When the Japanese occupied the country in 1942 (the war for the Asia Pacific started with the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December 1941) and installed Jose P. Laurel as president.
To achieve normalcy of the government structure and its service President Laurel made appointments and designations, for Cebu these were the following:
(1) Vicente Varela, judge of the Seventh Judicial District, to preside over the Court of First Instance of Oriental Negros; the appointment was made on September 16, 1942. Later, Judge Varela was appointed as judge of the Court of First Instance of Cebu. Judge Varela was admitted to the Bar on November 3, 1916 (originally from Negros).
It was Judge Varela who was presiding judge of the Court of First Instance of Cebu who allowed an amendment to a motion of protest in an election contest. One of the respondents of the election protest was Vicente M. Florido who contested the election of Leon Velez as Vice Mayor of Carcar, Cebu. The subject of the protest was that Florido alleged that in 13 precincts in Carcar, Cebu irregularities were committed in that legal votes cast in favor of Florido were rejected whereas illegal votes (marked ballots) cast in the name of Velez were counted in favor of the latter.
A revision was directed by Judge Varela to commence on February 11, 1952. When the work of the revisors neared completion and the trial of the case already set, Florido on February 26, 1952 filed a motion for leave to drop two specified precincts from his protest and include a new one in their stead. The motion of Florido was granted by Judge Varela.
Velez filed a petion for certiorari before the Supreme Court and the latter on May 29, 1953 granted the petition of Velez.
(2) Fortunato V. Borromeo, Judge of the Eighth Judicial Region, to preside over the Court of First Instance of Bohol; the appointment was made on September 16, 1942.
Judge Borromeo was admitted to the Bar on July 14, 1913. A namesake also of Cebu City was admitted to the Bar on March 28, 1949. Fortunato Veloso Borromeo was born in 1890, fondly called by family and friends as "Papa Atong." Fortunato married Mercedes Neri and they had ten children: Imelda, Jesus, Benjamin, Mercedes, Angelita, Rafael (who became a priest), Zelia, Francisco, Corazon, and Amparo. Fortunato was the cousin of another legal giant, Judge Andres Reynes Borromeo (a street is named after him).
Fortunato Borromeo was elevated as Justice of the Court of Appeals and retired from the judiciary on December 14, 1949. Justice Borromeo was the petitioner in a landmark case with the subject matter of retirement gratuity and double pension. The case is entitled "Fortunato V. Borromeo versus Government Service Insurance System" decided on November 23, 1960. Justice Borromeo was assisted by his son as legal counsel, Jesus N. Borromeo, who was admitted to the Bar on February 3, 1951.
Felix Martinez, judge of the Eighth Judicial District, to preside over the First Branch of the Court of First Instance of Cebu; appointment was made on September 2, 1942. Judge Martinez was admitted to the Bar on September 15, 1915. Judge Martinez was made respondent in a case before the Supreme Court for permitting Don Vicente Y. Sotto to act as private prosecutor in an illegal practice of medicine case. The accused/petitioner argued that Sotto could not prosecute as it should be the fiscal who should do so. Judge Martinez co-respondents in the case were Cesar Kintanar, Assistant City of Cebu and Vicente Sotto. The case was decided by the Supreme Court on March 14, 1956.
(3) Francisco Martinez was appointed Provincial Treasurer of the Province of Cebu on September 22, 1942. Francisco before the war also served as Provincial Treasurer of Leyte.