CANON 10-13 However, a lawyer, being an advocate,
is under no duty to refrain from making
CANON 10 every proper argument in support of any
(The lawyer and the courts) legal point because he is not convinced
of its inherent soundness.
Canon 10 A lawyer owes candor,
fairness, and good faith to the court Hueysuwan-Florido v. Florido
(Administrative case & Temporary child
(Includes quasi-judicial agencies) custody)
Lawyer's duties to the court are more Held: Candor and fairness are
significant than those which he owed to demanded of every lawyer.
his client
Even with due recognition that counsel
Salcedo v. Hernandez, 61 Phil. 724 is expected to display the utmost zeal in
(1935)) the defense of a client's case, it must
never be at the expense of the truth.
The success client adheres to the
administration of justice A lawyers language should be forceful
but dignified, emphatic but respectful as
Lawyers are duty-bound to assist the befitting an advocate and in keeping
court by exercising candor, fairness, and with the dignity of the legal profession
good faith in their dealings.
Rule 10.01
To mislead the court is a stubborn A lawyer shall not do any falsehood, nor
disregard for the law and rules and consent to the doing of any in court; nor
clearly a ground for disciplinary action. shall he mislead, or allow the Court to
be misled by the artifice.
A lawyer owes the court the duty to
render no service or to do no act which A lawyer shall not conceal the truth from
involves disrespect to the judicial office. the court, nor mislead the court in any
manner, no matter how demanding his
A lawyer is obliged to observe the rules duties to his clients may be.
of procedure and not to misuse them to
defeat the ends of justice. Take Note:
A Lawyer's responsibility to protect and
A lawyer should avoid any unethical or advance the interests of his client does
improper practices that impede, obstruct not warrant a course of action propelled
or prevent the speedy and proper by I'll motives and malicious intentions
administration of justice. against the other party.
Take Note:
Rule 10.02 Procedural rules are instruments in the
A lawyer shall not knowingly misquote speedy and efficient administration of
or misrepresent the content of a paper, justice. They should be used to achieve
the language or the argument of such an end and not to derail it.
opposing counsel, or the text of a
decision or authority, or knowingly cite (Case of Pepsi Cola v. CA - do not
as law a provision already rendered delay proceedings)
inoperative by repeal or amendment, or
assert as a fact that which has not been Cobb-Perez v. Lantin
approved. Held: A counsel’s assertiveness in
espousing with candour and honesty his
The lawyer must assist the Court in the client’s cause must be encouraged and
speedy disposition of cases and not to it to be commended. What is frowned
to aid in destroying the very institution upon is a lawyer’s insistence despite the
he is bound to protect on a mere patent futility of his client’s position.
expedient of espousing the cause of his
clients It is the duty of a counsel to advise his
client, ordinarily a layman to the
Asa v. Castillo intricacies and vagaries of the law, on
Held: Lawyer's have an obligation to the the merit or lack of merit of his case
court as well as to the opposing party to
make only truthful statements in their Canlas v. CA
pleadings. Held: Procedural rules have for their
object assistance unto parties "in
Banogon v. Zerna obtaining just, speedy, and inexpensive
Held: As officers of the court, lawyers determination of every action and
have a responsibility to assist in the proceeding."
proper administration of justice. They do
not discharge this duty by filing pointless Canon 11
petitions that only add to the workload of A lawyer shall observe and maintain the
the judiciary, which is burdened enough respect due to the courts and to judicial
as it is. officers and should insist on similar
conduct by others.
Rule 10.03
A lawyer shall observe the rules of A lawyer should uphold the dignity and
procedure and shall not misuse them to authority of the Court. The faithful
defeat the ends of justice. performance of this duty is necessary
The use of technicalities to defeat the for the stability of democratic
ends of justice is highly discouraged. institutions.
Respect guarantees the stability of the
judicial institution, without which The use of abusive language by counsel
guarantee said institution would rest on constitutes at the same time a
a shaky foundation. disrespect to the dignity of the court of
justice.
