Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
º Rights must be derived from law for it to be legally demandable and 1. Classification of Courts- only the Supreme Court is a constitutional
enforceable in courts. court in the sense of being a creation of being a creation of the
Constitution. All the other courts, including the Sandiganbayan are
GRAVE ABUSE OF DISCRETION- capricious and arbitrary exercise of statutory; they are creations of the law. They are referred to as
judgement as is equivalent, in the eyes of the law, to lack of jurisdiction, lower courts in the Constitution, meaning, courts below the
that is, lack of authority to act on the matter in dispute. Supreme Court.
2. Creation and Abolition of Courts by Congress- in the exercise of its
POWER OF JUDICIAL REVIEWS legislative power, the Congress may abolish any or all lower courts
and replace them with other courts subject to the limitation that it
Includes the power: shall not undermine security of tenure. It cannot abolish the
Supreme Court; and neither can it create an additional one. The
1. To pass upon the validity or constitutionality of the laws of the Constitution provides for only one Supreme Court. Also, it cannot
State and the acts of the Departments of the government. abolish the Sandiganbayan because its existence is
2. to interpret them constitutionally recognised although Congress, in the exercise of
3. to render binding judgments its legislative functions, may determine its functions and
jurisdiction.
INCIDENTAL POWERS – includes the incidental powers necessary to the
effective discharge of the judicial functions as the power to punish persons
adjudged in contempt. Organisation of Courts
NOTE: GIVING ADVISORY OPINIONS ARE NOT JUDICIAL FUNCTIONS. 1. Regular Courts—the Philippine judicial system consists of a
hierarchy of courts resembling a pyramid with the Supreme Court
º Function of executive officials—the judiciary is entrusted by the at its apex. Under the Judiciary Reorganisation Act of 1980, the
Constitution with the function of deciding actual cases and other courts are:
a. The Court of Appeals—they have 69 Justices headed by a Presiding 1. The Congress cannot diminish or otherwise impair the original and
Justice which operates in 23 divisions comprising three members. appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court over cases enumerated in
The Court sits en banc only to exercise administrative, ceremonial, Section 5.
or non-adjudicatory functions.
b. A Regional Trial Court presided by 720 Regional Trial Judges in º Exercise original jurisdiction over cases affecting
each of the 13 regions of this country. ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, and over
c. A Metropolitan Trial Court in each Metropolitan area established by petitions for certiorari, prohibition, mandamus, quo
law, a Municipal Trial court in every city not forming part of a warranto, and habeas corpus.
metropolitan area, and in each of the municipalities not comprised
within a metropolitan area and a Municipal Circuit Trial Court in
each area defined as a municipal circuit comprising one or more º Review, revise, reverse, modify, or affirm on appeal or
cities and/or one or more municipalities grouped together certiorari, as the law or the Rules of Court may provide,
according to law. final judgments and orders of lower courts in:
Importance of the Judiciary º All criminal cases in which the penalty imposed is reclusion
perpetua or higher.
The courts perform a crucial function in the society.
º All cases in which only an error or question of law is
1. Confidence in the certain and even administration of justice involved.
2. Preservation of the government
3. Respect for law and order º Assign temporarily judges of lower courts to other stations
as public interest may require. Such temporary assignment
Independence of the Judiciary shall not exceed six months without the consent of the
judge concerned.
1. Main constitutional provisions safeguarding judicial independence.
2. Other Constitutional provisions
3. Criticism of courts º Order a change of venue or place of trial to avoid a
miscarriage of justice.
