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Judicial and Bar Council
Sangguniang Panghukuman at Pang-abogasya
	JBC seal
Abbreviation	JBC
Purpose	Recommending appointees to the Judiciary
Location	Padre Faura Street, Ermita, Manila;
Membership	7 Presidential appointment upon approval of the Commission on Appointments (regular members and Secretary of Justice); Presidential appointment from nominees of the Judicial and Bar Council (Chief Justice); Nomination by each house of Congress (Member from Congress);
Chairperson	Alexander Gesmundo
Parent organization	Supreme Court of the Philippines
Website	jbc.judiciary.gov.ph

The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC; Filipino: Sangguniang Panghukuman at Pang-abogasya^[1]) of the Philippines is a constitutionally-created body that recommends appointees for vacancies that may arise in the composition of the Supreme Court, other lower courts, and the Legal Education Board, and in the offices of the Ombudsman, Deputy Ombudsman and the Special Prosecutor.

History

The Supreme Court and other lower courts in the Philippines were established upon the basis of Act No .136 of 1901 of the Philippine Commission. This succeeded the Real Audiencas and lower courts during the Spanish era. At this time, the Supreme Court was appointed by the Philippine Commission. With the approval of the Jones Law in 1916, the justices of the Supreme Court were appointed by the President of the United States, with advice and consent of the United States Senate. Judges of lower courts were then appointed by the Governor-General.

Upon the ratification of the 1935 constitution, all justices and judges are appointed by the President of the Philippines with consent of the 21-member Commission on Appointments of the National Assembly of the Philippines. Upon the reestablishment of bicameralism, the Commission on Appointments then had equal number of members (12) from the House of Representatives and Senate. This became the setup until the approval of the 1973 constitution, where the president had the sole power of appointment, with no check and balance from the Batasang Pambansa. With the approval of the 1987 constitution, the Judicial and Bar Council was created to provide a shortlist of nominees on which the president can appoint from.

Composition

The Council is composed of a representative of the Integrated Bar, a professor of law, a retired member of the Supreme Court, and a representative of the private sector. They are the "regular" members, as opposed to the Secretary of Justice and a representative of Congress who are the ex officio members. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court is the ex officio chairman,^[2] while the Clerk of the Supreme Court shall serve as the ex officio secretary.^[3]

The regular members would be nominated by the President with the consent of the Commission on Appointments for a term of four years. However, since the terms will be staggered, the first set of members would a different lengths of service: the representative of the Integrated Bar shall serve for four years, the professor of law for three years, the retired Justice for two years, and the representative of the private sector for one year.^[4] The succeeding members shall then be given the full four-year term.

The Chief Justice is appointed by the president from the shortlist submitted by the JBC. The Secretary of Justice, as a member of the Cabinet, is appointed by the president with advice and consent of the Commission on Appointments. The member of Congress is elected by the chamber where the member came from.

The regular members were allowed to be reappointed without limit. The Secretary of Justice serves at the pleasure of the president, while the representative of Congress serves until they are recalled by their chamber, or until the term of Congress that named them expires. Finally, the Chief Justice serves until mandatory retirement at the age of 70. The regular members' terms start at July 9.

In 2012, a petition at the Supreme Court questioned on who should occupy the seat allocated for Congress. By then, there are two members of Congress in the council, with both having voting rights: the chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Justice and the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights.^[5] The Supreme Court ruled in 2013 that there should only be one member of the JBC from Congress; the court left to Congress whom among the two would be its representative to the JBC.^[6]

The council is the only government body that has members from all three branches of the government, excluding ad hoc and advisory bodies.

Function

The function of the Council is to recommend to the representatives of possible appointees to the Judiciary.^[7]

The president shall choose from among those nominated, before the president may ask the Council to nominate somebody else and add it to the list, but this is not allowed anymore. In 2009, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo asked the council to add more nominees on two Supreme Court vacancies. The council rejected the request.^[8] Arroyo then appointed someone from the list.^[9]

The person then chosen by the president then becomes a member of the Judiciary, and is not anymore reviewed by the Commission on Appointments. This is to prevent politicking and horse-trading among political parties.

