No dissent: Supreme Court OKs new code of conduct for lawyers
MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court has approved the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability, which is a "modern, relevant and responsive guide for a lawyer’s conduct."
In a statement on Wednesday, the SC Public Information Office said the high court unanimously approved the CPRA in its en banc session in Baguio. This is part of the SC’s efforts to update the 34-year-old Code of Professional Responsibility.
The CPRA is set to be launched on April 13.
The launch is the culmination of the Ethics Caravan, a series of consultative discussions that in the cities of Cebu, Davao, Naga, Baguio and Manila.
"Over 2,000 legal practitioners nationwide took part in the Ethics Caravan held from September 2022 to January 2023," the SC PIO said. The consultations, led by the Sub-Committee for the Revision of the Code of Professional Responsibility, were held in person and remotely.
In an earlier statement, the SC PIO said the CPRA "follows a values-based framework, divided into canons on independence, propriety, fidelity, competence, diligence, equality and accountability, similar to the New Code of Judicial Conduct."
The CPRA shall also include new provisions promoting the responsible use of social media. This shall include "prohibition on posting, sharing, uploading, or otherwise disseminating false or unverified statements and claims, or any other act of disinformation; the prohibition on maintaining or operating social media accounts for the purpose of obscuring a lawyer’s identity to circumvent the law; and the expansion of the scope of impermissible advertisement to include social media."
A revised Lawyer’s Oath shall also be part of the CPRA.
Launch
For the launch, over 250 members of the Bench and the Bar, prosecutors and other members of the legal profession and the academe.
The SC PIO said Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo will deliver the keynote speech while Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen will deliver the inspirational message during the launch.
Associate Justices Amy Lazaro-Javier, Samuel Gaerlan and Maria Filomena Singh, who are all part of the Sub-Committee who led the consultations, will also deliver remarks.
Messages of support will also be delivered from esteemed guests from the European Union, Australian Embassy, The Asia Foundation and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
"There will also be a signing of the Manifesto of Commitment to Ethical Responsibility," the SC PIO also said.
- Latest
- Trending