Power to apportion jurisdiction of various courts vested in
Congress º Promulgate rules concerning the protection and
enforcement of constitutional rights, pleading, practice,
3 limitations of the exercise of this power and procedure in all courts, the admission to the practice
of law, the integrated bar, and legal assistance to the
under-privileged. Such rules shall provide a simplified and
inexpensive procedure for the speedy disposition of cases, º The Supreme Court may sit and hear cases en banc (as one body)
shall be uniform for all courts of the same grade, and shall or in divisions of three, five, or seven members. It is now the
not diminish, increase, or modify substantive rights. Rules Supreme Court that decides whether or not it will sit in divisions.
of procedure of special courts and quasi-judicial bodies º On the basis of 15 members, the number of divisions will be five,
shall remain effective unless disapproved by the Supreme composed of three members each, or two meeting separately. In
Court. case of two divisions, there will be eight members including the CJ
º Appoint all officials and employees of the Judiciary in in one division, and seven in the other. The different sizes in the
accordance with the Civil Service Law. division would indicate inconsistent decisions.
Sitting procedure
Classes of executive agreements: 1. those made purely as executive acts 2. Review, revise, reverse, modify, or affirm on appeal or certiorari,
affecting external relations and independent of legislative authorization. 2. as the law or the Rules of Court may provide, final judgments and
those entered into pursuance of acts of Congress. orders of lower courts in:
Judicial review- power of the courts to test the validity of executive and a. All cases in which the constitutionality or validity of any
legislative acts in the light of their conformity with the Constitution. This treaty, international or executive agreement, law,
power is not an assertion of the Court’s superiority to the other presidential decree, proclamation, order, instruction,
departments, but rather, merely an expression of the supremacy of the ordinance, or regulation is in question.
Constitution.
LIMITATIONS ON THE POWER OF JUDICIAL REVIEW b. All cases involving the legality of any tax, impost,
assessment, or toll, or any penalty imposed in relation
1. There must a concurrence of at least a majority of the members thereto.
who actually took part in the deliberations on the issues in the
case and voted thereon. c. All cases in which the jurisdiction of any lower court is in
2. A law, etc. must be sustained unless clearly repugnant to the issue.
Constitution in view of the presumption of validity.
3. The question of wisdom, propriety, or necessity of a law, is not d. All criminal cases in which the penalty imposed is
open to determination by the court. reclusion perpetua or higher.
4. Political questions are generally addressed to the political (i.e.,
elective branches (namely, the President and Congress) of the
e. All cases in which only an error or question of law is
government, and therefore, not justiciable.
involved.
Justiciable question distinguished from political question
3. Assign temporarily judges of lower courts to other stations as
A justiciable question is one which affects person or property rights public interest may require. Such temporary assignment shall not
accorded to every member of the community in cases properly brought exceed six months without the consent of the judge concerned.
before the judicial tribunals. It is one which is proper to be examined or
decided in courts of justice because its determination would not involve an 4. Order a change of venue or place of trial to avoid a miscarriage of
encroachment upon the legislative or executive power. justice.
On the other hand, a political question is one which the Constitution is to 5. Promulgate rules concerning the protection and enforcement of
be decided by the people in their sovereign capacity, or in regard to which constitutional rights, pleading, practice, and procedure in all
the full discretionary authority has been delegated to the legislative or courts, the admission to the practice of law, the integrated bar,
executive branch of the government. and legal assistance to the under-privileged. Such rules shall
provide a simplified and inexpensive procedure for the speedy
disposition of cases, shall be uniform for all courts of the same
POWERS OF THE SUPREME COURT grade, and shall not diminish, increase, or modify substantive
rights. Rules of procedure of special courts and quasi-judicial
1. Exercise original jurisdiction over cases affecting ambassadors, bodies shall remain effective unless disapproved by the Supreme
other public ministers and consuls, and over petitions for Court.
certiorari, prohibition, mandamus, quo warranto, and habeas 6. Appoint all officials and employees of the Judiciary in accordance
corpus. with the Civil Service Law.
ORIGINAL JURISDICTION OF THE SUPREME COURT OVER CASES
AFFECTING AMBASSADORS, etc.
Note: the Congress can only exercise its power (in respect to this
jurisdiction (as thus provided) to decide whether the elevation of cases
from lower courts should be done through appeal or certiorari, which is a
matter of procedure which also may be determined by the Rules of Court
itself.
1. By APPEAL, the appellate court reviews all the findings of the law
and of fact of a lower court as in special proceedings.
2. By CERTIORARI the appellate or superior court