Bring the bar exams closer to home

Several batches of new graduates from the College of Law of the University of Cebu have been asking the Supreme Court for several years now for the bar examinations to be held in alternate venues other than Metro Manila, thus changing a practice that had been held since the first bar exam in 1901.

The effort to persuade the Supreme Court to consider the decentralization of the bar examination has been spearheaded by the lawyer Baldomero Estenzo, dean of the University of Cebu’s College of Law.

The aspiring lawyers have cited costs as the biggest reason, although they are quick to add that the examination schedule – four consecutive Sundays – is likewise taxing on their physical, emotional and mental condition, what with the long-distance travel to Manila and having to be away from home for more than a month.

These new law graduates have estimated the cost of taking the bar exam in Manila at P150,000 to P200,000 for a five-month stay that includes the bar review and examination proper, as well as fare, lodging and daily food.

On the side of Congress, Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, representing Cagayan de Oro in Mindanao, had filed an earlier resolution urging the Supreme Court to consider reforming the conduct of the bar examinations in the country, including decentralizing the exams for prospective lawyers.

The first letter of new law graduates from the University of Cebu was submitted in December of 2009, focused on the fact that there has been a growing number of bar candidates from the Visayas and Mindanao in recent years.

‘Staggering’ cost

They pointed out that the cost is “staggering” especially for many who have limited financial capacity. In fact, they recounted that during Typhoon Ondoy of 2009 when the bar examination schedule had to be extended, a number of bar examinees had to borrow or rely on financial assistance to pay for the additional days’ stay in Manila.

Should there be an alternate venue, say in Cebu, for south-based bar hopefuls, the cost would be significantly lower. And for many, the likelihood of finding an extended family support system that is “friendlier” would be bigger.

Also, by being “closer” to home, the stress and anxiety levels for the bar examinees would be more manageable.

For the Supreme Court, holding the exams in Cebu could be cost-effective especially since the University of Cebu has offered its facilities for free. On the other hand, utilizing local staff – properly supervised by Supreme Court – would negate sending Manila-based personnel to Cebu.

The University of Cebu, incidentally, has the experience and integrity in holding board examinations supervised by the Professional Regulatory Commission. The university also has the space that could accommodate all the examinees coming from Visayas and Mindanao.

One of the biggest advantages in choosing Cebu would be the extensive network of law review centers. Out-of-town review students often complain that they are not able to access the services of Manila-based law professors and reviewers with the same ease.

Initial SC response

In 2010, the Supreme Court through court administrator Jose Midas Marquez announced that it was refusing to “yield to the clamor of various sectors coming from the provinces” on the decentralization request.

In 2011, however, the High Court through Board Memorandum No. 2265 resolved that, among others, to use the data and experience obtained from the 2011 bar examinations to study the feasibility of holding bar examinations simultaneously in Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao. 

While the Supreme Court showed its openness to the possibility of decentralizing the conduct of bar examinations, new graduates of the University of Cebu took the move a step up in 2012 by submitting a formal petition to the Supreme Court under the 1987 Constitution’s equal protection clause.

Specifically, they invoked the paragraph that provides for the Supreme Court to promulgate rules concerning the admission to the practice of law. 

Decentralization ‘fears’

Giving meat to their petition is the statement that the centralization of bar examinations favors Metro Manila law graduates financially and emotionally, the latter further argued by the fact that Metro Manila-based bar exam takers do not have to adjust anymore to a new environment.

The argument is taken a step further when petitioners claimed that the conduct of the bar examinations in Manila is merely “for convenience.” Decentralization, they argued, will not harm the judiciary as gleaned from the fact that the PRC has long decentralized licensure examinations without prejudice to the professions involved.

Decentralization makes sense especially since majority of law examinees now come from regions outside Metro Manila. Corollary, of the 121 law schools in the country to date, only 28 are in Metro Manila. Thus, more bar candidates are spending more than the minority from Metro Manila.

Clearly, according to the petition, keeping the bar examination for prospective practicing lawyers in Metro Manila creates an unnecessary burden to poor but deserving applicants.

Lastly, the petition stated that advances in Information Technology have protected the integrity of professional licensing examinations, as have been seen in examinations conducted by the PRC outside of Metro Manila.

Slow justice

The Supreme Court had announced last April that the 2014 bar examinations would be held on the four Sundays of October at the University of Sto. Tomas. Obviously, the petition of the University of Cebu law graduates in 2012 has not been favorably acted on – yet.

The judiciary is normally slow in deciding on cases filed before it. If it’s any consolation, the highest court in the land seems to be intently studying the proposal to decentralize bar exams.

For the moment, best to just revel on the possibility that future law graduates from schools in the Visayas and Mindanao may take their bar exams closer to home. Justices often move slowly, but sometimes they give us surprises.

In the meantime, to the 2014 bar takers from other parts of the country, especially from the Visayas and Mindanao, who by now must be deep in review in preparation for the October tests, just focus on your studies so that you won’t have to return next year for retests.

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