I.

INTRODUCTION

Legal Profession - a branch of the administration of justice

whose main purpose is to aid in the doing of justice
according to law between state and the individual and
between a man and a man

Persons in authority - teachers, professors, and persons

charged with the supervision of public or duly
recognized private schools, colleges and universities
IMPLICATIONS ON LEGAL PROFESSION

Life, liberty and property entrustment

Dependence of other professions

Prestige of being a lawyer

2nd level Civil Service eligibility (R.A. No. 1080)

Advancement of career

In Re: Sycip
PET pray that they be allowed to continue using, in the
names of their firms, the names of partners who had
passed away

Attorney sometimes called an advocate or counsel, is one

who aids in the administration of justice.

Generally understood as having reference to a class of

persons who are, by license, constituted officers of the
courts;

One whom peculiar duties, responsibilities, and liabilities

are devolved by law in consequence;

A person set apart by the laws of the land relating to the

high interest of property, liberty and life;

An inherent element in our judicial system.

FOUR-FOLD DUTIES OF A LAWYER
1. To the court
2. To the Bar
3. To the client
4. To the public

II. NATURE OF THE LEGAL PROFESSION

STANDARDS OF THE LEGAL PROFESSION
1. Independence
-getting immersed in the case of ones client and
then withdrawing from the emotional experience
2. Accessibility
-maintenance of legal clinics for indigent persons
and for those financially capable to pay in full for
the services of a lawyer
3. Learning
-serve the client with competence and diligence
-shall keep abreast of the legal developments
-participate the continuing legal education program

Petition must fail.

The Civil Code provides that names in a firm name of a

partnership must either be those of living partners and,
in the case of non-partners, should be living persons
who can be subjected to liability.
o Neither the widow nor the heirs can be held liable for
transactions entered into after the death of their
lawyer-predecessor.
A partnership for the practice of law cannot be likened to
partnerships formed by other professionals or for
business.
Profession - a group of men pursuing a learned art as
a common calling in the spirit of public service
The right to practice law is not a natural or constitutional
right but is in the nature of a privilege or franchise.
It is limited to persons of good moral character
The right does not only presupposes in its possessor
integrity, legal standing and attainment, but also the
exercise of a special privilege, highly personal and
partaking of the nature of a public trust.
The practice of law is intimately and peculiarly related to
the administration of justice and should not be
considered like an ordinary money-making trade.
The spirit of public service in which the profession of law
is and ought to be exercised is a prerequisite of sound
administration of justice according to law
[by sir] Now, rule is amended; Already allowed but a +
should be placed beside the deceased partners name

Barrientos v. Daarol
PET is single, 20yo, during her relationship with RESPO,
married, with one son

Ledesma v. Climaco
PET was appointed as Election Registrar
He was also counsel de parte
PET filed motion to withdraw as counsel de parte
RESPO denied the motion and even appointed him to be
counsel de officio
Subsequently, PET filed a motion to withdraw as counsel
de officio premised on COMELECs requirement of full
time service, and on the volume of work as counsel
RESPO denied because its principal effect to delay case

Membership in the bar is a privilege burdened with

conditions.
Law is a profession dedicated to the ideal service and
not a mere trade.
Membership in the bar carries with it a responsibility
to live up to its exacting standard.
Considering the frame of mind of counsel loath and
reluctant to fulfill his obligation, the welfare of the
accused could be prejudiced.

It was deception as it turned out that RESPO never

bothered to annul said marriage.
RESPO never introduced his son, which belies his claim
that PET and her family were aware of his previous
marriage at the very start of his courtship
Good moral character is a condition which precedes
admission to the Bar. Its continued possession is also
essential for remaining in the practice of law.
The practice of law is a privilege accorded only to
those who measure up to the exacting standards of
mental and moral fitness.
o

RESPO having exhibited debased morality, the

Court is constrained to impose upon him the most
severe disciplinary action disbarment."

Lawyers must lead a life in accordance with the highest

moral standards of the community.

Lawyers must also behave himself in such a manner as

to avoid scandalizing the public by creating the belief
that he is flouting those moral standards

Alawi v. Alauya

RESPO made malicious and libelous charges against PET

Alauya justified his use of the title, attorney, by the assertion
that it is lexically synonymous with Counsellors-at-law.

