Reiteration of the Role of Executive Judges and Single-Sala RTC Judges in Implementing the Procedure for Issuance of Levels 1 and 2 Certifications under Rule 138-A, as Amended

June 6, 2022

OCA CIRCULAR NO. 142-2022

 

All second level court Executive Judges and single-sala RTC judges are once again REMINDED to OBSERVE their role in the implementation of the procedure for the issuance of Levels 1 and 2 Certifications and their corresponding legal fees as provided in A.M. No. 19-03-24-SC (Rule 138-A [Law Student Practice]), circularized by this Office in OCA Circular No. 160-2020 dated 24 September 2020, thus:

PROPOSED PROCEDURE FOR ISSUANCE OF LEVEL 1 CERTIFICATION UNDER RULE 138-A, AS AMENDED

1. A law student who is in his/her second year law studies may apply for a Level 1 Certification.

2. The law school, through the dean or the authorized representative, shall submit either personally, by private courier or email to the official judiciary account of the Executive Judge or the single-sala Presiding Judge of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) having jurisdiction over the territory where the law school is located, the duly-accomplished application form/s of the law student applicant/s together with an endorsement under oath.

3. Applicable filing fees of P200.00 per applicant law student may be paid either thru the Office of the Clerk of Court/Branch Clerk of Court of the concerned RTC or thru any branch of Landbank. The fees should be allocated to the Judiciary Development Fund (JDF) and Special Allowance for the Judiciary Fund (SAJF) equally.

4. The Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge shall evaluate and approve the application/s and shall notify the law school which indorsed the application/s by telephone or email of such approval and the schedule of oath-taking of the law student applicant/s.

5. The concerned Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge shall schedule the oath-taking of the law student applicant/s via videoconference using the MS Teams account of the Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge and shall record such oath-taking.

6. The Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge shall issue the Level 1 Certification/s within ten (10) days from receipt of the application/s and should forward copies thereof to the law school either personally, by private courier or email using the official judiciary account of the Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge. Should the Level 1 Certification/s be sent by email, copies thereof should be in uneditable portable document format (PDF) to be printed by the law school which indorsed the application/s pending receipt of the original hard copies from the Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge.

7. A Level 1 Certificate holder may only perform legal work as provided in Section 4 (1) to (7) of the Law Student Practice Rule per A.M. No. 19-03-24-SC.

PROPOSED PROCEDURE FOR ISSUANCE OF LEVEL 2 CERTIFICATION UNDER RULE 138-A, AS AMENDED

1. A law student who is in his/her third year, second semester law studies may apply for a Level 2 Certification.

2. The law school, through the dean or the authorized representative, shall submit either personally, by private courier or email to the official judiciary account of the Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge having jurisdiction over the territory where the law school is located, the duly-accomplished application form/s of the law student applicant/s together with an endorsement under oath.

3. Applicable filing fees of P200.00 per applicant law student may be paid either thru the Office of the Clerk of Court/Branch Clerk of Court of the concerned RTC or thru any branch of Landbank. The fees should be allocated to the Judiciary Development Fund (JDF) and Special Allowance for the Judiciary Fund (SAJF) equally.

4. The Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge RTC shall (a) evaluate the application/s together with the attachments, and (b) recommend to the Office of the Court Administrator (OCA), thru the concerned Deputy Court Administrators (DCAs) or Assistant Court Administrators (ACAs), the approval and issuance of the Level 2 Certification/s. The Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge may send his/her recommendation to the OCA via email. However, if the Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge finds the application to be incomplete, the law school shall be notified by telephone or email and shall be required to comply with the requirements within five (5) days from receipt of notice.

5. If the concerned DCA/ACA approves the recommendation of the Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge, he/she shall issue the Level 2 Certifications within five (5) days from receipt of the recommendation. The DCA/ACA should forward copies of the Level 2 Certifications to the Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge either personally, by private courier or by email. Should the Level 2 Certification/s be sent by email, copies thereof should be in uneditable portable document format (PDF) which may be printed by the law school which indorsed the application/s pending receipt of the original hard copies from the DCA/ACA.

6. Upon receipt of the Level 2 Certification/s, the Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge shall notify the law school which indorsed the application/s by telephone or email and the schedule of oath-taking of the law student applicant/s. The oath-taking shall be done via videoconference using the MS Teams account of the Executive Judge/single-sala RTC Judge who shall record the proceedings.

7. A Level 2 Certificate holder may only perform legal work as provided in Section 4 (1) to (5) of the Law Student Practice Rule per A.M. No. 19-03-24-SC.

For guidance and strict compliance.

(SGD.) RAUL B. VILLANUEVACourt Administrator