BAR MATTER 1153- Letter of Estelito Mendoza

Philippine Bar Now Open to Filipinos with Foreign Law Degrees

March 23, 2010
By Anna Katrina M. Martinez
The Supreme Court En Banc has recently approved the proposed amendments to Sections 5 and 6 of
Rule 138 of the Rules of Court, allowing Filipino graduates of foreign law schools to take the Philippine
Bar, subject to certain conditions.

Section 5 of the Rule now provides that before being admitted to the examination, all applicants for
admission to the bar shall satisfactorily show that they have successfully completed all the prescribed
courses for the degree of Bachelor of Laws or its equivalent degree in a law school or university officially
recognized by the Philippine Government or by the proper authority in the foreign jurisdiction where
the degree has been granted.

Section 5 now also provides that a Filipino citizen who graduated from a foreign law school shall be
admitted to the bar examination only upon submission to the Supreme Court of certifications showing:
(a) completion of all courses leading to the degree of Bachelor of Laws or its equivalent degree; (b)
recognition or accreditation of the law school by the proper authority; and (c) completion of all fourth
year subjects in the Bachelor of Laws academic program in a law school duly recognized by the
Philippine Government.

SEC. 6.Pre-Law. An applicant for admission to the bar examination shall present a certificate issued by
the proper government agency that, before commencing the study of law, he or she had pursued and
satisfactorily completed in an authorized and recognized university or college, requiring for admission
thereto the completion of a four-year high school course, the course of study prescribed therein for a
bachelor's degree in arts or sciences.

A Filipino citizen who completed and obtained his or her degree in Bachelor of Laws or its equivalent in a
foreign law school must also present proof of completion of a separate bachelors degree.

The Supreme Court has directed the Clerk of Court, through the Office of the Bar Confidant, to
circularize its resolution approving the said amendments among all law schools in the country. (Bar
Matter No. 1153, Re: Letter of Atty. Estelito P. Mendoza Proposing Reforms in the Bar Examinations
through Amendments to Rule 138 of the Rules of Court, March 9, 2010)

RULE 138

Attorneys and Admission to Bar

Section 1. Who may practice law. Any person heretofore duly admitted as a member of the bar,
or hereafter admitted as such in accordance with the provisions of this rule, and who is in good and
regular standing, is entitled to practice law.

Section 2. Requirements for all applicants for admission to the bar. Every applicant for
admission as a member of the bar must be a citizen of the Philippines, at least twenty-one years of age,
of good moral character, and resident of the Philippines; and must produce before the Supreme Court
satisfactory evidence of good moral character, and that no charges against him, involving moral
turpitude, have been filed or are pending in any court in the Philippines.

Section 3. Requirements for lawyers who are citizens of the United States of America. Citizens
of the United States of America who, before July 4, 1946, were duly licensed members of the Philippine
Bar, in active practice in the courts of the Philippines and in good and regular standing as such may,
upon satisfactory proof of those facts before the Supreme Court, be allowed to continue such practice
after taking the following oath of office:

I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ., having been permitted to continue in the practice of law in the

Philippines, do solemnly swear that I recognize the supreme authority of the Republic of the Philippines;
I will support its Constitution and obey the laws as well as the legal orders of the duly constituted
authorities therein; I will do no falsehood, nor consent to the doing of any in court; I will not wittingly or
willingly promote or sue any groundless, false or unlawful suit, nor give aid nor consent to the same; I
will delay no man for money or malice, and will conduct myself as a lawyer according to the best of may
knowledge and discretion with all good fidelity as well as to the courts as to my clients; and I impose
upon myself this voluntary obligation without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion. So help me
God.

Section 4. Requirements for applicants from other jurisdictions. Applicants for admission who,
being Filipino citizens, are enrolled attorneys in good standing in the Supreme Court of the United States
or in any circuit court of appeals or district court therein, or in the highest court of any State or Territory
of the United States, and who can show by satisfactory certificates that they have practiced at least five
years in any of said courts, that such practice began before July 4, 1946, and that they have never been
suspended or disbarred, may, in the discretion of the Court, be admitted without examination.

Section 5. Additional requirements for other applicants. All applicants for admission other than
those referred to in the two preceding section shall, before being admitted to the examination,
satisfactorily show that they have regularly studied law for four years, and successfully completed all
prescribed courses, in a law school or university, officially approved and recognized by the Secretary of
Education. The affidavit of the candidate, accompanied by a certificate from the university or school of
law, shall be filed as evidence of such facts, and further evidence may be required by the court.
No applicant shall be admitted to the bar examinations unless he has satisfactorily completed the
following courses in a law school or university duly recognized by the government: civil law, commercial
law, remedial law, criminal law, public and private international law, political law, labor and social
legislation, medical jurisprudence, taxation and legal ethics.

Section 6. Pre-Law. No applicant for admission to the bar examination shall be admitted unless
he presents a certificate that he has satisfied the Secretary of Education that, before he began the study
of law, he had pursued and satisfactorily completed in an authorized and recognized university or
college, requiring for admission thereto the completion of a four-year high school course, the course of
study prescribed therein for a bachelor's degree in arts or sciences with any of the following subjects as
major or field of concentration: political science, logic, english, spanish, history and economics.