Sandiganbayan

The Sandiganbayan is a special court in the Philippines which was established under Presidential Decree No. 1606. Its rank is equivalent to the Court of Appeals. The court consists of 14 Associate Justices and 1 Presiding Justice. The Sandiganbayan building is located at Centennial Building, Commonwealth Ave., Batasan Road, Quezon City in Metro Manila.

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History

The creation of the Sandiganbayan was originally provided for by Article XIII of the 1973 Constitution of the Philippines:

"SEC. 5. The National Assembly shall create a special court, to be known as Sandiganbayan, which shall have jurisdiction over criminal and civil cases involving graft and corrupt practices and such other offenses committed by public officers and employees, including those in government-owned or controlled corporations, in relation to their office as may be determined by law."

In obedience to this mandate, the late President Ferdinand Marcos, exercising the emergency legislative power granted him under Amendment No. 6 of the 1976 Amendments to the 1973 Constitution, issued on June 11 1978, Presidential Decree No. 1486 creating the Sandiganbayan and putting it on the same level as what were then known as the Courts of First Instance, now the Regional Trial Courts. Shortly thereafter, however, the Sandiganbayan was elevated to the level of the Court of Appeals by virtue of Presidential Decree No. 1606 issued on December 10 1978.

At the start of its operation on February 12 1979, the Sandiganbayan had only one Division, composed of the Presiding Justice, Hon. Manuel R. Pamaran, and two Associate Justices, Hon. Bernardo P. Fernandez and Hon. Romeo M. Escareal, and a skeleton force of fifteen (15). The start of the third year of the Court's operation in 1981 was marked by the activation of the Second Division. The appointment of three more Justices of the Third Division in August 4 1982 completed the full membership of the Court.

The EDSA Revolution of February 1986 signaled the beginning of a new dispensation, caused substantial changes in the entire government machinery, including the judiciary. However, both the “Freedom Constitution” and the new Constitution have seen fit to maintain the Sandiganbayan as one of the principal instruments of public accountability. In furtherance of this, its jurisdiction has been broadened to include the so-called “ill-gotten wealth” cases investigated by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) through Executive Orders No. 14 and No. 14-A. In the reorganization program of the new government, the resignation of some of the members of the Court was accepted leading to the appointment of a new Presiding Justice in the person of Hon. Francis E. Garchitorena.

To further strengthen the functional and structural organization of the Sandiganbayan, several amendments have been introduced to the original law creating it, the latest of which are Republic Acts No. 7975 and No. 8249. Under these new laws, the jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan is now confined to cases involving public officials occupying positions classified as salary grade “27” and higher. As restructured, the Sandiganbayan is presently composed of a Presiding Justice and fourteen (14) Associate Justices who sit in five (5) Divisions of three Justices each in the trial and determination of cases.

Current Justices

Name	Position	Date of Appointment	Date of Birth	Date of Retirement
HON. TERESITA LEONARDO-DE CASTRO	Presiding Justice	September 8, 1997	October 8, 1948 October 8, 2018
Hon. GODOFREDO L. LEGAZPI	Associate Justice	September 8, 1997	November 20, 1937	November 20, 2007
Hon. GODOFREDO L. LEGAZPI	Associate Justice	September 8, 1997	November 20, 1937	November 20, 2007
Hon. GREGORY S. ONG	Associate Justice	October 5, 1998	May 25, 1953	May 25, 2023
Hon. MA. CHRISTINA G. CORTEZ-ESTRADA	Associate Justice	October 19, 1998	November 30, 1939	November 30, 2009
Hon. FRANCISCO H. VILLARUZ	Associate Justice	October 2, 2001	June 8, 1943	June 8, 2013
Hon. DIOSDADO M. PERALTA	Associate Justice	June 14, 2002	March 27, 1952	March 27, 2022
Hon. NORBERTO Y. GERALDEZ	Associate Justice	January 21, 2003	December 1, 1949	December 1, 2019
Hon. ROLAND B. JURADO	Associate Justice	October 3, 2003	January 31, 1953	January 31, 2023
Hon. EFREN N. DE LA CRUZ	Associate Justice	October 10, 2003	June 18, 1954	June 18, 2024
Hon. TERESITA V. DIAZ-BALDOS	Associate Justice	October 17, 2003	July 22, 1946	July 22, 2016
Hon. JOSE R. HERNANDEZ	Associate Justice	March 9, 2004	November 22, 1946	November 22, 2016
Hon. RODOLFO A. PONFERRADA	Associate Justice	August 23, 2004	September 13, 1947	September 13, 2017
Hon. ALEXANDER G. GESMUNDO	Associate Justice	October 15, 2005	November 6, 1956	November 6, 2026
Hon. PAULO GACUSANA	Associate Justice	November 1, 1956	November 1, 2006	November 1, 2026
Hon. PAULO GACUSANA	Associate Justice	November 1, 1956	November 1, 2006	November 1, 2026

See also

• Chief Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court
• Philippine Court of Appeals
• Philippine Court of Tax Appeals
• Philippines
• Political History of the Philippines
• Constitution of the Philippines

External links

• Philippines: Gov.Ph: About the Philippines – Justice category
• Sandiganbayan – Official website
• SANDIGANBAYAN Info – Information on the Sandiganbayan

References

• About the Sandiganbayan