This Issue looks into the continuing concern of the narrow access to justice that has long plagued the country’s legal system. Through this Issue, problems involving novel challenges in social justice are highlighted as necessary discussions to have towards expanding access to justice and reforming the legal system.

 

Atty. Nicolene S. Arcaina and Atty. Sabrina Victoria M. Dayao, in "Towards Our Obscurity: An Essay on Decentering the Role of Alternative Lawyers in the Quest for Justice in the Context of the Philippine Drug War Cases of Morillo v. PNP and Daño v. PNP," features alternative lawyering and its role in upholding human rights in the context of Former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte's "War on Drugs." The Article presents real-life cases of human rights victims, Morillo and Daño, narrating their experiences working with CenterLaw, a human rights advocacy group. The Article highlights the necessity of alternative lawyers in providing adequate access to justice for victims without readily available means to engage representation in the protection of their right to life and right to security.

 

In the Article entitled "Office Conflict: An Analysis of Section 22, Canon Ill of the 2023 Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability vis-a-vis Conflict of Interest Under Philippine Law and Jurisprudence and the Social Justice Mandate of the Public Attorney's Office," Atty. Maria Patricia DV. Santos and Atty. Carl Lyndon C. Santos examine how Section 22, Canon Ill of the 2023 CPRA seemingly is inconsistent with the jurisprudential legal framework of conflict of interest and the current policy of the PAO thereon. Nonetheless, interpreting Section 22, Canon Ill of the 2023 CPRA as a provision that balances the fundamental rights under the Constitution, in relation to free access to justice in furtherance of the PAO's mandate and the rights and principles sought to be protected by conflict-of-interest rules, may give light to the rationale and reasonable basis behind this new rule.

 

In Atty. Brian Kelvin V. Pineda’s Note entitled “Thy Will Be Done: Addressing the Insufficiency of the Mental Health Act in Relation to the Principle of Universal Legal Capacity Under Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, to Ensure and Protect the Legal Capacity of Persons with Disabilities, in All Stages of Life,” several issues were raised regarding the inadequate legal protection for PWDs under the current system. The Note compares the rights extended to PWDs under Philippine law with those under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

 

Apart from the above mentioned discussions, the Issue aims to explore other novel questions in bridging the gap between our existing laws and the legal system’s ultimate goal — to serve as a force in maintaining justice and equity.

 

To access this Issue, kindly click this link: https://tinyurl.com/ALJ-Issue67-4.