Legal Education

As defined- is the education of individuals who intend to become legal professionals or those
who simply intend to use their law degree to some end, either related to law (such as politics or
academic) or business. It includes:
Legal Education in the Philippines
The University of Santo Tomas (UST) first to offer first Legal Education course in the
Philippines 1733
Requirement:
Undergraduate education (4-5 years)
Law school ( 4-5 years)
Ll.B
Juris Doctor
Admission to the bar (by taking a Philippine bar exam)
Legal practice and mandatory continuing legal education
Graduate law degrees
Master of Laws (LL.M.)
Doctor of Civil Law
Doctor of Jurisprudential Science (S.J.D. or J.S.D.)

Regulatory:
Judicial and Bar Council - Legal Education Board (Supervisor)
The Supreme Court (regulates admission to the Bar and administers the Bar
Examinations)
School that offers Legal Education

Association/Affiliation:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_education_in_the_Philippines
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_education
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continuing_legal_education_in_the_Philippines
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_education_in_the_Philippines

Legal education in the Philippines
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Legal education in the Philippines is developed and offered by Philippine law schools, supervised by the
Legal Education Board, that has replaced the Commission on Higher Education in respect to legal education.
The Supreme Court regulates admission to the Bar and administers the Bar Examinations. Furthermore, the
minimum curricular requirements for membership in the Philippine Bar are set forth in the Rules of Court
promulgated by the Supreme Court.
Law degree programs are considered graduate programs in the Philippines. As such, admission to law schools
requires the completion of a bachelor's degree, with a sufficient number of credits or units in certain subject
areas.
Graduation from a Philippine law school constitutes the primary eligibility requirement for the Philippine Bar
Examination, the national licensure examination for practicing lawyers in the country. The bar examination is
administered by the Supreme Court during the month of September every year.
Members of the bar in the Philippines are required to take mandatory continuing legal education in order to
continue practicing their profession.
Legal education in the Philippines normally proceeds along the following route:
Undergraduate education (usually 4 years)
Law school (usually 4 years)
Admission to the bar (usually by taking a Philippine bar exam)
Legal practice and mandatory continuing legal education
Contents
[hide]
1 History
2 Legal Systems
3 Law degree programs
o 3.1 Professional law degrees
o 3.2 Graduate law degrees
o 3.3 Honorary law degrees
o 3.4 Practicality
o 3.5 Ecclesiastical law degrees
o 3.6 Developments
4 Admission to the practice of law
o 4.1 Philippine Bar Examinations
o 4.2 Attorneys-at-law
5 Legal Education Board
6 Mandatory Continuing Legal Education
7 Philippine law schools
8 Notable law schools
o 8.1 Oldest law schools
o 8.2 Bar Performance
8.2.1 Bar passing rate
8.2.2 Bar topnotchers
o 8.3 Law schools with prestigious alumni
9 External links
10 See also
11 References
History[edit]
The University of Santo Tomas established its Faculties of Canon Law and Civil Law in 1733. From 1734 to
1800, of only 3,360 students, only 29 graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Civil Law, 8 with the degree of
Licentiate in Civil Law and 3 with the degree of Doctor of Civil Law in that university.
[1]

In 1899, after the Malolos Constitution was ratified, the Universidad Literia de Filipinas was established
in Malolos, Bulacan. It offered Law as well as Medicine, Surgery and Notary Public. In 1899, Felipe Caldern
founded the Escuela de Derecho de Manila and adopted the name Manila Law College in 1924. The University
of the Philippines opened itsCollege of Law in 1910. There were around 50 Filipino and American
students.
[1]
Justice Sherman Moreland of the Supreme Court of the Philippines was named its first Dean, but
after he ultimately declined the position, he was replaced by George A. Malcolm, who is recognized as the
college's first permanent dean.
Legal Systems[edit]
The Philippine legal system is an amalgamation of the world's major systems. These systems include
the Roman civil law which was inherited from Spain; the Anglo-Americancommon law which were derived from
the laws of the United States; and Islamic law otherwise known as the Shariah law of the Muslim world.
Law degree programs[edit]
Law degrees in the Philippines may be classified into three typesprofessional, graduate level, and honorary.
Professional law degrees[edit]
In order to be eligible to take the bar examinations, one must complete one of the two professional degrees:
The Bachelor of Laws (Ll.B.) program or the Juris Doctor (J.D.) program. Advanced degrees are offered by
some law schools, but are not requirements for admission to the practice of law in the Philippines.
Bachelor of Laws (Ll.B.) - The Ll.B. is the most common law degree offered and conferred by Philippine
law schools. It is a standard four-year law program covering all bar exam subjects. Almost all law schools
follow a standard LL.B. curriculum, wherein students are exposed to the required bar subjects. Other
schools, like the University of the Philippines College of Law, allow students to substitute electives for bar
review subjects offered in the fourth year of study.
[2]

