2 CA justices appointed to Supreme Court

FILE: The Supreme Court of the Philippines building in Manila, Philippines. (Photo By Mike Gonzalez (TheCoffee) – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0)

MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte has promoted Court of Appeals Justices Mario Lopez and Edgardo delos Santos to the Supreme Court, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo announced on Tuesday.

Lopez and Delos Santos were appointed as high court magistrates, in place of former Supreme Court Associate Justice Francis Jardeleza and Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, respectively.

Carpio and Jardeleza mandatorily retired on October 26 and September 26, respectively.

Palace has yet to release Lopez and delos Santos’ appointment papers but Panelo said the two will take oath at Malacañan Palace on Wednesday, December 4.

“Bukas silang dalawa. Hiwalay (They will have a separate oath-taking tomorrow),” Panelo told Palace reporters on the sidelines of the ceremonial signing of the postponement of the 2020 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections Act and the Malasakit Center Act at Palace’s Rizal Hall.

Lopez, who hails from La Union, obtained his law degree at the San Beda College and graduated cum laude. He later took masters of law at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila.

Lopez also served as prosecutor of then Tanodbayan and now Office of the Ombudsman in 1985.

He was also an executive judge of Batangas in 1997 prior to his appointment to the Court of Appeals.

Meanwhile, delos Santos is a native of Palomponan, Leyte who earned his bachelor of laws degree at the University of San Carlos in Cebu City.

Delos Santos was appointed executive justice of the Court of Appeals Visayas station in October 2018.

He worked as municipal trial court judge in Dumaguete City and later became regional trial court judge in Bacolod City before his short stint at the appellate court.

Currently, the 15-member high tribunal is occupied by eight magistrates appointed by Duterte.