No recall of order vs UP Law faculty

MANILA, Philippines - The Supreme Court is not inclined to heed mounting calls to take back the show cause order issued by the court against professors of the University of the Philippines College of Law in connection with their “accusing statement” against the SC and a justice who was accused of plagiarism.

Court administrator Jose Midas Marquez told a press conference that there is no indication that the SC would recall its order as urged by various sectors, including some senators and legal luminaries.

“The court would rather wait for the compliance of the UP Law before acting (on this issue),” he explained.

He said criticisms of various sectors on the order are anyway “being taken into consideration by the Court.”

“We have a free country. Everyone is entitled to say whatever he wants,” he commented.

Marquez also announced that Chief Justice Renato Corona has granted yesterday a motion of some of the 37 professors and lawyers seeking extension of the deadline to answer the order.

The law professors led by UP College of Law Dean Marvic Leonen, who signed the “Restoring Integrity: A Statement by the Faculty of the University of the Philippines College of Law on the Allegations of Plagiarism and Misrepresentation in the Supreme Court,” were given 20 more days, or until Nov. 20, to explain why they should not be penalized for alleged violation of canons of the Code of Professional Responsibilities of Lawyers.

The deadline for the filing of the reply to the SC order was yesterday after the professors received the Court’s order last Oct. 21. But the professors said 10 days were not enough since some of them intend to consult separate counsels.

The UP law professors and lawyers, all under administrative supervision of the SC, were ordered to explain why a “dummy” statement was submitted even if it was supposedly “not a true and faithful reproduction” of the UP faculty of law.

Marquez had earlier explained that the Code bars lawyers from making public statements that tend to influence public opinion while a case is pending.

Chief Justice Corona signed the order. Nine others concurred: Associate Justices Presbitero Velasco Jr., Antonio Eduardo Nachura, Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, Arturo Brion, Diosdado Peralta, Lucas Bersamin, Martin Villarama Jr., Jose Perez and Jose Mendoza.

Three justices dissented – Senior Justice Antonio Carpio and Associate Justices Conchita Carpio-Morales and Ma. Lourdes Sereno – while Associate Justice Roberto Abad was on leave.

Associate Justice Mariano del Castillo, subject of the plagiarism charge, did not take part in the voting.

An earlier probe by the SC uncovered that only 37 out of 81 members of the UP College of Law faculty signed the statement condemning the alleged plagiarism and calling for the resignation of the concerned justice.

“And retired Justice Vicente Mendoza did not sign the statement, contrary to what the dummy represented. The Committee wondered why Dean (Leonen) submitted a dummy of the signed document when UP has an abundance of copying machines,” the Court stressed in its ruling last week clearing Justice Del Castillo.

With this, the Court directed the committee on ethics to turn over to the full court the signed copy of the manifesto “for consideration in relation to the separate pending matter concerning that supposed faculty statement.”