Juris Doctor (J.D.) - The J.D. degree was developed and first conferred in the Philippines by the Ateneo
Law School in 1991. The J.D. program is a four-year law program. Like the standard Ll.B. program, the
J.D. curriculum covers the core subjects required for the bar examinations. Unlike the Ll.B., the Ateneo
J.D. program requires students to finish the core bar subjects in 2 years, take elective subjects, undergo
an apprenticeship, and prepare and defend a thesis.
[3]
Aside from the Ateneo, other law schools offer the
J.D.: the University of Batangas College of Law,
[2]
and just recently, the University of the Philippines
College of Law
[4]
The change in degree title from Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) to Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree at
the University of the Philippines was approved by its president, Dr. Emerlinda R. Roman, on July 31, 2007.
In 2009, Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila College of Law and the Silliman University College of
Law started its own J.D. curriculum.
[5][6]
The Central Philippine University in Iloilo City will start to offer this
degree by second semester of 2010.
[7]
University of St. La Salle in Bacolod city is also offering a J.D.
program.
[citation needed]
Centro Escolar University School of Law and Jurisprudence offers J.D. program in
their Makati campus.
Juris DoctorMaster of Business Administration, (J.D.-M.B.A.), - The J.D.-M.B.A. program is
a double degree program in law and management offered at the graduate level. It was introduced and
is so far offered only by the La Salle-FEU MBA-JD Program, a consortium of Far Eastern University
Institute of Law and De La Salle Graduate School of Business. Under this program, the requirements
of the J.D. and M.B.A. programs are satisfied by the taking of concurrent units of study, allowing
students to complete the program in five instead of six years.
[2]

Graduate law degrees[edit]
Beyond the J.D. or Ll.B., members of the Philippine bar have the option of pursuing graduate degrees in law.
Master of Laws (LL.M.) - The Ll.M. is a graduate law degree offered to holders of basic law degrees
(LL.B. and J.D.). It is generally offered to law graduates and lawyers of any nationality. Six Philippine law
schools so far conduct the programthe Ateneo Law School, which offers an International Master of Laws
program; the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law, which first offered the LLM; University of
Manila College of Law; Manuel L. Quezon University College of Law; San Beda Graduate School of Law;
and PLM Graduate School of Law of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (University of the City of
Manila). LL.M. programs were once offered by the Far Eastern University Institute of Law, the Escuela de
Derecho de Manila (now Manila Law College Foundation), and the University of the Philippines College of
Law but were eventually phased out due to lack of enrollment and funding.
[2]

Doctor of Civil Law (D.C.L.) - The D.C.L. program is a doctoral program in law offered to holders of the
LL.M degree. Candidates who hold only LL.B. degrees may be admitted upon completion of prerequisite
LL.M. subjects. The D.C.L. was pioneered by the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law. Their
program structure is highly similar to the D.C.L. offered in the Complutense University of
Madrid.
[8]
The PLM Graduate School of Law has already opened its own D.C.L. program.
[9]

Doctor of Jurisprudential Science (S.J.D. or J.S.D.) - The S.J.D. or J.S.D. program is currently offered only
by the San Beda Graduate School of Law. While the candidate for the degree is required some academic
units, the grant of the degree relies on the candidates research output as well as his or her participation in
international symposia, seminars and programs as lecturer, panel presenter or paper presenter. The
candidate presents a doctoral dissertation that is argued before a Panel of Oral Examiners and then
delivers a 'lectio coram' -- a lecture in the presence of legal luminaries. The Graduate School of Law of
San Beda College is currently the only graduate school of law in the country offering this degree.
Legal education is the education of individuals who intend to become legal professionals or those who simply intend
to use their law degree to some end, either related to law (such as politics or academic) or business. It includes:
First degrees in law, which may be studied at either undergraduate or graduate level depending on the country.
Vocational courses which prospective lawyers are required to pass in some countries before they may enter
practice.
Higher academic degrees.
Legal education (general)[edit]
In addition to the qualifications required to become a practicing lawyer, legal education also encompasses higher
degrees, such as doctorates, for more advanced academic study.
In many countries other than the United States, law is an undergraduate degree. Graduates of such a program are
eligible to become lawyers by passing the country's equivalent of a bar exam. In such countries, graduate programs
in law enable students to embark on academic careers or become specialized in a particular area of law.
In the United States, law is a professional doctorate degree known as a Juris Doctor. Students embark upon their
legal studies only after completing an undergraduate degree in some other field (usually a bachelor's degree). The
undergraduate degree can be in any field, though most American lawyers hold bachelor's degrees in the humanities
and social sciences; legal studies at the undergraduate level are available at a few institutions. American law schools
are usually an autonomous entity within a larger university.
Faculty of law is another name for a law school or school of law, the terms commonly used in the United States. This
term is used in Canada, other Commonwealth countries and the rest of the world. It may be distinguishable from law
school in the sense that a faculty is a subdivision of a university on the same rank with other faculties, i.e., faculty of
medicine, faculty of graduate studies, whereas a law school or school of law may have a more autonomous status
within a university, or may be totally independent of any other post-secondary educational institution.
In addition in some countries, including Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada and some states of Australia, the final
stages of vocational legal education required to qualify to practice law are carried out outside the university system.
The requirements for qualification as a barrister or as a solicitor are covered in those articles. See advocate for
details of the requirements for qualification as an advocate in Scotland.


