On March 6, 2006, the Philippine Supreme Court issued a rule prohibiting the employment of spouses of Justices in the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Sandiganbayan, and Court of Tax Appeals as co-terminus employees. This measure aims to uphold the ethical standards outlined in the New Code of Judicial Conduct, which emphasizes the importance of public confidence in the judiciary's integrity. To ensure a judiciary free from suspicion, the rule mandates that any existing spouses employed in these positions will be deemed resigned by March 31, 2007. The rule took immediate effect and was published on March 7, 2007.
March 6, 2006
A.M. No. 07-3-02-CA
IN RE : Rule Banning the Employment of Spouses of Justices in the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Sandiganbayan and Court of Tax Appeals as Co-Terminus Employees
WHEREAS, one of the objectives of the Judicial Reform Program is to have a judiciary steeped and strict in ethics; aDHCAE
WHEREAS, to implement its Judicial Reform Program, the Supreme Court adopted on April 27, 2004, the New Code of Judicial Conduct for the Philippine Judiciary in A.M. No. 03-05-01-SC;
WHEREAS, the New Code of Judicial Conduct for the Philippine Judiciary is premised, among others, on the fact that ". . . public confidence in the judicial system and in the moral authority and integrity of the judiciary is of utmost importance in a modern democratic society; and . . . it is essential that judges, individually and collectively, respect and honor judicial office as a public trust and strive to enhance and maintain confidence in the judicial system";
WHEREAS, to enforce the letter and the spirit of the New Code of Judicial Conduct for the Philippine Judiciary calling for an ethical judiciary that is above suspicion, it is necessary to control and regulate the employment of spouses of Justices in the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Sandiganbayan and Court of Tax Appeals as coterminous employees;
IN VIEW WHEREOF, the employment of spouses of Justices in the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Sandiganbayan and Court of Tax Appeals as coterminous employees is prohibited. Spouses presently employed and covered by this rule shall be deemed resigned as of March 31, 2007 at the close of office hours.
This rule shall take effect immediately.
Published in the Bulletin on March 7, 2007.