Legal education in the Philippines History (See: wikipedia.org. Some of the data in this Wikipedia article may need verification ). The University of Santo Tomas established its faculties of canon law and civil law in in 1733 From 1734 to Legal education in the Philippines is developed and 1800, of only 3,360 students, only 29 graduated with offered by Philippine law schools, supervised by the the degree of Bachelor of Civil Law, 8 with the degree Legal Education Board, and regulated by the Commission of Licentiate in Civil Law and 3 with the degree of on Higher Education and the Supreme Court of the Doctor of Civil Law in that university.[1] Philippines. In 1890, the Universidad Literia de Filipinas was Law degree programs are considered graduate programs in established in Malolos, Bulacan. It offered Law as well the Philippines. As such, admission to law schools as Medicine, Surgery and Notary Public. In 1899, Felipe requires the completion of a bachelor's degree, with a Calderon founded the Escuela de Derecho de Manila and sufficient number of credits or units in certain adopted the name Manila Law College in 1924. The subject areas. University of the Philippines opened its College of Law in 1910. There were around 50 Filipino and American Graduation from a Philippine law school constitutes the students.[2] Justice Sherman Moreland of the Supreme primary eligibility requirement for the Philippine Bar Court of the Philippines was named its first Dean, but Examinations, the national licensure examination for after he ultimately declined the position, he was practicing lawyers in the country. The bar examination replaced by George A. Malcolm, who is recognized as the is administered by the Supreme Court during the month college's first permanent dean. of September every year. Legal Systems Members of the bar in the Philippines are required to take mandatory continuing legal education in order to The Philippine legal system is an amalgamation of the continue practicing their profession. world's major systems which are the Roman Civil Law and the Canon Law of the Catholic Church inherited from the Legal education in the Philippines normally proceeds Spanish, EnglishCommon Law from the United States, and along the following route: Islamic Law. Undergraduate education (usually 4 years) Law school (usually 4 years) Admission to the bar (usually by taking a Law degree programs Philippine bar exam) Legal practice and mandatory continuing legal education Law degrees in the Philippines may be classified into College of Law and the Far Eastern University three types--professional, graduate level, and Institute of Law.[5] honorary. o Juris Doctor-Master of Business Administration (J.D.-M.B.A.) - The J.D.- M.B.A. program is a double degree program in law and management offered at the graduate Professional law degrees level. It was introduced and is so far only offered by the La Salle-FEU MBA-JD Program, In order to be eligible to take the bar examinations, a consortium of Far Eastern University one must complete one of the two professional degrees: Institute of Law and De La Salle Graduate The Bachelor of Laws (Ll.B.) program or the Juris School of Business. Under this program, the Doctor (J.D.) program. Advanced degrees are offered by requirements of the J.D. and M.B.A. programs some law schools, but are not requirements for are satisfied by the taking of concurrent admission to the practice of law in the Philippines. units of study, allowing students to complete the program in five instead of six years.[6] Bachelor of Laws (Ll.B.) - The Ll.B. is the most common law degree offered and conferred by Philippine law schools. It is a standard four-year law program covering all bar exam subjects. Almost all law schools follow a standard LL.B. Graduate law degrees curriculum, wherein students are exposed to the required bar subjects. Other schools, like the Beyond the J.D. or Ll.B., members of the Philippine bar University of the Philippines College of Law, have the option of pursuing graduate degrees in law. allow students to substitute electives for bar review subjects offered in the fourth year of Master of Laws (LL.M.) - The Ll.M. is a graduate study. [3] law degree offered to holders of basic law degrees (LL.B. and J.D.). It is generally offered to law Juris Doctor (J.D.) - The J.D. program is a four- graduates and lawyers of any nationality. Only year law program. Like the standard Ll.B. program, five Philippine law schools so far conduct the the J.D. curriculum covers the core subjects program--University of Santo Tomas Faculty of required for the bar examinations. Unlike the Civil Law, which first offered the program; Ll.B., the J.D. program requires students to University of ManilaManuel L. Quezon University finish the core bar subjects in 2 1/2 years, take College of Law; San Beda Graduate School of Law; elective subjects, undergo an apprenticeship, and and PLM Graduate School of Law of the Pamantasan prepare and defend a thesis.