it offered are beyond their
domain but rather an exclusive functions of lawyers engaged in
the practice of law. Under PhilippineJurisdiction, the services
offered by the Legal Clinic which constitute practice of law
cannot be performed by paralegals.
-Only a person admitted as a member of bar and who is in
regular standing is entitled to practice to law.
2. As to the issue of the legality of The Legal Clinics advertisements,
The Court stated that in Pursuance of the Code of Profssional
Responsibility, lawyer cannot advertise his talent or skills as in a
manner similar to a merchant advertising his goods.
-In addition, the advertisements of Legal Clinic seems to
peomote divorce, secret marriage, bigamous marriage which are
contrary to morals under the phiilippine laws.
3. The Court also enumerated in the case the allowed forms of
advertisements:
-advertisement in a reputable law list
-Use of ordinary simple professional card
-Listing in a phone directory but without designation as to his
specialization.
SAMALA V PALAA
DOCTRINE:
For the resolution of the issues, the Court defined what is Bar
integration. The Commission on Bar Integration defined the tem
as the official unification of the entire lawyer population of the
Philippines.
- This requires MEMBERSHIP and FINANCIAL SUPPORT of
every attorney as conditions to the practice of law and
the retention of his name in the Roll of Attorneys of the
SC
- The term BAR refers to the collectivity of all persons
whose name appear in the Rolls of Attornerys hence and
Integrated Bar must include all lawyers.
- Also, complete unification is only possible unless it is
decreed by an entity with a power to do so: the State.
Bar integration therefore signifies the setting up by the
Government authority of a national organization of the
legal profession based on the recognition of the lawyer
as an officer of the court.
- Bar integration is designed to improve the position of
the Bar as an instrumentality of Justice and the Rule of
Law, it will foster cohesion among lawyer and will
ensure the promotion of the objectives of the Legal
Profession pursuant to the principle of maximum bar
autonomy with minimum supervision and regulation by
the SC.
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