By Clarist Zablan
(July 12, 2023) – The Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the chief of the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) to explain why she should not be cited for indirect contempt over her remarks on the new code of conduct for lawyers.
In a statement, the high court said it noted lawyer Persida Rueda-Acosta’s “unabated public tirades” against a provision of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability (CPRA) which the high court updated earlier this year.
“The Court thus directed Atty. Acosta to show cause why she should not be cited in indirect contempt for her social media posts and newspaper publications which tended, directly or indirectly, to impede, obstruct, or degrade the administration of justice,” the court said.
“Furthermore, the Court characterized Atty. Acosta’s resort to social and print media to air her unfounded grievances against the Court as a threat to the independence of the judiciary.”
Acosta had raised concerns over section 22, Canon III of the CPRA, which stated that a conflict of interest on any PAO lawyer is only imputed to the individual lawyer and their direct supervisor, but would not disqualify the rest of the office’s attorneys from representing the affected client.
Acosta’s office warned that the new provision would allow two public counsels to represent opposing parties in cases, casting doubts on the integrity of the justice system and hampering public service as a result.
The SC en banc, in a resolution on Monday and announced to the public a day later, denied Acosta’s request to delete the provision, citing a need for the government to extend free legal assistance to indigent persons.
“To turn away indigent litigants and bar them from availing of the services of all PAO lawyers nationwide due to alleged conflict of interest would be to contravene PAO’s principal duty and leave hundreds of poor litigants unassisted by legal counsel they cannot otherwise afford,” the court said.
The SC also maintained that it was exercising its exclusive rule-making power under the Constitution in promulgating the CPRA.
The SC approved the CPRA last April, updating the 34-year-old Code of Professional Responsibility with the goal of crafting a “modern, relevant, and responsive guide for lawyers’ conduct” in the country. The code took effect on May 30.
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