Legal education in the Philippines
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Legal education in the Philippines is developed and offered by Philippine law schools, supervised by the
Legal Education Board, that has replaced the Commission on Higher Education in respect to legal education.
The Supreme Court regulates admission to the Bar and administers the Bar Examinations. Furthermore, the
minimum curricular requirements for membership in the Philippine Bar are set forth in the Rules of Court
promulgated by the Supreme Court.
Law degree programs are considered graduate programs in the Philippines. As such, admission to law schools
requires the completion of a bachelor's degree, with a sufficient number of credits or units in certain subject
areas.
Graduation from a Philippine law school constitutes the primary eligibility requirement for the Philippine Bar
Examination, the national licensure examination for practicing lawyers in the country. The bar examination is
administered by the Supreme Court during the month of September every year.
Members of the bar in the Philippines are required to take mandatory continuing legal education in order to
continue practicing their profession.
Legal education in the Philippines normally proceeds along the following route:
Undergraduate education (usually 4 years)
Law school (usually 4 years)
Admission to the bar (usually by taking a Philippine bar exam)
Legal practice and mandatory continuing legal education

History[edit]
The University of Santo Tomas established its Faculties of Canon Law and Civil Law in 1733. From 1734 to
1800, of only 3,360 students, only 29 graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Civil Law, 8 with the degree of
Licentiate in Civil Law and 3 with the degree of Doctor of Civil Law in that university.
[1]

In 1899, after the Malolos Constitution was ratified, the Universidad Literia de Filipinas was established
in Malolos, Bulacan. It offered Law as well as Medicine, Surgery and Notary Public. In 1899, Felipe Caldern
founded the Escuela de Derecho de Manila and adopted the name Manila Law College in 1924. The University
of the Philippines opened itsCollege of Law in 1910. There were around 50 Filipino and American
students.
[1]
Justice Sherman Moreland of the Supreme Court of the Philippines was named its first Dean, but
after he ultimately declined the position, he was replaced by George A. Malcolm, who is recognized as the
college's first permanent dean.
Legal Systems[edit]
The Philippine legal system is an amalgamation of the world's major systems. These systems include
the Roman civil law which was inherited from Spain; the Anglo-Americancommon law which were derived from
the laws of the United States; and Islamic law otherwise known as the Shariah law of the Muslim world.
Law degree programs[edit]
Law degrees in the Philippines may be classified into three typesprofessional, graduate level, and honorary.
Professional law degrees[edit]
In order to be eligible to take the bar examinations, one must complete one of the two professional degrees:
The Bachelor of Laws (Ll.B.) program or the Juris Doctor (J.D.) program. Advanced degrees are offered by
some law schools, but are not requirements for admission to the practice of law in the Philippines.
Bachelor of Laws (Ll.B.) - The Ll.B. is the most common law degree offered and conferred by Philippine
law schools. It is a standard four-year law program covering all bar exam subjects. Almost all law schools
follow a standard LL.B. curriculum, wherein students are exposed to the required bar subjects. Other
schools, like the University of the Philippines College of Law, allow students to substitute electives for bar
review subjects offered in the fourth year of study.
[2]

Juris Doctor (J.D.) - The J.D. degree was developed and first conferred in the Philippines by the Ateneo
Law School in 1991. The J.D. program is a four-year law program. Like the standard Ll.B. program, the
J.D. curriculum covers the core subjects required for the bar examinations. Unlike the Ll.B., the Ateneo
J.D. program requires students to finish the core bar subjects in 2 years, take elective subjects, undergo
an apprenticeship, and prepare and defend a thesis.
[3]
Aside from the Ateneo, other law schools offer the
J.D.: the University of Batangas College of Law,
[2]
and just recently, the University of the Philippines
College of Law
[4]
The change in degree title from Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) to Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree at
the University of the Philippines was approved by its president, Dr. Emerlinda R. Roman, on July 31, 2007.
In 2009, Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila College of Law and the Silliman University College of
Law started its own J.D. curriculum.
[5][6]
The Central Philippine University in Iloilo City will start to offer this
degree by second semester of 2010.
[7]
University of St. La Salle in Bacolod city is also offering a J.D.
program.
[citation needed]
Centro Escolar University School of Law and Jurisprudence offers J.D. program in
their Makati campus.
Juris DoctorMaster of Business Administration, (J.D.-M.B.A.), - The J.D.-M.B.A. program is
a double degree program in law and management offered at the graduate level. It was introduced and
is so far offered only by the La Salle-FEU MBA-JD Program, a consortium of Far Eastern University
Institute of Law and De La Salle Graduate School of Business. Under this program, the requirements
of the J.D. and M.B.A. programs are satisfied by the taking of concurrent units of study, allowing
students to complete the program in five instead of six years.
[2]