Lawyers are called upon to obey court
orders and processes. Rule 11.04
A lawyer shall not attribute to a Judge
It is the attorney’s duty as an officer of motives not supported by the record or
the court to defend a judge from having no materiality to the case.
unfounded criticism or groundless
personal attack. A lawyer should not make hasty
accusations against the judge, before
Rule 11.01 whom pleads his case, without any
A lawyer shall appear in court properly cogent and valid ground extant in the
attired. record.
Male: Barong Tagalog (long sleeve) or Take Note:
coat and tie Rule does not preclude lawyer from
criticizing judicial conduct. It allows such
Female: Formal suit or formal dress criticism so long as it is supported by the
record or is material to the case.
Sloppy or informal attire adversely
reflects on the lawyer and demeans the Lawyer's right to criticize must be done
dignity and solemnity of court in a proper and respectful way and
proceedings through legitimate channels.
Take Note: May be cited for contempt if Rule 11.04
not properly dressed. A lawyer shall submit grievances
against a Judge to the proper authorities
Rule 11.02 only.
A lawyer shall punctually appear at
court hearings. A lawyer is not preclude from ventilating
his grievances against judges and court
Lack of punctuality interferes in the personnel who might have committed
speedy administration of justice violations of the New Code of Judicial
Conduct.
Rule 11. 03
A lawyer shall abstain from scandalous, Proper forum is to file an administrative
offensive or mean language or behavior case against the erring judge or court
before the Courts. personnel with the Supreme Court
pursuant to the provision of Rule 140 of
the Rules of Court. Villasis v. CA
Held: A new counsel who accepts a
Sec 7, Rule 140 Rules of Court case in midstream is presumed and
obliged to acquaint himself with all the
[Link] antecedent processes and proceedings
rules/pdf/am_18-01-05-sc_2020.pdf that have transpired in the record prior
to his takeover.
Canon 12
A lawyer shall exert every effort and Rule 12.02
consider it his duty to assist in the A lawyer shall not file multiple actions
speedy and efficient administration of arising from the same cause.
justice.
A lawyer not only owes to his client the
A lawyer should avoid any unethical or duty of fidelity, but more importantly, he
improper practice that impede, obstruct owes the duty of good faith and
or prevent the realization of attaining the honorable dealing to the judicial tribunal
speedy, efficient, impartial, correct, and before which he practices his
inexpensive adjudication of cases and profession.
the prompt satisfaction of final
judgments. (Litigation must end, there must be
sometime and somewhere)
Rule 12.01
A lawyer shall not appear for trial unless A lawyer resorting to forum shopping
he has adequately prepared himself on makes a mockery of the judicial process
the law and the facts of his case, the to defeat the ends of justice and opens
evidence he will adduce and the order himself up to disciplinary action.
of its preference. He should also be
ready with the original documents for Forum Shopping
comparison with the copies. Forum shopping is the improper practice
of going from one court to another in the
Should be read in relation to the Rule hope of securing a favorable relief in
18.02 which provides: one court which another court has
“A lawyer shall not handle any legal denied or the filing or repetitious suits or
matter without adequate preparation.” proceedings in different courts
concerning substantially the same
A lawyer is bound by his oath to serve subject matter.
his client with utmost zeal and
dedication and shall conduct himself Sec. 5, Rule 7 of the Rules of Court
according to the best of his knowledge (Certificate against Forum Shopping)
and discretion.
Verification and Certification must be Rule 12.05
signed by the party, not his counsel. A lawyer shall refrain from talking to his
witness during break or recess in the
Forum shopping exists not only when a trial, while the witness is still under
final judgment in one case will amount examination.
to res judicata, but also where the
elements of litis pendentia are present. Purpose of the rules to avoid any
suspicion that he is coaching the
BENECO v. Atty. Flores witness what to say during the
Held: The fact that a party or his resumption of the examination.
counsel impleaded different or additional
party litigants in the subsequent case or Rule 12.06
petition involving similar issue or issues A lawyer shall not knowingly assist a
with that of the first case.. witness to misrepresent himself or to
impersonate another.
