Field Activity Report

Introduction to Law

Atty. Joaquin E. San diego

DIMAYUGA, Gianina Irma A.

184034

Court Visit at:

Regional Trial Court

Branch 158, Pasig City

Hon. Maria Rowena San Pedro

Information Obtained Prior to the Visit

Hierarchy of Courts in the Philippines

Supreme Court

Court of Appeals

Regional Trial Court

Municipal Trial Court

Information Obtained During the Visit

I set up an appointment with the Branch Clerk of Court, Atty. Faizal Hussin, two days before the visit. He informed us that records of
Family Cases are highly confidential. During the day of the visit, he asked one of the clerks to assist us inside the court. My classmate
and I, interviewed Florida T. Birco, one of the clerk of courts. She is employed under the Pasig City Government, while the other clerks
are employed under the Supreme Court. Branch 158 consist of eleven staff members.

Their office hours start from 8 a.m to 4:30 p.m. The trial of the cases usually start in the afternoon at 1:30 p.m., while the mornings are
dedicated for administrative work such as filing cases, accepting pleadings, and sending the schedule of hearings to the parties through
mail.

Description of Court Premises and Files

The Courtroom is about the size of the classroom. The Judge’s chambers and witness box are at the far end of the room. On its side is
the table for the stenographer. In front of it is a long table with chairs, for the counsels. At the back are benches for the parties of the
cases.

Adjacent to the Courtroom, is a separate room, designated as the office for the staff and cabinets containing the physical files and
records of the cases, with alphabetical labels.

Other Impressions or Comments

At 1:30 p.m., people already entered the court room. All the parties for different cases to be tried for the day are mixed up in the court
room. Counsels and parties against each other cannot be deciphered as there is no particular seating arrangement, and counsels and
their respective clients are not necessarily beside each other, which is very different from how the court room is dramatized in TV
shows and movies.

The feel of the call of cases and trial is like recitation. Summary proceedings are just like law school recitations because discussion of
one case to another is very fast-paced. The judge asked on the updates in one criminal case, about the transfer of the accused to a
mental facility, and that is it for that case. The judge moves on to a civil case. It was hard to follow the trial, because the facts of the
cases were not discussed anymore. The judge has her laptop to guide her on the cases and simply asks the counsels for updates about
the parties, and the cases.

Through the court calendar, I had observed that in criminal cases, there is a designated Public Prosecutor and PAO Lawyer for the
Branch, which means that they are really confronted to with each other most of the time.

The Branch Clerk and the clerks were very approachable, and open to answering all of our questions. At first, I was scared because we
were just students. I realized that the court is not a scary place after all, and it is just like any other place of work or office.