The college of law

E·N·Q·U·I·R·Y
DEMAREE J.B. RAVAL

The college of law
Sunday, 05 08, 2005

The other Saturday 1,659 new lawyers solemnly took the Lawyer’s Oath, each one pledging not to do any falsehood, not to promote any groundless, false or unlawful suit, not to delay any man for money or malice (or misappropriate their partner’s share in attorney’s fees) - all these without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion. So God help all of them.

Among this new crop of lawyers, eight are from the New Era College of Law, and they deserve mention here for posterity: Myrla Barribal, Cinderella Benitez, Alma de los Reyes, Dominador Guzman, Jr., Roderick Manzano, Grace Montero, Joey Dolores Pontejos, and Lorelee Valdez.

New Era, established only five years ago, is the first college within the last fifty years to have achieved the singular distinction of making eight of its first batch of graduates pass the bar examinations in their first try. Its passing percentage - very much higher than the national average of 31.6 percent - puts it at fifth place, and sets a track performance very much superior to that of 88 other colleges of law which have been in existence for many decades ahead of New Era.

If only for this achievement, New Era has every reason to celebrate. Already, its dean, retired Court of Appeals Justice Nicolas Lapeña, suddenly has his hands full in stemming the influx of hopeful enrollees for the coming school year. Of equal weighty concern of Lapeña is how to find more members of the faculty - not mere professors of law but academics who are dedicated to the Christian mission of the college.

The college, with a student population of 257 as of the immediate past school year, has a faculty force of 67, which is gives New Era an impressive student-professor ratio that makes for better teaching. Enhancing this very laid-back student-professor interaction is a modern, fully automated and well-stocked library. Its Legal Aid Program is staffed by a big roster of lawyers who are dedicated to devote their free time to free legal service and where students have their first crack at supervised lawyering. An equally impressive and fully furnished practice court prepares the students for the day when they could confidently step into a real courtroom. The law students come out regularly with their law journal, a rich source of intellectual research on the latest legal issues. And its bar review program enlists those among the best reviewers in the country. For ambiance, the bucolic environment of the Diliman Campus makes New Era conducive to serious and unhampered study.

Deputy Executive Minister Eduardo V. Manalo of the Iglesia ni Cristo, proud benefactors of the college, has this message to the new lawyers: “Great lawyers, I believe, are those who believe that justice is truth in action. They are the most prompt and proactive persons because they know that justice delayed is justice denied. They are those who uphold the great maxim that it is better to have 100 persons escape than make one innocent person suffer. Great lawyers are like great kings that do not deviate in nothing from justice. They see to it that those who have less in life must have more in law.” Truly, as Victor Hugo once said, he who opens a school door closes a prison.

And echoing the Holmesian quote at the lobby of Malcolm Hall at the U.P. College of Law, Manalo said: “The role of a law school is not sufficiently described by saying that it teaches law to make lawyers, but rather to teach law in a dignified manner to make great lawyers.” Manalo envisions New Era as a citadel of professors who teach law with dignity, in a manner befitting great Christian lawyers.

Unconsciously, this vision for New Era hews to the standards enunciated in 1979 by the eminent jurist and law dean Irene Cortes, who said: “Teaching is a science. It aims at effecting behavioral change through planned, controlled and measured techniques. In law teaching, the objective is to produce, out of students admitted to the law school, persons with the knowledge, attitudes and skills that will make of them worthy members of the legal profession.”

The faculty of New Era is composed of active, practising lawyers or members of the Judiciary, all of whom are dedicated to the mission articulated by its founders: “To prepare law students to become Christian lawyers in the service of the country and humanity, and to meet the needs of progress and modern technology in the various aspects of the law profession. These needs call for responsible and dedicated leadership in the development of the law and the administration of justice.”

With New Era’s record in the recent bar examinations, it would not be a mere empty accolade to say that Lapeña and the faculty led by Professor Teofilo Nacion have set a standard for new law schools, which everyone in the legal profession hopes can be attained without much effort.

Many years henceforth, the New Era College of Law shall continue to provide quality education anchored on Christian values.

* * *

Saludo. Dedicated to seeking the right, eight new lawyers from the U.P. College of Law have joined their compañeros in the Sigma Rho: Ard Henry Biwag, Fr. Hilario Buban (yes, he is also a priest), Lorenz Defensor, Israel Fagela, Blake Feken, Ian Malilong, Joseph Patano, and Leonido Pulido. Together with now attorney Mae Nina Reyes of the Delta Lambda Sigma, these legal eagles are all off to a good start. Instead of ensconcing themselves in some air-conditioned law firm, they have preferred, despite the low pay, to join the public service that the Public Attorney’s Office proudly pursues…….Also to be congratulated is new lady lawyer Leonarda Diaz from Dean Pacifico Agabin’s Lyceum College of Law, which also ranked very high in passing percentage.


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