Graduate law degrees[edit]
Beyond the J.D. or Ll.B., members of the Philippine bar have the option of pursuing graduate degrees in law.
Master of Laws (LL.M.) - The Ll.M. is a graduate law degree offered to holders of basic law degrees
(LL.B. and J.D.). It is generally offered to law graduates and lawyers of any nationality. Six Philippine law
schools so far conduct the programthe Ateneo Law School, which offers an International Master of Laws
program; the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law, which first offered the LLM; University of
Manila College of Law; Manuel L. Quezon University College of Law; San Beda Graduate School of Law;
and PLM Graduate School of Law of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (University of the City of
Manila). LL.M. programs were once offered by the Far Eastern University Institute of Law, the Escuela de
Derecho de Manila (now Manila Law College Foundation), and the University of the Philippines College of
Law but were eventually phased out due to lack of enrollment and funding.
[2]

Doctor of Civil Law (D.C.L.) - The D.C.L. program is a doctoral program in law offered to holders of the
LL.M degree. Candidates who hold only LL.B. degrees may be admitted upon completion of prerequisite
LL.M. subjects. The D.C.L. was pioneered by the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law. Their
program structure is highly similar to the D.C.L. offered in the Complutense University of
Madrid.
[8]
The PLM Graduate School of Law has already opened its own D.C.L. program.
[9]

Doctor of Jurisprudential Science (S.J.D. or J.S.D.) - The S.J.D. or J.S.D. program is currently offered only
by the San Beda Graduate School of Law. While the candidate for the degree is required some academic
units, the grant of the degree relies on the candidates research output as well as his or her participation in
international symposia, seminars and programs as lecturer, panel presenter or paper presenter. The
candidate presents a doctoral dissertation that is argued before a Panel of Oral Examiners and then
delivers a 'lectio coram' -- a lecture in the presence of legal luminaries. The Graduate School of Law of
San Beda College is currently the only graduate school of law in the country offering this degree.
Honorary law degrees[edit]
Some Philippine universities also confer the honorary Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) degree. It is given to famous
individuals who, in the discretion of the awarding institution, were found to have made significant contributions
to a certain field, or to the improvement of society or development of the conditions of mankind in general.
Honorary law doctorates in the past include:
former Philippine President Carlos P. Garcia (LL.D., honoris causa, Xavier University Ateneo de
Cagayan)
[10]

King Juan Carlos I of Spain (LL.D., honoris causa, University of Santo Tomas)
[11]

UNESCO Director General Koichiro Matsuura (LL.D., honoris causa, University of Santo Tomas)
[11]

former International Court of Justice Judge Csar Bengzon (LL.D., honoris causa, Ateneo de Manila
University and University of Santo Tomas)
[11][12]

former United Nations General Assembly President Carlos P. Romulo (Ll.D., honoris causa, University of
Santo Tomas and University of the East)
[11][13]

former Philippine President Corazon Aquino (LL.D., honoris causa, University of the
Philippines and University of Santo Tomas)
[11][13]

former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos (LL.D., honoris causa, University of the East)
[13]

former Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay (LL.D., honoris causa, University of the East)
[13]

former Philippine Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban (LL.D., honoris causa, University of Iloilo)
[14]

Canadian Chief Justice Beverly McLachlin, P.C. (LL.D., honoris causa, Ateneo de Manila University)
[12]

former Philippine First Lady Aurora Aragon Quezon (LL.D., honoris causa, University of Santo Tomas)
[11]

former Philippine First Lady Imelda Marcos (LL.D., honoris causa, University of the Philippines).
[13]

Philippine Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago (LL.D., honoris causa, Centro Escolar University and Xavier
University Ateneo de Cagayan)
[15][16]

former Philippine Senator Raul Manglapus (LL.D., honoris causa, Ateneo de Manila University)
[12]

former Philippine Commission on Elections Chairman Christian Monsod (LL.D., honoris causa, Ateneo de
Manila University)
[12]

former Philippine Supreme Court Chief Justice and currently a Truth Commissioner Hilario Davide,
Jr. (LL.D., honoris causa, University of San Carlos)
[12]

founder of Chronicle Broadcasting Network Don Eugenio Lopez, Sr. (LL.D., honoris causa, Silliman
University)
[17]

