Archive for April, 2008

Allowing Absolute Divorce in the Philippines

Divorce is a controversial topic, except that it’s often discussed with hushed voices. Many are just waiting for the right opportunity to end their respective marriages, and the reasons are diverse — physical abuse (against the spouse and/or the children), sexual infidelity, irreconcilable differences and conflicting personalities, gross irresponsibility, loss (and transfer) of affection, among [...]

Tax Amnesty Available until May 2008

The last day to avail of tax amnesty is 5 May 2008. Now, before you get excited because you may happen to have failed to file your income tax return by 15 April 2008, this tax amnesty refers to all national internal revenue taxes for the taxable year 2005 and prior years that have remained [...]

Tracking the Solo Flight of Solo Parents

In the course of our work, particularly labor and HR-related functions, we’ve come to observe an increasing number of solo parents. Of course, solo parents have always been there all along, but the enactment of a law (Republic Act No. 8972, also known as the Solo Parents’ Welfare Act of 2000) placed the spotlight on [...]

Libel for Bloggers: Liability Arising from Blog Comments

Note: Comments and trackbacks are closed because this article will be transferred to the Internet Advocates Philippines.)
We see the explosion of e-groups, blogs, message boards and other fora wherein people share facts, views and opinions in cyberspace. If we consider the huge amount of content written by and about almost everyone in the internet, it [...]

Internet Sources and Legal Blogs in Court Decisions

Law blogs, referred to as “blawgs” by some, are being cited in court decisions in the U.S. (to the cyber-challenged, the term “blog” is a contraction of the words “web log”). As reflected in a collection of court cases that cite legal blogs, there are 32 citations of legal blogs from 27 different cases in [...]

A Closure on the 2007 Bar Exams

The diverse opinions on the 2007 bar examination expressed in this site probably reflects the level of “controversy” surrounding it. I agree that more reforms are needed, although it’s unfair to say that the Supreme Court is not doing anything about it. I agree that the Supreme Court is not perfect, but any effort to [...]

Bar Exams not Difficult

The Bar examinations are not difficult, it depends on the examinees. If he prepared well and studied well, and prayed hard, then he will make it.
The correction (by the examiners) was unusually strict so that the justices of the court felt there was a need to lower the passing rate. There was need to lower [...]

All Rice!

“All rise!“As this phrase echoes through the four walls of the court, everyone is expected to stand up. Lawyers are trained in law school to stand up whenever the professor comes in. The act of standing up becomes automatic, a habit, even without anyone shouting: “All rise!”

Reflections of Dean Raul Pangalangan on the Bar Exams

There’s a lot of comments on the proposed bar exam reforms. Some say that a major overhaul of the entire system is needed. Some, on the other hand, say that the bar exams is acceptable as it is, and no reforms are needed. Perhaps the opinion of the Political Law examiner for the 2007 bar [...]

Congratulations to the New Lawyers from the Wednesday Team

The original title of this post is “Congratulations, Wednesday Team,” but it had to be modified because it sounds showbiz, closely resembling the Wednesday Group of Kuya Germ’s That’s Entertainment. Anyway, congratulations to the members of our Wednesday Team at the U.P.-Office of Legal Aid (OLA):