Sayo-Villavicencio Law

27/02/2026

19/01/2026

Sa unang regular na sesyon nito noong Enero 14, 2026, pinagbigyan ng En Banc ng ang Petition for Certiorari na inihain ni Errol B. Comafay, Jr. at binaliktad ang Resolusyon ng Commission on Elections (COMELEC) na nagkakansela sa kanyang Certificate of Candidacy (COC) para sa posisyon ng Miyembro ng Sangguniang Panlungsod ng Lungsod ng Tabuk, Kalinga, sa halalan 2025 dahil umano sa pagbibigay ng maling tirahan.

Sa kanyang COC, isinulat ni Comafay ang kanyang tirahan bilang “TARAKI NATIONAL RD PUROK 5,” na walang kuwit. Sa ibang bahagi ng COC, isinulat niya ang kanyang tirahan bilang “TARAKI, NATIONAL RD, PUROK 5, BRGY. BULANAO, TABUK CITY, KALINGA,” na may mga kuwit na naghihiwalay sa mga lokasyong heograpikal.

Naghain kalaunan si Paquinto B. Sallaya ng petisyon para kanselahin ang COC ni Comafay at inakusahan siyang gumawa ng material misrepresentation dahil wala umanong umiiral na “Taraki National Road” sa Barangay Bulanao o saan man sa Lungsod ng Tabuk.

Itinanggi ni Comafay ang paratang at iginiit na wala siyang intensyong linlangin ang mga botante nang binigay niya ang kanyang tirahan sa COC.

Nagpasya ang Korte Suprema na hindi maituturing na material misrepresentation ang pagkukulang ng isang kuwit sa tirahang isinulat ni Comafay.

Sa ilalim ng Seksyon 78 ng Omnibus Election Code, ang petisyon para tanggihan o kanselahin ang COC ay maaari lamang ipagkaloob kapag may malinaw na patunay na ang isang kandidato ay gumawa ng mali at material na representasyon hinggil sa mga kwalipikasyon tulad ng paninirahan, edad, o pagkamamamayan.

Para maging batayan ng pagkansela, dapat na parehong material at false o mali ang misrepresentation o maling representasyon. Ito ay material kung may kinalaman sa mga kwalipikasyon ng kandidato sa posisyon, at mali kung ang kandidato ay alam at sadyang gumawa ng hindi totoong pahayag na may layuning linlangin ang COMELEC o ang mga botante.

Sa kasong ito, sinabi ng Korte Suprema na hindi nakaapekto sa mga kwalipikasyon ni Comafay ang nawawalang kuwit. Hindi rin ito nakapipinsala sapagkat hindi nito binago ang kahulugan ng tirahan at wala rin itong kaugnayan sa kanyang mga kwalipikasyon.

Napatunayan din na walang ginawang bad faith si Comafay, sapagkat isinulat din niya ang kanyang address na may kuwit sa parehong dokumento. Bukod dito, palagi niyang ginagamit ang “Taraki, National Rd, Brgy. Bulanao, Tabuk City” sa halos lahat ng kanyang mga transaksyon, legal na dokumento, at mga identification card sa loob ng mahigit isang dekada.

Dagdag pa ng Korte Suprema, gumamit ang COMELEC ng isang labis na literal at makitid na interpretasyon sa kung ano ang maituturing na material misrepresentation.

Ang buong teksto ng Desisyon ay ilalathala sa website ng Korte Suprema kapag may kopya na.

Basahin ang Press Briefer sa https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/?p=159244

Sumunod sa Credit Attribution Policy ng SC PIO: https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/credit-attribution-policy/.

19/01/2026

06/10/2025

06/10/2025

Court of Appeals Associate Justice Wilhelmina B. Jorge-Wagan, a member of the Supreme Court Special Committee on Cybercrime and Electronic Evidence, and a Professorial Lecturer at the Philippine Judicial Academy, discusses online libel, one of the crimes covered by RA 10175, or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, in Episode 88: Cyber Libel 101.

What is cyber libel, and what makes it different from the traditional concept of libel as defined under the Revised Penal Code?