The conduct and behavior of every official and

employee of an agency involved in the administration of
justice, from the presiding judge to the most junior clerk,
should be circumscribed with the heavy burden of
responsibility.
He must act with justice, give everyone his due, and
observe honesty and good faith.
As a man of law, he may not use language which is
abusive, offensive, scandalous or improper.
Persons who pass the Sharia Bar are not full-pledged
members of the Philippine Bar
The title of attorney is reserved to those who, having
obtained the necessary degree in the study of law and
successfully taken the Bar Examinations, having been
admitted to the Integrated Bar of the Philippines and
remain members thereof in good standing.
[by sir] To be called Atty: Pass the Bar, Take the oath
AND sign in the Roll of Attorneys

People v. Tuanda

RESPO prayed to lift the suspension from the practice of law

imposed upon her
RESPO was convicted of violation of BP Blg 22; therefore, found
guilty involving moral turpitude

RESPO was correctly suspended

Under the Revised Rules of Court, a member of the
bar may be removed or suspended from his office as
attorney of the Supreme Court of any deceit,
malpractice, grossly immoral conduct, or by reason of
his conviction of a crime involving moral turpitude.
Under the same Rules, the Court of Appeals or the
CFI may suspend an attorney from practice for any
causes named in the preceding section.
Malpractice - the practice of soliciting cases at law
for the purpose of gain, either personally or through
paid agents or brokers
Moral Turpitude gross violation of standards of
moral conduct, such that an act was intentionally evil,
making the act a crime

In Re: Puno

III. PRACTICE OF LAW

People v. Villanueva
The appearance of city attorney was questioned by the
counsel for the accused

When his integrity is challenged by evidence, it is not

enough that he denies the charges against him. He
must meet the issue and overcome the evidence and
show proofs that he still maintains the highest degree
of morality and integrity.
General Rule(grounds for disbarment; not exclusive):
The statutory enumeration of the grounds for
disbarment or suspension is not to be taken as a
limitation on the general power of courts to suspend
or disbar a lawyer
An attorney will be removed not only for malpractice
and dishonesty in his profession, but also gross

Under the Revised Rules of Court, No judge or other

official or employee of the superior courts or of the
office of the Solicitor General, shall engage in private
practice as a member of the bar or give professional
advice to clients.
The isolated appearance of City Attorney did not
constitute private practice
Practice of law - implies that one must have
presented to himself to be in the active and continued
practice of the legal profession and that his
professional services are available to the public for a
compensation as a source of his livelihood or in
consideration of his said services
It is a customarily or habitually holding ones self out
to the public, as customarily and demanding payment
for such services
The appearance as counsel on one occasion is not
conclusive as determinative of engagement in the
private practice of law
It has never been refuted that City Attorney had been
given permission by his immediate superior, the
Secretary of Justice, to represent the complaint in the
case at bar, who is a relative

Office of the Court Administrator v. Ladaga

RESPO requested the Court Administrator for authority to
appear as pro bono counsel

*Cited Villanueva Ruling*; SAME

RESPO appearing as pro bono counsel does not
constitute private practice
Nonetheless, he failed to obtain a written permission
from the head of the Department

Cayetano v. Monsod
provides for the modern definition of practice of law

Complainant charged Puno, a member of the Bar, with gross

immorality and misconduct (in having carnal knowledge with her
through a promise of marriage which he did not fulfill)

misconduct, which shows him to be unfit for the office

and unworthy of the privileges which his license and
the law confer upon him
Lawyers should aid in guiding the bar against the
admission to the profession of candidates unfit or
unqualified because deficient in either moral
character or education.

Practice of law any activity, in our out of court,

which requires the application of law, legal procedure,
knowledge, training and experience. To engage in the
practice of law is to perform those acts which are
characteristics of the profession.
In the dissenting opinion of Justice Padilla, the
following criteria were enumerated:
1. Habituality
Practice is more than isolated appearance, for it
consists in frequent or customary action, a
succession of acts of the same kind; a frequent
habitual exercise.