Practicality[edit]
While advanced law degrees (LL.M., D.C.L., S.J.D., LL.D.) may elevate a lawyer's standing in academic
settings, the basic law degree (LL.B., J.D.) remains the most important academic qualification to be admitted to
the practice of law in the Philippines.
[18]

Ecclesiastical law degrees[edit]
A few Roman Catholic seminaries and graduate schools offer degree programs in canon law, an ecclesiastical
program that is not required in the Philippine Bar Examinations.TheUniversity of Santo Tomas Faculty of
Canon Law runs the oldest academic programs of this kind. Its Licentiate of Canon Law (J.C.L.) and Doctor
of Canon Law (J.C.D.)programs are open to priests, nuns, theologians, and even to lay people (i.e., trial court
judges, law deans, family lawyers etc.). Judges of the Roman Catholic Marriage Tribunal typically hold
academic degrees in the field.
[19]
Degrees in canon law, strictly speaking, are not considered law degrees in the
Philippines.
Developments[edit]
There is a move among members of the Philippine Association of Law Schools (PALS) to convert their Ll.B.
programs into J.D. curricula.
[3]
There are currently two possible directions for the change: First, the conversion
of Ll.B. programs through adopting a model substantially similar to the J.D. curriculum introduced by the
Ateneo de Manila Law School (the J.D. Programs of the FEU-La Salle consortium and the University of
Batangas Law School are of this mold), and second, simply changing the name of the degree conferred from
"Ll.B." to "J.D." while essentially retaining the same course offerings as those in the DECS Model Law
Curriculum (DECS Order No. 27, series of 1989).
[3]

Admission to the practice of law[edit]
The 1987 Constitution of the Philippines has given the Supreme Court the sole power to admit individuals to
the practice of law in the Philippines.
[20]
This power is exercised through a Bar Examination Committee, an ad
hoc academic group tasked to formulate questions, administer proceedings, grade examinations, rank
candidates, and release the results of the Philippine Bar Examination.
To be eligible to take the national bar exam, a candidate must be a Filipino citizen, at least twenty-one years of
age, and holder of a bachelor's degree and a law degree obtained from a government recognized law school in
the Philippines. Graduates of law schools from other countries must obtain a law degree from the Philippines to
qualify for the Philippine Bar.
[21]
In March 2010 the Supreme court issued Bar matter 1153 allowing Filipino who
are foreign law graduates to take the Bar exam provided that applicant complies with the following conditions:
a) completion of all courses leading to the degree of Bachelor of Laws or its equivalent degree; (b) recognition
or accreditation of the law school by the proper authority; and (c) completion of all fourth year subjects in the
Bachelor of Laws academic program in a law school duly recognized by the Philippine Government d) must
have completed a separate bachelors degree."
Philippine Bar Examinations[edit]
The Philippine Bar Examinations is the national licensure exam for admission to the practice of law. It is
conducted during the four Sundays of September of every year. It is arguably the hardest and the most media-
covered of all government licensure examinations in the country.
[22]
It is also reputedly one of the hardest bar
examinations in the world.
[23]

For candidates intending to practice Islamic law in the Philippines, the Special Bar Exams for Sharia Court
Lawyers is given every two years. The Supreme Court Bar Office conducts the exam while the Office of Muslim
Affairs determines the qualification and eligibility of candidates to the exams.
[24]

Attorneys-at-law[edit]
To be a full-fledged lawyer in the Philippines and be eligible to use the title Attorney, a candidate must graduate
from a Philippine law school, take and pass the Philippine Bar Examinations, take the Attorney's Oath, and sign
his name in the Rolls of Attorneys of the Supreme Court.
[25]

The full names of lawyers are found in the Rolls of Attorneys of the Supreme Court, and in a similar list
included in a Supreme Court publication entitled Law List.
[26]

Legal Education Board[edit]
The Legal Education Board supervises all law schools and continuing legal education providers in the
Philippines.
[27]
The Board is headed by a Chairman who is a retired justice of a collegiate court (i.e., Supreme
Court, Court of Appeals, Sandiganbayan, Court of Tax Appeals, etc.). Regular members of the Board include a
representative from each of the following:
[27]

Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP)
Philippine Association of Law Schools (PALS)
Philippine Association of Law Professors (PALP)
active law practitioners
bonafide law students
The Board has made legal reforms which includethe stricter selection of law students and law professors;
improvements in quality of instruction and facilities of law schools; provisions for legal apprenticeship of law
students; and the requirement of attendance to continuing legal education seminars for practicing attorneys.
[27]

Mandatory Continuing Legal Education[edit]
Lawyers with names appearing in the Rolls of Attorneys of the Supreme Court, unless disbarred, are all
members of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP).
[28]

However, to be IBP members of good standing, lawyers are required to complete, every three years, at least
thirty-six hours of continuing legal education seminars approved by the Mandatory Continuing Legal Education
Committee (MCLE). Members who fail to comply shall pay a non-compliance fee, and shall be listed as a
delinquent member.
[29]

The Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Office, established by the Supreme Court, is the official
government agency tasked to implement compliance with the MCLE requirement.
[29]

The MCLE Office is headed by former Supreme Court Justice Carolina C. Grino-Aquino, widow of former
Supreme Court Chief Justice Ramon Aquino. Its office is located at the fourth floor of the IBP Building in
Ortigas Center.
Some of the most notable MCLEO staff are as follows:
1. Crisanto Carrillo, Jr. 2. Jaime Gonzales, Jr. 3. Joel Pastor 4. Jayson del Rosario 5. Edison Discimulacion 6.
Sunie de Leon 7. Bong Mesina 8. Sherwin Peter Seriosa 9. Amor Tuazon-del Rosario 10. Felicisma Bet Perea
11. Minerva Sancho 12. Sheryl Atienza 13. Micheal Cawa 14. Liza Sevilla 15. Leny dela Cruz
Philippine law schools[edit]
There are one-hundred-five (105) law schools
[30][31]
legitimately operating throughout the Philippines. These
include independent law schools, resident colleges, and affiliated units of much larger private and public
universities:
[32]

Notable law schools[edit]
Oldest law schools[edit]
The fifteen oldest law schools are as follows:
[1]

University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law, established in 1734, is the oldest law school in the
Philippines. In 1734, the University of Santo Tomas opened a Faculty of Civil Law and a Faculty of Canon
Law. From 1734 to 1800 (66 years), out of 3,360 students, only 40 students graduated from various law
programs: 29 in Bachelor of Civil Law, 8 in Licentiate in Civil Law, and 3 in Doctor of Law, reflecting the
rigid training in these courses. The school has produced four Philippine Presidents, three Vice Presidents,
and sixChief Justices of the Philippine Supreme Court.
Universidad Literia Filipinas, established in 1898, was the second oldest law school in the country. It is no
longer operating. The university was established in Malolos, Bulacanand offered programs in law and
notary public. The school later moved to Tarlac.
Escuela de Derecho de Manila (now Manila Law College Foundation) was established in 1899. Don Felipe
Caldern, author of the 1899 Malolos Constitution, founded the school. In 1924, the school was renamed
the Manila Law School. It was further renamed Manila Law College Foundation.
University of the Philippines College of Law, established in 1910, is the flagship law school of state
colleges and universities in the Philippines. In 1910, the College of Law of theUniversity of the
Philippines opened with fifty (50) Filipino and American students. Justice Sherman Moreland of
the Philippine Supreme Court was named as the first dean, but after he ultimately declined the post, he
was replaced by George A. Malcolm, the first permanent dean of the College. The school has dominated
past and present memberships in the Philippine Supreme Court and other collegiate courts.
Philippine Law School was established in 1915. Former Presidents Diosdado Macapagal and Carlos P.
Garcia attended the school.
University of Manila College of Law was established in 1918. Cecilia Muoz Palma, the first woman to be
appointed Associate Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court and the President of the 1986 Constitutional
Commission, earned her Master of Laws from this institution.
Far Eastern University Institute of Law, established in 1934, is the alma mater of former Supreme Court
Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban, former Philippine President Corazon Aquino, former Philippine Court of
Appeals Presiding Justices Oscar Herrera and Salome A. Montoya, and Sandiganbayan senior associate
justice Edilberto Sandoval.
Silliman University College of Law was established in 1935 with a class of 22 freshmen. Carlos P. Garcia,
4th President of the Republic of the Philippines took law subjects in the school before finally proceeding to
the Philippine Law School. Atty. Felix Gaudiel, a long serving dean of the college was a member of the
1973 Constitutional Convention.
[33][34][35]

Southern College of Law was established in 1935. It is no longer operating.
Ateneo de Manila Law School, established in 1936, is the alma mater of former Chief Justice Claudio
Teehankee, 1986 Constitutional Commissioner Fr. Joaquin Bernas, S.J.., and former Philippine Vice
President Teofisto Guingona.
University of San Carlos College of Law in Cebu City, was established in 1937. It is the only law school in
the Visayas and Mindanao to be granted license by the Supreme Court to have a Clinical Legal Education
Program (CLEP), whereby its senior students are allowed to handle actual cases in the court with the
assistance and under the guidance of a licensed member of the Bar. Likewise, it is the first law school
outside Manila to be accredited by the Supreme Court to conduct Mandatory Continuing Legal Education
(MCLE) seminar for lawyers.
[36]