This week's podcast is available on Spotify, YouTube, and the website.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7A7aTIzbcfpxWeqSaYYAxv?si=xRKoo5WqRlur18um9gBOFg

YouTube: https://youtu.be/PhSgaEpT_ho

SC website: http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/podcasts/

21/09/2025

The (SC) has officially resolved the leadership dispute in Partido Demokratiko Pilipino Lakas ng Bayan (PDP Laban), recognizing the group led by Alfonso Cusi (Cusi) and Melvin Matibag (Matibag) as the legitimate leaders of the political party.

In a Decision written by Associate Justice Japar B. Dimaampao, the SC 𝘌𝘯 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘤 dismissed the petition filed by former Senators Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III (Pimentel) and Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao (Pacquiao) which questioned the Commission on Elections’ (COMELEC) recognition of the Cusi-led group.

In 2021, PDP Laban was chaired by then-President Rodrigo Duterte (Duterte), with Cusi serving as vice-chairperson. That year, Pacquiao expressed his intention to run for president in the 2022 elections under PDP Laban.

However, Cusi allegedly held meetings with local party leaders and endorsed a different presidential candidate who was not a party member.

As a result, the National Executive Committee (Committee), led by Pimentel and Pacquiao, passed a resolution advising the National Council to ask Cusi to justify why he should not be expelled due to his actions, which went against the party’s interests.

On May 31, 2021, the National Council met in Cebu City, with Cusi presiding as authorized by Duterte, who joined via video conference. They appointed Matibag as Acting Secretary General.

Meanwhile, the Committee, led by Pimentel, expelled Cusi and Matibag and declared their party positions vacant. Pimentel became acting chairperson due to Duterte’s continued absence and incapacity.

On July 17, 2021, the Cusi group held a national assembly, which Duterte attended in person. During the assembly, new officers were elected, including Cusi as president, while Duterte retained the chairperson position.

The Pimentel group, for its part, held its own assembly on September 19, 2021, and proclaimed Pacquiao as PDP Laban’s presidential candidate.

The Cusi group then filed a petition with the COMELEC to declare the Pimentel-led group as illegitimate officers.

Upholding the COMELEC’s ruling in favor of the Cusi group, the SC clarified that under PDP Laban’s constitution, the vice-chairperson may take over the chairperson’s duties in cases of absence or incapacity. In this case, Duterte had already authorized Cusi to organize and lead the May 31 meeting through a memorandum dated May 17, 2021.

Even if there were procedural issues, the SC ruled that the meeting was valid because a proper quorum was present.

Because the May 31 meeting was valid, the actions taken during and after it—including the July 17 national assembly—were also valid. The SC emphasized that Cusi, as vice-chairperson, had the authority to perform functions assigned by the National Council.

Read the full text of the Press Release at https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/?p=151759.

Read the full text of the Decision at https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/?p=151751.

Copying of this content is subject to the SC PIO’s Credit Attribution Policy: https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/credit-attribution-policy/.

21/09/2025

Atty. Tranquil Gervacio S. Salvador III, Dean of the School of Law and Jurisprudence of the Manila Adventist College and Professorial Lecturer of the Philippine Judicial Academy, discusses the Writ of Amparo in Episode 86: Extraordinary Writs, Part One – The Writ of Amparo.

What exactly is the Writ of Amparo, and what fundamental rights does it seek to protect? Does the filing of a Petition for the Issuance of a Writ of Amparo bar the filing of civil, criminal, and administrative cases against the law enforcers? What are the consequences if the court issues a Writ of Amparo?

This week's podcast is available on Spotify, the website, and YouTube.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1YdhcuMhtGLFZJunlvpOOP?si=YB6WfRQATreNFdaBj-82lg

SC website: http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/podcasts/

YouTube: https://youtu.be/qjO9g3LxCxU

08/09/2025

08/09/2025

READ: Examinations
•Questions in Political and Public International Law
LINK:https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/IXBYUDZS3U.pdf
•Questions in Commercial and Taxation Laws
LINK:https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/GNFKKY9Z4Z.pdf