2. Compensation
Practice of law implies that one must have presented
himself in the active practice and that his
professional services are available to the public for
compensation, as a source of his livelihood or in
consideration of his services.

3. Application of law

Application of legal principle, practice, or procedure

which calls for legal knowledge, training and
experience is within the term practice of law.

o
o

4. Attorney-client relationship
When a lawyer undertakes an activity which requires
the knowledge of law but involves no attorney-client
relationship, such as teaching law or writing law
books or articles, he cannot be said to be engaged in
practice of his profession as a lawyer

o
o

NOT considered as Practice of Law:

Gratuitous furnishing of legal aid to the poor and

unfortunates who are in pursuit of any civil remedy
Mere records of realty to ascertain what they may disclose
without giving any opinion or advice as to legal effects of
what they may be found
Ordinary preparation and drafting of legal instruments which
does not involve the determination by a trained legal mind of
the effects and conditions
If works involve clerical labor of filling in the blanks or a mere
mechanical act of copying from a file copy or finished
document which involved no legal thing.

Plaintiff prayed that defendants be ordered to return to him the

10 certificates of stock, and be ordered to render the
corresponding accounting of the amounts due to him
PET filed motion to dismiss with respect to the contract of
personal and professional services wherein it was agreed that
the plaintiff shall head the legal department of the RESPO, the
same is illegal, void and unenforceable, plaintiff being a judge of
the Court of First Instance who is prohibited by the Revised
Rules of Court

The contract of professional services entered into

between RESPO and PET, while the former was still a
judge of the Court of First Instance, constituted
private practice of law and in contravention of the
express provision of Section 35 of Rule 138 of the
Revised Rules of Court.
This inhibitory rule makes it obligatory upon the
judicial officers concerned to give their full time and
attention to their judicial duties, prevent them from
extending special favors to their own private interests
and assure the public of their impartiality in the
performance of their functions
The said contract is void because a contract, whose
cause, object or purpose is contrary to law, morals,
good customs, public order or public policy, is
considered inexistent and void from the beginning

RESPO issued a circular determining who are qualified to

practice as patent lawyers
RESPO requires members of the Philippine Bar in good
standing to take and pass an examination given by the Patent
Office as a condition precedent to their being allowed to practice
before said office

The practice of law covers a wide range of activities in

and out of court; Activities of RESPO constitute
practice of law
Law practice is not limited to merely giving legal
advice, contract drafting and so forth.
What is important is that it is engaged in the practice
of law by virtue of the nature of the services it renders
In the absence of constitutional or statutory authority,
a person who has not been admitted as an attorney
cannot practice law for the proper administration of
justice
The best advertising possible for a lawyer is a wellmerited reputation for professional capacity and
fidelity to trust, which must be earned as the outcome
of character and conduct

It is reasonable to hold that a member of the bar,

because of his legal knowledge and training, and
good standing, should be allowed to practice before
the Patent Office, without further examination or other
qualification, for the reason that much of the business
in Patent Office involves the interpretation and
determination of the scope and application of the
Patent Law and other laws applicable.
[sir] Lawyers are licensed to practice law in all offices
of government without taking a qualifying exam

IV. ADMISSION
A. JUDICIAL FUNCTION
Section 5, Article VIII of the 1987 Constitution
The Supreme Court shall have the power to promulgate rules
concerning xxx the admission to the practice of law.
In Re: Integration of the Bar

Ulep v. The Legal Clinic

PET prays to order RESPO to cease and desist from
issuing advertisements pertaining to the exercise of the
law profession

Publication in reputable law lists of brief biographical

and informative data
A lawyer may not properly publish in daily paper or
magazines, or in a law list which will likely deceive or
injure the public, or the Bar.
The use of an ordinary simple professional card is
permitted
He may likewise have his name listed in a telephone
directory but not under a designation of special
branch of law

Philippine Lawyers Association v. Agrava

Omico Mining v. Vallejos

Not all types of advertising are prohibited, EXCEPT:

Does the Court have the power to integrate the Phil. Bar?
Would the integration of the Bar be constitutional?
Should the Court ordain the integration of the Bar at this time?