Former Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban said that the Council's principal objective is to attract the best and brightest to the judiciary and to make them remain there.

Offices shortlisted

Justices of the Supreme Court
Justices of the Court of Appeals
Justices of the Sandiganbayan
Justices of the Court of Tax Appeals
Officials in the Office of the Ombudsman
Members of the Legal Education Board
Judges in the Regional Trial Courts and all lower courts

Membership

The members of the Judicial and Bar Council are:


Member		Term started	Term scheduled to end	Membership		Type	Appointed by
1	Alexander Gesmundo	April 5, 2021	November 6, 2026	Chief Justice		Ex officio chairman	Rodrigo Duterte
2	Jesus Crispin Remulla	June 30, 2022	Serves at president's pleasure	Secretary of Justice		Ex officio member	Bongbong Marcos
3	Francis Tolentino^[a]	July 29, 2024	June 30, 2025	Member representing Congress	Senate		19th Congress
3	Juliet Marie Ferrer^[a]	July 26, 2022	June 30, 2025	Member representing Congress	House of Representatives		19th Congress
4	Erlinda Piñera-Uy	July 21, 2023^[10]	July 9, 2027	Member representing the Integrated Bar		Regular member	Bongbong Marcos
5	Nesauro Firme	July 11, 2022^[11]	July 9, 2026	Member representing the academe			Bongbong Marcos
6	Jose Mendoza	July 19, 2021^[12]	July 9, 2025	Retired justice of the Supreme Court			Rodrigo Duterte
7	Jose V. Mejia	July 19, 2024^[13]	July 19, 2028	Member representing the private sector			Bongbong Marcos

^ ^a ^b Under the current arrangement, the congressman sits from January to June, while the senator sits from July to December. Only one representative is to sit at any time.

Ex officio secretary: Atty. Marife M. Lomibao- Cuevas, as Clerk of the Supreme Court en banc, since March 26, 2021
JBC Consultant: Hon. Raul Bautista Villanueva, as Supreme Court Administrator

As a matter of tradition, the two most senior associate justices of the Supreme Court also take part in the JBC deliberations, but do not vote:

Former members

The members of the JBC were:^[14]

Chief Justice

The Chief Justice became a member starting on December 10, 1987.

Secretaries of Justice

The Secretary of Justice became a member starting on December 10, 1987.

Representative from Congress

Congress is a bicameral legislature. The representative from Congress is either Chairman of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights, or the House Committee on Justice.

One representative

Since the creation of the JBC in 1987 until 1994, the representation for Congress in the body alternated between the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Member	Chamber	Start of term	End of term	Congress
Rogaciano Mercado	House of Representatives	December 10, 1987	February 23, 1989	8th
Wigberto Tañada	Senate	March 2, 1988	May 21, 1990	8th
Isidro Zarraga	House of Representatives	July 31, 1989	August 12, 1992	8th
Isidro Zarraga		July 31, 1989	August 12, 1992	9th
Pablo P. Garcia		August 26, 1992	September 30, 1992	9th

Two representatives, half a vote each

By 1993, the two representatives from Congress began sitting simultaneously, each having one-half of a vote.

Congressman			Senator			Congress
Member	Start of term	End of term	Member	Start of term	End of term	Congress
Pablo P. Garcia	September 30, 1992	March 8, 1995	Raul Roco	September 30, 1992	March 3, 1993	9th
Pablo P. Garcia	September 30, 1992	March 8, 1995	Alberto Romulo	April 14, 1993	August 1, 1995	9th
Isidro Zarraga	June 28, 1995	June 30, 1998	Alberto Romulo	April 14, 1993	August 1, 1995	10th
			Marcelo Fernan	August 2, 1995	December 31, 1996	10th
			Raul Roco	January 1, 1997	July 30, 1998	10th
			Raul Roco	January 1, 1997	July 30, 1998	11th
Alfredo Abueg	July 31, 1998	November 29, 2000	Rene Cayetano	July 31, 1998	January 31, 2000	11th
Alfredo Abueg	July 31, 1998	November 29, 2000	Aquilino Pimentel Jr.	February 1, 2000	November 29, 2000	11th
Henry Lanot	December 14, 2000	May 30, 2001	Miriam Defensor Santiago	January 10, 2001	February 14, 2001	11th
Henry Lanot	December 14, 2000	May 30, 2001	Rene Cayetano	May 16, 2001	May 30, 2001	11th

Two representatives, one vote each

On May 30, 2001, the JBC En Banc decided to grant the representatives from both Houses of Congress one full vote each.