The Arellano University School of Law, formerly as the Arellano Law College and officially as Arellano Law
Foundation, was established in 1938. It formed the early beginnings ofArellano University. Popular
broadcaster and former Leyte Representative Ted Failon, former Court of Appeals Presiding Justice
Manuel Gaviola, former Senator Francisco Sumulong, and former Congressman Jose Zafra attended the
school.
University of San Agustin School of Law was established in 1939.
Francisco Law School was established in 1940. It is now defunct.
Manuel L. Quezon University was established in 1947. The school can look back with understandable
pride to its successful alumni who are scattered throughout the Philippines holding responsible positions in
the government and in private business organizations and educational institutions. Among them are former
Justices Ricardo C. Puno, Sr., Isagani A. Cruz and Sedfrey Ordonez, the late Mayor of Manila, Antonio
Villegas, Justice Artemio Tuquero now Dean of the College of Law, Justices Jose Vitug and Jose Melo,
Atty. Augusto B. Sunico who became the president of the University, Atty. Norberto Gonzales and Atty.
Lorenzo Miravite.
San Beda College of Law, was founded in 1948. Famous alumni include former Senator and Education
Secretary Raul Roco, former Senator Rene Saguisag, and former Supreme Court Associate Justice
Florenz D. Regalado who holds the highest bar exam grade in the history of the Philippine Bar
Examinations.
Bar Performance[edit]
Bar passing rate[edit]
The bar passing rate is the proportion of successful bar exam passers in relation to the total number of bar
exam takers coming from a particular law school. The national bar passing rate (proportion of all bar exam
passers in relation to all bar exam takers) changes every year, and has gone from an all-time high of 75.17% in
1954 to an all-time low of 16.59% in 1999.
[37]

The Legal Education Board's ranking for top ten law schools in the Philippines is based on the passing rate
from 2001 to 2010:
[38]

Excellence in Legal Education (top five)
1. Ateneo de Manila Law School (89.03)
2. San Beda College of Law (85.74)
3. University of the Philippines College of Law (79.84)
4. Ateneo de Davao College of Law (64.99)
5. University of San Carlos College of Law (61.23)
Outstanding Law Schools (rest of the top ten)
1. University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law (60.22)
2. Arellano University Law Foundation (42.90)
3. Xavier University - Ateneo de Cagayan College of Law (38.90)
4. Far Eastern University Institute of Law (33.14)
5. University of San Agustin College of Law (31.63)
Law schools with the highest average bar passing rates from 1996 to 2005 include:
Schools with more than 30 examinees:
Ateneo de Manila Law School - 89.19%
San Beda College of Law - 85.27%
University of the Philippines College of Law - 85.19%
University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law - 56.70%
Far Eastern University Institute of Law - 26.25%
Schools with 30 or less examinees:
Ateneo de Davao University College of Law - 65.57%
University of San Carlos - 54.45%
Arellano University - 46.18%
Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila College of Law - 41.26%
Xavier University - Ateneo de Cagayan - 37.45%
Lyceum of the Philippines University - 32.40%
St. Louis University - 31.38%
[39]

[40]

In the 2006 bar examinations, Basilan State University's lone bar candidate passed, giving the school a 100%
passing rate.
[41]

Bar topnotchers[edit]
Bar topnotchers are bar examinees who garnered the highest bar exam grades in a particular year. Every year,
the Supreme Court releases the bar top ten list. The list contains the names of bar examinees who obtained
the ten highest grades. It is possible for more than ten examinees to place in the top ten because numerical
ties in the computation of grades usually occur.
[42]

Schools which have produced bar topnotchers (1st placers)
[43]
include:
University of the Philippines College of Law - forty-nine (49) bar topnotchers
Ateneo de Manila Law School - nineteen (19) bar topnotchers
San Beda College of Law - seven (7) bar topnotchers
Philippine Law School - seven (7) bar topnotchers
University of Manila - six (6) bar topnotchers
Far Eastern University Institute of Law - three (3) bar topnotchers
University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law - three (3) bar topnotchers
University of the Cordilleras (formerly Baguio Colleges Foundation) College of Law - two (2) bar
topnotchers
Manila Law College Foundation (formerly Escuela de Derecho de Manila) - one (1) bar topnotcher
Manuel L. Quezon University College of Law - one (1) bar topnotcher
Divine Word College - one (1) bar topnotcher
University of the East College of Law - one (1) bar topnotcher
San Sebastian College Institute of Law - one (1) bar topnotcher
Two bar examinees topped the bar exams without graduating from any Philippine law school:
Jose Diokno - former Senator of the Philippines; 1st placer, 1945 bar exams
Carolina C. Grio-Aquino - former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court; 1st placer, 1950 bar exams
In the past, non-law school graduates were allowed to take the bar. However, the Revised Rules of Court and
Supreme Court Circulars allow only Philippine law graduates to take the bar, necessarily excluding non-law
graduates and foreign law graduates from taking part in the exercise.
Law schools with prestigious alumni[edit]
The quality of law schools is often measured by the prestige, influence, or wealth of famous law alumni.
[22]

Some of the law schools and their famous alumni include:
Ateneo de Manila Law School alumni:
[44]


