Designating Commercial Courts as Cybercrime Courts and Submission of Reports of Cybercrime Cases
OCA Circular No. 18-2017 designates certain Regional Trial Court branches, previously identified as Special Commercial Courts, to also serve as Cybercrime Courts under Republic Act No. 10175. These courts will have jurisdiction over cybercrime cases within their regions, with cases to be filed at the Clerk of Court's office. To ensure an equitable distribution of cases, these courts will be included in the random assignment of cases, and the Office of the Court Administrator will monitor the volume of filed cases. Additionally, Cybercrime Courts in key locations like Quezon City and Makati can issue nationwide search warrants for violations of cybercrime laws. Quarterly reports on cybercrime cases are required to be submitted for monitoring purposes.
January 19, 2017
OCA CIRCULAR NO. 18-2017
| TO | : | All Presiding/Acting Presiding Judges of Commercial Courts |
| SUBJECT | : | Designating Commercial Courts as Cybercrime Courts and Submission of Reports of Cybercrime Cases |
In its Resolution dated 15 November 2016 in Administrative Matter No. 03-03-03-SC (Designating Certain Branches of the Regional Trial Courts to Try and Decide Cybercrime Cases under Republic Act No. 10175), the Honorable Court en banc resolved to:
l. The Regional Trial Court branches designated as Special Commercial Courts in A.M. No. 03-03-03-SC dated June 17, 2003 are hereby DESIGNATED as "Cybercrime Courts'' to try and decide cybercrime cases covered under Republic Act No. 10175, in addition to their designation as Special Commercial Courts;
2. The Cybercrime Courts in the judicial regions shall have territorial authority over the entire region where the Regional Trial Court is located for purposes of exercising the special jurisdiction granted herein. Accordingly, cybercrime cases shall be filed in the Office of the Clerk of Court in the official station of the proper Cybercrime Court;
3. To ensure a fair and equitable distribution of cases, and pending determination of the actual volume of Cybercrime cases that may be filed, the Cybercrime Courts shall continue to be included in the raffle of other cases and toward this end, the Executive Judge concerned shall adopt a procedure whereby every case assigned to a Cybercrime Court is considered as a case raffled and duly credited to such court;
4. The Office of the Court Administrator shall monitor the volume of cases filed with the Cybercrime Courts and report to the Supreme Court its findings within one (1) year from the effectivity of this Resolution.
5. Cybercrime Courts in Quezon City, Manila, Makati, and Pasig shall have authority to act on applications for the issuance of search warrants involving violations of Republic Act No. 10175, which search warrants shall be enforceable nationwide. Within their respective territorial jurisdictions, the Cybercrime Courts in the judicial regions where the violations of Republic Act No. 10175 occurred shall have jurisdiction to issue search warrants.
The Resolution dated 15 November 2016, appended herein as Annex "A", was published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer and the Philippine Star on 8 December 2016 and took effect on 23 December 2016. CAIHTE
Pursuant to the directive of the Honorable Court to the Office of the Court Administrator to monitor cybercrime cases, you are hereby DIRECTED to submit quarterly reports of cybercrime cases using the attached forms (downloadable from the Office of the Court Administrator website: oca.judiciary.gov.ph), on or before the tenth (10th) day of the month following every quarter, through the Statistical Reports Division of the Court Management Office (SRD-CMO), or thru electronic email at [email protected].
For your strict compliance.
(SGD.) JOSE MIDAS P. MARQUEZ
Court Administrator
ATTACHMENT
Quarterly Status Report of Cybercrime Cases
Summary
ANNEXA
SC Resolution A.M. No. 03-03-03-SC