judiciary

• The Judicial Department is one of the three main branches of the Philippine Government, comprising the Supreme Court and the lower courts.
• Judicial power is the power to interpret and apply the laws to any and all disputes between and among parties enforcing their legal rights.
• The Judiciary also determines whether or not grave abuse of discretion has been practiced or exercised in any branch or instrumentality of the Philippine Government that is tantamount to lack or excess of jurisdiction.
• The right against double jeopardy.
• The accused have the following rights: “This means that when a person is charged with an offense and the case is terminated either by acquittal or conviction or in any other manner without the express consent of the accused, the latter cannot again be charged with the same or identical offense.
• Members of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President from a list of at least three nominees prepared and submitted by the Judicial and Bar Council, without the need for confirmation by the Commission on Appointments.
• The Supreme Court of the Philippines exercises original jurisdiction over cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls, and over petitions for certiorari, prohibition, mandamus, quo warranto, and habeas corpus.
• The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over all contests relating to the election, returns, and qualifications of the President and Vice-President.
• POWERS AND JURISDICTIONS: These cases are directly filed with the Supreme Court in the first instance without passing through any of the lower courts.
• The Supreme Court also exercises original jurisdiction over writs of amparo, habeas data, and the environmental writ of kalikasan.
• A Judicial and Bar Council is created under the supervision of the Supreme Court composed of the Chief Justice as ex officio Chairman, the Secretary of Justice, a representative of the Congress, a representative of the Integrated Bar, a professor of law, a retired Member of the Supreme Court, and a representative of the private sector.
• To be appointed as a member of the Supreme Court, a person must possess the qualifications of a natural-born citizen of the Philippines, at least forty years old, with at least fifteen years of experience as a judge of a lower court or law practice in the country, and with proven competence, integrity, probity, and independence.
• The Supreme Court is composed of a Chief Justice and 14 Associate Justices who serve until the age of 70.
• The right against self-incrimination protects the witness from answering questions that might lead to their implication to a crime.
• The right against detention by reason of political beliefs and aspirations is the guarantee that the people can voice out, without fear of being put into custody, what they think is the problem with the government and those in the administration.
• Those charged with capital offense are a deterrence to the exercise of this right.
• The accused have the right to bail and the right against too much bail, which they cannot invoke if they are not in the custody of the law.
• The right against excessive fines, cruel, degrading or inhuman punishment, and infliction of the death penalty except for heinous crimes are the rights that the accused have against the government.
• The determination of the appropriateness of the bail falls upon the judgment of the court, taking into account the degree of the offense, the equivalent sanction, the odds of guilt, and the capacity of the accused.
• Habeas Data is a remedy available to any person whose right to privacy in life, liberty, or security is violated or threatened by an unlawful act or omission of a public official or employee, or of a private individual or entity engaged in the gathering, collecting or storing of data or information regarding the person, family, home and correspondence of the aggrieved party.
• Mandamus is an order issued by a superior court commanding a lower court or a corporation, board, or person to perform a certain act which it is its or his duty to do.
• Quo Warranto is an action by the government to recover an office or franchise from an individual or corporation usurping or unlawfully holding it.
• Habeas Corpus is a writ that directs law enforcement officials who have custody of a prisoner to appear in court with the prisoner to help the judge determine whether the prisoner is lawfully in prison or in jail.
• Certiorari is a writ issued by a superior court requiring a lower court or a board, or an officer exercising judicial functions to transmit the records of a case to the superior court for purposes of review.
• Amparo is a remedy available to any person whose right to life, liberty, and security is violated or threatened with violation by an unlawful act or omission of a public official or employee, or of a private individual or entity.
• Prohibition is a writ by which a superior court commands a lower court or a corporation, board, or person acting without or in excess of its or his jurisdiction, or with grave abuse of discretion to desist from further proceedings in an action or matter.
• Writ of Kalikasan is a remedy available to anyone involving the enforcement or violations of environmental and related existing laws, rules, and regulations that relate to the conservation, development, preservation, protection, and utilization of the environment and natural resources.
• The authorities have the obligation to inform the accused person of the rights mentioned in this section (Section 12).
• The Supreme Court exercises the rule-making power as the exclusive power of the Court to promulgate rules concerning the protection and enforcement of both the constitutional and the statutory rights, and for the speedy disposition of cases.
• The Supreme Court exercises the appellate jurisdiction to review, revise, reverse, modify, or affirm final judgments, and orders of the lower courts in all cases of great public interests or of serious moments to individual rights as enumerated in Art. VIII, Sec. 5 (2) of the Constitution, and in all cases involving only an error or question of law and not to questions of facts.
• The rights of the accused assure the person that evidence obtained either by use of torture (and other forms that is against the will of the person) or secret confinement is invalid and that authorities who violate these are subject to penal and civil sanctions.
• The accused have the right against being detained in secret or any other forms of solitary confinement.
• The rights of the accused reinforce the right to have or be provided with counsel and inform the person in custody that if they don’t answer during an interrogation, then their silence couldn’t be taken as evidence against them.
• The accused have the right to be informed of their right to remain silent and to have competent and independent counsel.
• The Supreme Court, in a special En Banc session, issued a writ of kalikasan to protect, preserve, rehabilitate, and to restore the marine environment in Scarborough Shoal (also known as Panatag Shoal), Ayungin Shoal, and Panganiban Reef (also known as Mischief Reef).
• According to the Supreme Court of the Philippines (Brief Overview), the Supreme Court exercises the following powers and jurisdictions, to wit: Appellate jurisdiction, Administrative supervision power, and Rule-making power.
• The accused have the right against being subjected to torture, force, violence, threat, intimidation, or any other means that impair free will.
• The accused have the right to free access to the courts and adequate legal assistance.
• The Supreme Court exercises the administrative supervision power to oversee all courts and court personnel through the Office of the Court Administrator.
• Chief Justice that got Ousted - Maria Lourdes Sereno

  Pinalitan siya ni Alexander Gesmundo