Congressman			Senator			Congress
Member	Start of term	End of term	Member	Start of term	End of term	Congress
Henry Lanot	May 30, 2001	June 30, 2001	Rene Cayetano	May 30, 2001	August 28, 2001	11th
Alan Peter Cayetano	August 8, 2001	March 3, 2003	Rene Cayetano	May 30, 2001	August 28, 2001	12th
Alan Peter Cayetano	August 8, 2001	March 3, 2003	Francis Pangilinan	August 29, 2001	November 23, 2008	12th
Marcelino Libanan	March 4, 2003	August 8, 2003				12th
Simeon Datumanong	August 9, 2004	June 30, 2007				13th
Matias Defensor Jr.	August 8, 2007	June 30, 2010				14th
Matias Defensor Jr.	August 8, 2007	June 30, 2010	Francis Escudero	November 24, 2008	June 30, 2013	14th
Niel Tupas Jr.	July 29, 2010	June 30, 2013	Francis Escudero	November 24, 2008	June 30, 2013	15th

One representative

In 2013, the eight-member composition of the JBC was questioned at the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court restored the composition of the JBC to seven. It was arranged that the representative of the House of Representatives sits from January to June, while the representative of the Senate sits from July to December.^[15]

Member	Chamber	Start of term	End of term	Congress
Koko Pimentel	Senate	July 23, 2013	December 31, 2013	16th
Niel Tupas Jr.	House of Representatives	January 1, 2014	June 30, 2014
Koko Pimentel	Senate	July 1, 2014	December 31, 2014
Niel Tupas Jr.	House of Representatives	January 1, 2015	June 30, 2015
Koko Pimentel	Senate	July 1, 2015	December 31, 2015
Niel Tupas Jr.	House of Representatives	January 1, 2016	June 30, 2016
Leila de Lima	Senate	July 26, 2016	September 19, 2016	17th
Dick Gordon	Senate	September 29, 2016	December 31, 2016
Reynaldo Umali	House of Representatives	January 1, 2017	June 30, 2017
Dick Gordon	Senate	July 1, 2017	December 31, 2017
Reynaldo Umali	House of Representatives	January 1, 2018	June 30, 2018
Dick Gordon	Senate	July 1, 2018	December 31, 2018
Paulino Salvador Leachon	House of Representatives	January 1, 2019	June 30, 2019
Dick Gordon	Senate	July 22, 2019	December 31, 2019	18th
Vicente Veloso III	House of Representatives	January 1, 2020	June 30, 2020
Dick Gordon	Senate	July 1, 2020	December 31, 2020
Vicente Veloso III	House of Representatives	January 1, 2021	June 30, 2021
Dick Gordon	Senate	July 1, 2021	December 31, 2021
Vicente Veloso III	House of Representatives	January 1, 2022	June 30, 2022
Francis Tolentino	Senate	July 25, 2022	December 31, 2022	19th
Juliet Marie Ferrer	House of Representatives	January 1, 2023	June 30, 2023
Francis Tolentino	Senate	July 1, 2023	December 31, 2023
Juliet Marie Ferrer	House of Representatives	January 1, 2024	June 30, 2024
Sonny Angara	Senate	July 1, 2024	July 19, 2024
Francis Tolentino	Senate	July 29, 2024	Term expected to end December 31, 2024