Integration of the Bar the official unification of the

entire lawyer population of the Philippines

This requires membership and financial support of every

attorney for retention of his name in the Roll of Attorneys

Bar all persons whose names appear in the Roll of

Attorneys
(1) Courts have power to integrate the Phil. Bar to
promulgate rules concerning pleading, practice, and
procedure in all courts, and the admission to the
practice of law
(2) To compel a lawyer to be a member of an integrated
Bar is not violative of his constitutional freedom to
associate
Integration does not make a lawyer a member of any
group of which he is not already a member.
All that integration actually does is to provide an official
national organization for the well-defined but
unorganized and incohesive group of which every
lawyer is already a member.
Membership in the Unified Bar imposes only the duty to
pay dues in reasonable amount

In Re: Lanuevo (former Bar confidant)

Administrative proceeding against Victorio for disbarment

Admitted having brought the 5 exam notebooks of Ramon

Galang back to the respective examiners for re-checking
The 5 examiners admitted having re-checked the ntbk. to him by
the Bar Confidant, stating that he has the authority to do the
same and that the examinee concerned failed only in his
particular subject and was on the borderline of passing.
Ramon was able to pass the 1971 bar exam because of
Lanuevos move but the exam results bears that he failed in 5
subjects (Political, Civil, Mercantile, Criminal & Remedial)
Galang on the otherhand, denied of having charged of Slight
Physical Injuries on Eufrosino de Vera, a law student of MLQU.

Section 2 of the said act provided that A bar candidate who

obtained a grade of 75% in any subject shall be deemed to have
already passed that subject and the grades shall be included in
the computation of the general average in subsequent bar
examinations.

The court disbarred Lanuevo; He has no authority to

request the examiners to re-evaluate grades of
examinees w/o prior authority from Supreme Court.
He does not possess any discretion with respect to
the matter of admission of examinees to the bar. He
does not a have any business evaluating the answers
of the examinees.
Consequently, Galang was also disbarred Sec. 2 of
Rule 138 of the Revised Rules of Curt of 1964,
candidates for admission to the bar must be of good
moral character. Galang has a pending criminal
cases of Physical Injuries, he committed perjury when
he declared under oath that he had no pending
criminal case this resulted him to revoked his license.

RA 972 is unconstitutional.
Portions stricken out were due to the following
reasons:
1. The law itself admits that the candidates for
admission who flunked the bar from 1946 to 1952
had inadequate preparation due to the fact that
this was very close to the end of World War II;
2. The law is, in effect, a judgment revoking the
resolution of the court on the petitions of the said
candidates;
3. The law is an encroachment on the Courts
primary prerogative to determine who may be
admitted to practice of law and, therefore, in
excess of legislative power to repeal, alter and
supplement the Rules of Court. The rules laid
down by Congress under this power are only
minimum norms, not designed to substitute the
judgment of the court on who can practice law;
and
4. The pretended classification is arbitrary and
amounts to class legislation.

In Re: Almacen

Vicente Almacens Petition to Surrender Lawyers Certificate of

Title in protest against, what he asserts, a great injustice
committed against his client by SC.
He indicts SC as a tribunal peopled by men who are calloused
to our pleas for justice, who ignore without reasons their own
applicable decisions and commit culpable violations of the
Constitution with impunity. His client, who was deeply
aggrieved by this Courts unjust judgment, has become one of
the sacrificial victims before the altar of hypocrisy.
He ridicules the members of the Court, saying that justice as
administered by the present members of the SC is not only
blind, but also deaf and dumb.
He then vows to argue the cause of his client in the peoples
forum, so that people may know of the silent injustices
committed by this court and that whatever mistakes, wrongs
and injustices that were committed must never be repeated. He
ends his petition with a prayer that:
a resolution issue ordering the Clerk of Court to receive the
certificate of the undersigned attorney that at any time in the
future and in the event we regain our faith and confidence,
we may retrieve our title to assume the practice of the
noblest profession.

Well-recognized is the right of a lawyer, both as an

officer of the court and as citizen, to criticize in
properly respectful terms and through legitimate
channels the acts of courts and judges.
As a citizen and as officer of the court, a lawyer is
expected not only to exercise the right, but also to
consider it his duty to avail of such right. No law may
abridge this right.
Nor is he professionally answerable for a scrutiny
into the official conduct of the judges, which would not
expose him to legal animadversion as a citizen.
Atty. Almacen is suspended from the practice of law
until further orders.

