Legal Profession

In Re: Petition to Sign in the Roll of Attorneys

Key words: Canon 9, Roll of Attorneys

B.M. no 2540, September 24, 2013

Ponente: C.J. Sereno
I. Terms
Canon 9- A lawyer shall not, directly or indirectly,
assist in the unauthorized practice of law
II.
III. Reliefs Sought
IV. Atty. Michael Medado filed a petition to be able to
sign the roll of attorneys.
V.
VI. Facts
Medado graduated from the University of the
Philippines College of Law in 1979, passing the Bar
VIII.
with an average of 82.7%
May 7, 1980: He took the lawyers oath.
He was scheduled to sign the roll of attorneys on
May 13, 1980, but failed to do so, as he had
misplaced the Notice to Sign the Roll of Attorneys
given by the Bar Office, which he had left in his
province.
Years later, he found the notice, realizing he had
not signed the roll. At that time, he was already
working in the field of corporation and tax, which
did not include much litigation.

In 2005, he attended the Mandatory Continuing

Legal Education seminar, which required him to
provide his roll number to be credited, but he could
not produce it.
Feb 6, 2012: He filed a petition to be allowed to
sign the roll.
The Office of the Bar confidant had recommended
that the petition be denied for gross negligence,
misconduct, and lack of merit, as he did not have a
valid justification for his actions.
VII.
Issue/s and Held
1. Whether or not Atty. Medado acted in gross
negligence and misconduct.
IX.
X.
Held: Yes, but the court granted his petition,
with an additional fine of P32,000, and penalty
of not allowing him to sign for 1 year (because
he cannot be suspended yet, as he is not a fullfledged lawyer), wherein he is not allowed to
practice.
XI.

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Legal Profession

To not allow Medado to sign the roll of

attorneys would be like the penalty of
disbarment, which is reserved for the most
serious of ethical transgressions.
The petitioner acted in good faith, as he had
filed the petition himself, acknowledging his
own lapses. He had also showed his good
moral character in that he had not been a
subject of disqualification, showing that he
had continuously adhered to the strict
requirements of the legal profession. He has
also proved his competence and ability, as
shown through his work in the Laurel Law
Office, Petron, Petrophil Corp., PNOC, and
EDC
The practice of law is a privilege to those
who can show mental and moral fitness.
The petitioners failure to sign for 30 years

XVI.

cannot be deemed as a mistaken belief.

Ignorantia facti excusat; Ignorantia legis
nemimem excusat
It was an honest mistake when he had
thought that he had already signed the roll
during his oath-taking (attendance pala), but
after discovering the notice, he willfully
engaged in the unauthorized practice, which
is an indirect contempt of court
Canon 9 applies to him, as signing in the roll
is a requirement to become a full-fledged
lawyer.

XII.
XIII.
XIV.
XV.
Separate Opinions
XVII.
None.

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