Jan.
13, 2018
LLB-3
Essay on the Rule on Community Legal Aid Service
It is not fair for a lawyer in his first year to be
required to render mandatory free legal aid. A.M. 17-03-
09-SC is too burdensome for new covered lawyers to
comply with. Article III, section 11 of the Constitution
does not require at all any mandatory legal service to
those who are otherwise would be denied access to
adequate legal service. What the said provision states is
only that free access to the courts and quasi-judicial
bodies and adequate legal assistance shall not be denied
to any person by reason of poverty.
Furthermore, the said rule will bear much
inconvenience to the new covered lawyers to comply the
first 120 hours of pro bono legal aid services to qualified
parties, who render their legal services in remote
provinces where there are only a few people in the locality
who are willing to bring up their case in a court litigation,
especially if the new lawyer comes from a poor humble
stock of a family. Moreover, as stated in the case of
Ramos v. Atty. Imbang, the Public Attorney’s Office was
created for the purpose of providing free legal assistance
to indigent litigants. Section 14(3), Chapter 5, Title III,
Book V of the Revised Administrative Code provides that
the PAO shall be the principal law office of the Government
in extending free legal assistance to indigent persons in
criminal, civil, labor, administrative and other quasi-
judicial cases. The case of indigents must be handled by
experienced and skilled lawyers and not new ones to
ensure that the administration of justice is best served,
which is in accordance with the mandate of Canon 18 of
the Code of Professional Responsibility which provides that
a lawyer shall serve his client with competence and
diligence. The indigent clients have more to lose than the
other clients who are not living in poverty if their cases are
handled by new lawyers since they have no sufficient
income to hire another lawyers in case their new counsel
is incompetent to handle their cases in litigation.
March 3, 2018
LLB-3
Short Paper 2
My advice will be Tumbokon should file a separate
action for specific performance for the collection of 20%
commission that Atty. Pefiangco owes to him before the
Regional Trial Court of Aklan. A separate action should be
filed because a final judgment was already rendered in the
case. According to Antonio v. Samonte, a final order of
judgment finally disposes of, adjudicates, or determines
the rights, or some right or rights of the parties, either on
the entire controversy or on some definite and separate
branch thereof, and concludes them until it is reversed or
set aside. Thus, Tumbokon should assert that their
agreement was reflected in a letter dated August 11, 1995
in which Atty. Mariano R. Prefianco undertook to give him
20% commission, later reduced to 10%, of the attorney's
fees the latter would receive in representing Spouses
Amable and Rosalinda Yap, whom he referred, in an action
for partition of the estate of the late Benjamin Yap which
is civil case No. 4986 before the Regional Trial Court of
Aklan.
However, Tumbokon could also resort to having an
amicable settlement with Atty. Pefianco by first having a
written agreement among themselves and subsequently
file a motion to enforce the compromise agreement before
the lower court. As stated in Crisanta Alcaraz Miguel v.
Jerry D. Montanez, a compromise has upon the parties the
effect and authority of res judicata; but there shall be no
execution except in compliance with a judicial
compromise.