In Re: Cunanan

Congress enacted R.A. No. 972 An Act to Fix the Passing

Marks for bar Examinations from 1946 up to and including 1955
or the Bar Flunkers Act

B. REQUIREMENTS (who may practice law?)

Rule 138 of the Revised Rules of Court
Any person duly admitted as a member of the bar
Who is in good standing
o No pending cases; if there are, bar confidant
should be informed
o Pay IBP dues (5,000/year)
Citizen and resident of the Philippines
At least 21 years old
3 certifications from 3 lawyers evidencing good moral
character
No charges involving moral turpitude
Completion of a 4-year ________________
Advincula v. Macabata
PET filed a complaint for disbarment against RESPO,
charging the latter with Gross Immorality
PET rode with him in his car where he held & kissed her

Acts of kissing or beso-beso on the cheeks are

mere gestures of friendship and camaraderie
RESPOs acts are NOT grossly immoral nor highly
reprehensible to warrant disbarment or suspension
The power to disbar or suspend should always be
exercised on the preservative and, not in the
vindictive principle, with great caution and only for the
most weighty reasons.
Reprimanded with a stern warning

C. ATTORNEYS ROLL
Pangan v. Ramos
RESPO is using Atty. Pedro D.D. Ramos
However, in the Roll of Attorneys, the name appearing is
Dionisio D. Ramos

The attorneys roll or register is the official record

containing the names and signatures of those who
are authorize to practice law
A lawyer is not authorized to use a name other than
the one inscribed in the Roll of Attorneys in his
practice of law
The official oath obliges the attorney to solemnly
swear that he will do no falsehood. In representing
himself to the court as Pedro D.D. Ramos instead of
Dionisio D. Ramos, RESPO has violated his solemn
oath
Reprimanded

D. WHO MAY PRACTICE LAW IN THE PHILIPPINES

In Re: Petition to Sign in the Roll of Attorneys, Michael Medado

He had not signed in the roll, and that what he has signed at the
entrance of the PICC was probably just an attendance record

For one, PET demonstrated good faith and good

moral character when he finally filed the instant
Petition to Sign in the Roll of Attorneys. It was himself
who acknowledged his own lapse, not a third party.
When, in spite of this knowledge, he chose to
continue practicing law without taking the necessary
steps to complete all the requirements for admission
to the Bar, he willfully engaged in the unauthorized
practice of law
PET is allowed to sign in the Roll of Attorneys one
year after receipt of the resolution and ordered to pay
a fine of 32,000

V. CHARACTERISTICS

It was settled by a mere compromise, surrendering the

bogus certificate of title to the government

Artiaga v Villanueva
He was suspended indefinitely

A PRIVILEGE, NOT A MATTER OF RIGHT

Tan v. Sabandal
RESPO has a pending civil because of his procurement
of a certificate of free patent over a parcel of land
(swampland) belonging to the government, and used as
a mortgage to obtain a loan

His being a Land Investigator facilitated his

procurement of the free patent title over property he
could not but have known was public land
This was manipulative on his part and does not speak
well of his moral character
It is a manifestation of gross dishonesty while in the
public service, which cannot be erased by the
termination of the case filed by the Republic against
him where no determination of his guilt or innocence
was made because the suit had been compromised
Practice of law is not a matter of right. It is a privilege
bestowed upon individuals who are not only learned
in the law but who are also known to possess good
moral character.
His prayer to be allowed to take the lawyers oath is
therefore denied

A careful reexamination of the records of the case

shows that the acts of RESPO may be attributed to
his extreme zeal and enthusiasm in prosecuting the
cause of his client
There is no proof of any dishonest motive or fraud
towards the courts and the adverse party.
His suspension from the practice of law is sufficient
There is proof that the fault cannot be attributed
entirely to the RESPO
The attestations of responsible persons in the public
and private sector as to the integrity and good moral
character of respondent show that he has
rehabilitated himself as to deserve another chance to
resume the practice of law
Therefore, the suspension of RESPO from the
practice of law is LIFTED