Regular members


Term started	Representative from the Integrated Bar	Representative from the academe	Retired Supreme Court justice	Representative from the private sector	Appointed by
December 10, 1987	Leon Garcia Jr. June 17, 1988 – July 9, 1991	Rodolfo Palma December 10, 1987 – July 9, 1990	Nestor Alampay December 10, 1987 – December 10, 1989	Ofelia Santos December 10, 1987 – December 10, 1988	Corazon Aquino February 25, 1986 – June 30,. 1992
December 10, 1988			Nestor Alampay December 10, 1987 – December 10, 1989	Ofelia Santos December 10, 1988 – July 9, 1992
December 10, 1989			Lorenzo Relova January 8, 1990 – July 9. 1993
July 9, 1990		Rodolfo Palma July 9, 1990 – July 9, 1994
July 9, 1991	Presbitero Velasco Jr. January 7, 1993 – March 22, 1995^a
July 9, 1992				Teresita Cruz Sison September 30, 1992– July 9, 1996	Fidel V. Ramos June 30, 1992 – June 30, 1998
July 9, 1993			Jose C. Campos September 22, 1993 – July 9. 1997
July 9, 1994		Cezar Peralejo February 8, 1995 – July 9, 1998
July 9, 1995	Francisco Santiago August 1, 1995 – July 9, 1996 Amado Dimayuga July 8, 1997 – July 9, 1999
July 9, 1996				Teresita Cruz Sison July 9. 1997 – July 9, 2000
July 9, 1997			Regino C. Hermosisima Jr. November 24, 1997 – July 9. 2001
July 9, 1998		Alfredo Marigomen July 21, 1998 – July 9, 2002			Joseph Estrada June 30, 1998 – January 20, 2001
July 9, 1999	Amado Dimayuga July 9, 1999 – July 9, 2003
July 9, 2000				Teresita Cruz Sison August 18, 2000 – July 9, 2004
July 9, 2001			Regino C. Hermosisima Jr. September 10, 2001 – July 9, 2005		Gloria Macapagal Arroyo January 20, 2001 – June 30, 2010
July 9, 2002		Amado Dimayuga July 9, 2003 – July 9, 2006
July 9, 2003	Conrado Castro July 9, 2003 – July 9, 2007
July 9, 2004				Raoul Victorino July 12, 2005 – July 9, 2008
July 9, 2005			Regino C. Hermosisima Jr. October 4, 2005 – July 9. 2009
July 9, 2006		Amado Dimayuga July 9, 2006 – July 9, 2010
July 9, 2007	Conrado Castro July 9, 2007 – March 17, 2011^b Maria Milagros Fernan-Cayosa May 2 – July 9, 2011
July 9, 2008				Aurora Santiago Lagman October 13, 2008 – July 9, 2012
July 9, 2009			Regino C. Hermosisima Jr. July 9, 2009 – July 9. 2013
July 9, 2010		Jose Mejia April 28, 2011 – July 9, 2014			Benigno Aquino III June 30, 2010 – June 30, 2016
July 9, 2011	Maria Milagros Fernan-Cayosa July 9, 2011 – July 9, 2015
July 9, 2012				Aurora Santiago Lagman July 9, 2012 – July 9, 2016
July 9, 2013			Angelina Sandoval-Gutierrez October 8, 2014 – July 9. 2017
July 9, 2014		Jose Mejia July 9, 2014 – July 9, 2018
July 9, 2015	Maria Milagros Fernan-Cayosa July 9, 2015 – July 9, 2019
July 9, 2016				Toribio Ilao Jr. October 24, 2016 – July 9, 2020	Rodrigo Duterte June 30, 2016 – June 30, 2022
July 9, 2017			Jose C. Mendoza October 4, 2017 – July 9. 2021
July 9, 2018		Noel Tijam March 6, 2019 – July 9, 2022
July 9, 2019	Franklin Demonteverde July 9, 2019 – July 9, 2023
July 9, 2020				Toribio Ilao Jr. July 9, 2020 – July 9, 2024
July 9, 2021			Jose C. Mendoza July 20, 2021 – present (Term ends July 9, 2025)
July 9, 2022		Nesauro Firme July 11, 2022 – present (Term ends July 9, 2026)			Bongbong Marcos June 30, 2022 – present
July 9, 2023	Erlinda Piñera Uy July 21, 2023 – present (Term ends July 9, 2027)
July 9, 2024				Jose Mejia July 20, 2024 – present (Term ends July 9, 2028)