Continuing legal education is required of members of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) to ensure that
throughout their career, they keep abreast with law and jurisprudence, maintain the ethics of the profession and
enhance the standards of the practice of law (Rule 1, Bar Matter No. 850 Supreme Court of the Philippines)
Contents
[hide]
1 History
2 Scope
3 Compliance
4 Exemption
5 External links
6 References
History[edit]
The Rules on Mandatory Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) for members of the legal profession in the Philippines
were recommended by the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP), endorsed by the Philippine Judicial Academy, and
reviewed and passed upon by the Supreme Court Committee on Legal Education in 2001. Under the said Rules,
members of the IBP are required every three (3) years to complete at least thirty-six (36) hours of continuing legal
education activities approved by an MCLE Committee constituted by the Supreme Court. (Rule 2, Bar Matter No. 850
Supreme Court of the Philippines)
Scope[edit]
Of the required 36 hours: (a) At least six (6) hours shall be devoted to legal ethics (b) At least four (4) hours shall be
devoted to trial and pretrial skills (c) At least five (5) hours shall be devoted to alternative dispute resolution (d) At
least nine (9) hours shall be devoted to updates on substantive and procedural laws and jurisprudence (e) At least
four (4) hours shall be devoted to legal writing and oral advocacy (f) At least two (2) hours shall be devoted to
international law and international conventions (g) The remaining six (6) hours shall be devoted to such subjects as
may be prescribed by the MCLE Committee
Compliance[edit]
(Quoted hereunder, for your information, is a resolution of the Supreme Court En Banc dated June 3, 2008:)
Bar Matter No. 1922. - Re: Recommendation of the Mandatory Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) Board to
Indicate in All Pleadings Filed with the Courts the Counsels MCLE Certificate of Compliance or Certificate of
Exemption. - The Court Resolved to NOTE the Letter, dated May 2, 2008, of Associate Justice Antonio Eduardo B.
Nachura, Chairperson, Committee on Legal Education and Bar Matters, informing the Court of the diminishing
interest of the members of the Bar in the MCLE requirement program.
Court further Resolved, upon the recommendation of the Committee on Legal Education and Bar Matters, to
REQUIRE practicing members of the bar to INDICATE in all pleadings filed before the courts or quasi-judicial bodies,
the number and date of issue of their MCLE Certificate of Compliance or Certificate of Exemption, as may be
applicable, for the immediately preceding compliance period. Failure to disclose the required information would cause
the dismissal of the case and the expunction of the pleadings from the records.
The New Rule shall take effect sixty (60) days after its publication in a newspaper of general circulation.
(Note: Published on 26 June 2008, Manila Bulletin.)
(Rule 2, Bar Matter No. 850 Supreme Court of the Philippines)
Credit units maybe earned through either participatory or non-participatory activities. For instance, participatory credit
units may be claimed for: (a) attending approved education activities like seminars, conferences, conventions,
symposia, in-house education programs, workshops, dialogues or round table discussion; (b) speaking or lecturing,
or acting as assigned panelist, reactor, commentator, resource speaker, moderator, coordinator or facilitator in
approved education activities; (c) teaching in a law school or lecturing in a bar review class. On the other hand, non-
participatory credit units may be earned for: (a) preparing, as an author or co-author, written materials published or
accepted for publication, e.g., in the form of an article, chapter, book, or book review which contribute to the legal
education of the author member, which were not prepared in the ordinary course of the member's practice or
employment; or (b) editing a law book, law journal or legal newsletter.
(Rule 5, Bar Matter No. 850 Supreme Court of the Philippines)
Exemption[edit]
The following members of the Bar are exempt from the MCLE requirement:
(a) The President and the Vice President of the Philippines, and the Secretaries and Undersecretaries of Executive
Departments; (b) Senators and Members of the House of Representatives; (c) The Chief Justice and Associate
Justices of the Supreme Court, incumbent and retired members of the judiciary, incumbent members of the Judicial
and Bar Council and incumbent court lawyers covered by the Philippine Judicial Academy program of continuing
judicial education; (d) The Chief State Counsel, Chief State Prosecutor and Assistant Secretaries of the Department
of Justice (e) The Solicitor General and the Assistant Solicitors General (f) The Government Corporate Counsel,
Deputy and Assistant Government Corporate Counsel; (g) The Chairmen and Members of the Constitutional
Commissions; (h) The Ombudsman, the Overall Deputy Ombudsman, the Deputy Ombudsman and the Special
Prosecutor of the Office of the Ombudsman; (i) Heads of government agencies exercising quasi-judicial functions; (j)
Incumbent deans, bar reviewers and professors of law who have teaching experience for at least ten (10) years in
accredited law schools (k) The Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor and members of the Corps of Professors and Professorial
Lecturers of the Philippine Judicial Academy; (l) Governors and Mayors