Rule 12.03
A lawyer shall not, after obtaining A lawyer violating this rule is as equally
extensions of time to file pleadings, guilty as the witness who falsely testifies
memoranda or briefs, let the period in court.
lapse without submitting the same or
offering an explanation for his failure to Violation of this rule is tantamount to
do so. grave misconduct.
Failure to file the pleading is tantamount Rule 12.07
to negligence on the part of counsel A lawyer shall not abuse, browbeat or
seeking the extension. harass a witness nor needlessly
inconvenience him.
Read: Achacoso v. CA
During the conduct of a trial, a lawyer is
bound by his oath to treat every witness
with fairness and shall not engage in
Rule 12.04 harassing tactics.
A lawyer shall not unduly delay a case,
impede the execution of a judgment or Rule 12.08
misuse court processes. A lawyer shall avoid testifying in behalf
of his client, except:
A lawyer should not hide behind a maze
of technicalities to delay, if not defeat, a. On formal matters, such as the
the recovery of what is justly due and mailing, authentication or custody
demandable. of an instrument and the like:
b. On substantial matters, in cases to defend the integrity of the court rather
where his testimony is essential than being participants in causing public
to the ends of justice, in which distrust to the Judiciary.
event he must, during his
testimony, entrust the trial of the It is not, however, incumbent on a
case to another counsel. lawyer to refuse professional
employment in a case because it may
It is improper and unethical for a lawyer be heard by a judge who is his relative,
to testify on behalf of his client. compadre or former colleague in office.
Rationale: to separate the role of a Austria v. Masaquel
lawyer as an advocate from the role of a Held: A lawyer should not see the judge
witness. in the chamber and talk to the latter
about a case pending in his court.
Canon 13
A lawyer shall rely upon the merits of his Gallo v. Cordero
cause and refrain from any impropriety Held: Respondent judge opened himself
which tends to influence, or gives the to charges of partiality and bias by
appearance of influencing the court. meeting privately with the four accused.
Improper acts of a lawyer which give the Nestle Phils., Inc. v. Sanchez
appearance of influencing the court to Held: Courts as impartial administrators
decide a case in a particular way lessen of justice are entitled to dispose of their
the confidence of the public in the business in an orderly manner, free from
impartial administration of justice, and outside interference obstructive of their
should be avoided. functions and tending to embarrass the
administration of justice, just as litigants
are entitled to have their causes tried
fairly by an impartial tribunal,
Rule 13.01 uninfluenced by publication, public
A lawyer shall not extend extraordinary glamor, bias, prejudice or sympathies.
attention or hospitality to, nor seek
opportunity for, cultivating familiarity Rule 13.02
with Judges. A lawyer shall not make public
statements in the media regarding a
It is highly unethical for a lawyer to give pending case tending to arouse public
an appearance of having the capability opinion for or against a party.
to influence judges and court personnel.
Applicable to lawyers engaged in
As an officer of the court, a lawyer grandstanding or those to publicity
should be the first one to stand in order seekers with showbiz style personalities.
A lawyer shall not brook or invite
Newspaper publication by a lawyer interference by another branch or
concerning a pending litigation may agency of the government in the normal
interfere with a fair trial in court and course of judicial proceedings.
otherwise prejudice the impartial
administration of justice. Once a case is already in court, a
lawyer shall be discouraged from
TAKE NOTE seeking interference by another branch
Prohibition is not absolute. Permissible or agency of the government on the
publicity is allowed. matter at issue.
Restriction does not prohibit issuance of
statements by public officials charged
with the duty of prosecuting or
defending actions in court.
Criticism of pending litigation v.
concluded litigation
The court, in a pending litigation, must
be shielded from embarrassment or
influence in its all important duty of
deciding the case.
Once a litigation is concluded the judge
who decided it is subject to the same
criticism as any other public official.
Limitation on the Right to Criticize
The criticism should be bona fide, and
shall not spill over the walls of decency
or propriety.
As an officer of the court, a lawyer is
expected not only to exercise the right
but also to consider it his duty to expose
the shortcomings and indiscretions of
courts and judges.
Rule 13.03