On 13 August 2010, President Aquino named Asian Institute of Management's Executive Director, Atty. Lourdes Sereno as the newest associate justice of the Supreme Court. Below are some notes by SCA taken during the JBC's public interview of Atty. Sereno in July 2010:

ATTY. LOURDES SERENO. Atty. Sereno has been in the practice of litigation for 23 years and her involvement in litigation cases is both at the international and local levels. She also taught law for more than 20 years. She is currently the Executive Director of the Asian Institute of Management and a pioneer of law and economics in the country. She has been involved in various engagements with the World Trade Organization, GRP Peace Panel, etc. She believes she also has expertise in other fields of laws such as criminal law, labor, anti-graft and corrupt practices, and taxation. She teaches Obligations and Contracts, International Law, etc.

Atty. Sereno believes she understands the systemic problem of the judiciary and that justice infrastructure is a key factor towards economic growth.

She would propose changes in the resolution/decision management system and put importance to the Court’s human resources.

On what made her decide to apply for the Supreme Court, she answered that at the end of the day, one can only have one house, one family, and there is always the deeper search for meaning. She also thinks that it is her objective to contribute to national quest for direction and justice. She believes in the virtue of temperance.

She is also ready for a secluded life because she has to be psychologically prepared for the workings of a justice. Her family is likewise ready for it, if she is appointed. She also consulted Justice Feliciano and former Chief Justice Reynato Puno in her application.

Documentation of JBC Public Interviews continued...

Four members of the Judicial and Bar Council were present on Days two and three of the public interviews. They were Chief Justice Renato Corona, Justice Regino Hermosisima, Atty. J Conrado Castro, and Justice Aurora Santiago-Lagman. Candidates interviewed on Day 2 were Appellate Court Justices Remedios Salazar Fernando and Portia Alino Hormachuelos, Atty. Katrina Legarda, Atty. Epifania Mendoza, and former UP College of Law Dean Raul Pangalangan.

Day three interviewees were Sandiganbayan Justice Edilberto Sandoval, Commission on Elections Commissioner Rene Sarmiento, Atty. Lourdes Sereno, and Court of Appeals Presiding Justice Andres Reyes.

Only three members of the JBC (without CJ Corona) were present to interview the last five candidates on Day four. The candidates interviewed were Dean Amado Valdez of the University of the East College of Law, Atty. Alberto Valenzuela, Court of Appeals Justices Vicente Veloso and Japar Dimaampao, and Ateneo Law School Dean Cesar Villanueva.

DAY 2 of JBC PUBLIC INTERVIEW, 21 JULY 2010

JUSTICE REMEDIOS SALAZAR FERNANDO. Justice Remedios Salazar Fernando prides herself with a .05% reversal rate from the Supreme Court and a zero backlog per month at the Court of Appeals. She offers herself to the court and to country and will maintain her independence.

For Justice Fernando, her most difficult decision was the case of Jonas Burgos, the first Writ of Amparo case filed before the Court of Appeals and that which lasted for more than a year.

On the issue of the oil depots in Manila, Justice Fernando believes that that oil depots should be moved to other safer places because the 96 million pesos that the city of Manila earns from the depots would be nothing compared to the possible destruction these could do in Metro Manila.

On enhancing poor’s access to justice, she actually participates in Supreme Court’s endeavors to increase access of underprivileged to justice.

On handling public pressure, Justice Fernando said she is guided by the Code of Judicial Conduct that justices should not be affected by public opinion and should just consider the facts of the case and the relevant laws. Transparency for her is also important for better understanding of the Court’s decisions.

Justice Fernando was able to answer Justice Corona’s questions on the Supreme Court’s latest rulings with regards to election law issues and Writ of Kalikasan.