[4] The J.D. degree was ng Lungsod ng MaynilaAteneo School of Law, the Far first conferred by the Ateneo School of Law in Eastern University Institute of Law, the Escuela 1991. Aside from the Ateneo, only two other law de Derecho de Manila (now Manila Law College schools offer the J.D.: the University of Batangas Foundation), and the University of the Philippines College of Law[7] College of Law; (University of UNESCO Director General Koichiro Matsuura (LL.D., the City of Manila). LL.M. programs were once honoris causa, University of Santo Tomas)[11] offered by the but were eventually phased out due former International Court of Justice Judge Cesar to lack of enrollment and funding. Bengzon (LL.D., honoris causa, Ateneo de Manila University and University of Santo Tomas) [12] [11] There are two kinds of doctoral programs in law offered former United Nations General Assembly President in the Philippines: Carlos P. Romulo (Ll.D., honoris causa, University of Santo Tomas)[11] Doctor of Civil Law (D.C.L.) - The D.C.L. program former Philippine President Corazon Aquino (LL.D., is a doctoral program in law offered to holders of honoris causa, University of the Philippines and the LL.M degree. Candidates who hold only LL.B. University of Santo Tomas)[13] [11] degrees may be admitted upon completion of former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos prerequisite LL.M. subjects. The D.C.L. was (LL.D., honoris causa, University of the East)[14] pioneered by the University of Santo Tomas Faculty former Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay of Civil Law. Their program structure is highly (LL.D., honoris causa, University of the East)[14] similar to the D.C.L. offered in the Complutense former Philippine Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban [8] University of Madrid. The PLM Graduate School of (LL.D., honoris causa, University of Iloilo)[15] [9] Law has already opened its own D.C.L. program. Canadian Chief Justice Beverly McLachlin, P.C. (LL.D., honoris causa, Ateneo de Manila Doctor of the Science of Law (S.J.D.) - a doctoral University)[12] program in law soon to be offered in the San Beda former chairman of the United Nations Security Graduate School of Law.[10] Council, Carlos P. Romulo (LL.D., honoris causa, University of the East)[14] former Philippine First Lady Aurora Aragon Quezon (LL.D., honoris causa, University of Santo Honorary law degrees Tomas)[11] former Philippine First Lady Imelda Marcos (LL.D., Some Philippine universities also confer the honorary honoris causa, University of the Philippines).[13] Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) degree. It is given to famous Philippine Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago individuals who, in the discretion of the awarding (LL.D., honoris causa, Centro Escolar University institution, were found to have made significant and Xavier University)[16] [17] contributions to a certain field, or to the improvement former Philippine Senator Raul Manglapus (LL.D., of society or development of the conditions of mankind honoris causa, Ateneo de Manila University)[12] in general. Honorary law doctorates in the past former Philippine Commission on Elections Chairman include: Christian Monsod (LL.D., honoris causa, Ateneo de Manila University)[12] King Juan Carlos I of Spain (LL.D., honoris causa, University of Santo Tomas)[11] curriculum introduced by the Ateneo School of Law (the J.D. Programs of the FEU-La Salle consortium and the Practicality University of Batangas Law School are of this mold), and second, simply changing the name of the degree While advanced law degrees (LL.M., D.C.L., S.J.D., conferred from “Ll.B.” to “J.D.” while essentially LL.D.) may elevate a lawyer's standing in academic retaining the same course offerings as those in the settings, the basic law degree (LL.B., J.D.) remains DECS Model Law Curriculum (DECS Order No. 27, series of [4] the most important academic qualification to be 1989). admitted to the practice of law in the Philippines.[18] Admission to the practice of law Ecclesiastical law degrees The 1987 Constitution of the Philippines has given the A few Roman Catholic seminaries and graduate schools Supreme Court the sole power to admit individuals to [20] offer degree programs in Canon Law, an ecclesiastical the practice of law in the Philippines. This power is program that is not required in the Philippine Bar exercised through a Bar Examination Committee, an ad Examinations.The University of Santo Tomas Faculty of hoc academic group tasked to formulate questions, Canon Law runs the oldest academic programs of this administer proceedings, grade examinations, rank kind.