10 nuggets I told my son when he took his lawyer's oath

From a baby boomer to a millennial, some words of wisdom. I passed the Bar in 1974, but I was more excited on the day that my son took his oath to become a full-fledged lawyer like me. I want him not just to become a lawyer of success but, above all, a lawyer of ethics and honor. I wish that he doesn’t only win cases but also serves as an example to others in honor and character.

First and foremost, I told my son, Atty. John Paul S. Jimenez, that being a lawyer is not a business but a selfless service. That even if a pro bono client can’t afford to pay the millions rich clients offer, an ethical lawyer strives even more to defend the poor, because the poor client deserves his day in court just like the more privileged ones.

The degree and quality of services given to each case should not depend on pay, but on the imperatives for truth and justice. Second, I told him that not everything legally right is morally correct. The letter of the law that “killeth” should yield to the spirit of the law that “giveth life.” Every lawyer should not be content with what the law says but also with what good the law intends to achieve and what evil it intends to avoid and stop.

Third, I told my son the highest law of all is love, and that when the law isn’t enough, when justice doesn’t suffice, when all else fails, the one greatest law of all is love. And love means a lawyer should be prepared to be burdened even without pay, suffer ridicule and even persecution for standing up against the most powerful, and to risk even one's life and security in the pursuit of truth and justice. Fourth, I reminded my son that the law is not an end by itself but only a means to achieve the greater goal, which is justice. And justice should not only be for those in the mainstreams and limelight, but also for those who are sidelined and marginalized.

Fifth is that even with how powerful the law is, it will never achieve justice if its application is not anchored on the truth. Thus, a lawyer shouldn’t be too naive to believe all testimonies even if they are under oath. There are many ways to determine the truth by oral, documentary, or object evidence, and more important than the rules of court is the rule of wisdom and common sense.

Sixth, it is important to remember that justice should not depend on money, power and, prestige, but on truth, and truth alone, as the strongest foundation for the effectiveness of the law. Seventh, I stressed that justice delayed is the worst form of injustice, and that, as the canons say, no lawyer should delay any man for money or malice.

Eighth, I made sure that my son understands and accepts that it’s a lesser evil for 10 guilty criminals to escape conviction because of unintended error than for one innocent person to be convicted because of premeditated, maliciously manufactured evidence. Ninth, I reminded him not all rich people are bad and not all poor people are perfectly good. Everyone has his or her own imperfections, and that it is better for the bad ones to choose goodness than for the good people to prefer the evil option. And tenth, I told my son that a lazy and honest lawyer may turn out as bad as the hardworking and dishonest attorney, and that a lawyer can never achieve excellence if he avoids burdensome work.

The life of every excellent member of the Bar is built on the foundations of a sharp mind, a pure heart, and a tired set of hands. Being a lawyer is embracing a life of difficult search for truth, a perilous pursuit of justice and a noble mission in helping build the nation.