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FUNCTIONS OF THE
JUDICIAL BRANCH
The judiciary is the final bulwark of
liberty. It protects the poor and the weak
against oppression by the wealthy and
the influential. It protects the right to life,
property, and the pursuit of happiness
against the tyranny of violence, or
abusive power, or unscrupulous
ambitions.

MEANING OF JUDICIAL
POWER
Judicial Power is the power and duty of
courts of justice to interpret and apply the
laws (Including the Constitution) to contest or
disputes concerning legally recognized rights
or duties between the state and private person
or individuals or between private persons or
individual litigants, in case properly brought
to the tribunal.

Expanded Power of the Judiciary

Section 1. The judicial power shall be

vested in one supreme court and in such lower
courts as may be established by law.
Judicial power includes the duty of the
courts of justice to settle actual controversies
involving rights which are legally demandable
and enforceable, and to determine whether or
not there has been a grave abuse of discretion
amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction on
the part of any branch or instrumentality of

INDEPENDENCE OF THE
JUDICIARY
To maintain the independence of the judiciary, the
following safeguards have been embodied in the
Constitution:
1. The Supreme Court is a Constitutional Body. It cannot
be abolished nor may its membership or the manner of
its meetings be changed by mere legislation.
2. The member of the Supreme Court cannot be removed
except by impeachment.
3. The Supreme Court mat not be deprived of its
minimum and appellate jurisdiction as prescribed in
Article VIII, Section 5 of the Constitution.

 4. The appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme

Court may not be increase by law without its
advice and concurrence.
5. Appointees of the judiciary are now
nominated by the Judicial and Bar Council
and no longer subject to confirmation of the
Commission on Appointment.
6. The Supreme Court now has
administrative supervision over all lower
courts and their personnel.
7. The Supreme Court has exclusive power
to discipline judges of lower courts.

 8. The member of the Supreme Court and

all lower courts have security of tenure,
which cannot be undermine by a law
reorganizing the Judiciary.
9. They shall not be designated to any
agency performing quasi-judicial or
administrative function.
10. The salaries of judges may not be
reduced during their continuance in
office.

 11. The judiciary shall enjoy fiscal

autonomy
12. The Supreme Court alone may
initiate rules of court.
13. Only the Supreme Court may order
the temporary detail of judges.
14. The Supreme Court can appoint all
officials and employees of the Judiciary.

POWER OF JUDICIAL
REVIEW
The courts also have the power of judicial
review or the power to test the validity or
constitutionality of the legislative and
executive acts, such as treaty,
international or executive agreement,
law, presidential decree, proclamation,
order, instruction, ordinance, or
regulation. It is an aspect of judicial
power, in that it is essentially derived
from the duty of the court to settle
controversies between conflicting parties
by applying the appropriate law.

 The applicable law may be the

Constitution or some appropriate
statute; in case of conflict between
the two, the Constitution must
prevail, and the statute which is not
in accordance with it must be
stricken out, or at least some parts of
it. The Constitution is the
fundamental law and therefore all
the acts or laws passed by the
government must be in accordance
with it.

 Example. Pedro is running for reelection

for his third term as congressman.
However, the Congress passed a law
prohibiting reelection for the third term.
Apparently, the statute is in conflict with
the Constitution which allows reelection of
a congressman for his third term. He
questions the validity of the statute.
Judicial review is proper in this case. There
is an actual controversy between Pedro
and the government. He likewise has a
legal standing because he has a personal
and substantial interest in the case such
that he will be directly benefited or injured
by the decision to the case. The question
was raised in the earliest possible time
and the resolution of the constitutional

SCOPE OF JUDICIAL
POWER
1. Adjudicatory Power
It includes the duties of the court of justice
to:
A.) settle actual case or controversies
involving rights which are legally
demandable and enforceable; and
B.) to determine whether there has been
grave abuse of discretion amounting to
lack or excess of jurisdiction to any
branch or instrumentality of the

 2. Power of Judicial Review

A. to pass upon the validity or
constitutionality of the laws of the state
and the acts of the other departments of
the government;
B. to interpret them; and
C. to render binding judgements.
Incidental Power powers necessary to
the effective discharge of the judicial
functions such as punish person adjudged

FUNCTIONS OF THE
COURT
Negative Function/Checking
Function it is the power of the
court to declares the act of the
president or congress
unconstitutional which is belong to
the checking function of the court
following the principles of checks
and balances.

 Positive Function/Legitimizing
Function - the power of the court to
sustain or upholds the constitutionality
of the congress or the president.\
Teaching Function/Symbolic
Function the duty of the court to
formulate guiding and controlling
constitutional principles, precepts,
doctrines or rules.

HIERARCHY OF COURTS
Highest Court
Supreme Court
Appellate Courts
Court of Appeals
Sandigan Bayan
Court of Tax Appeals
Trial Courts
First and Second Level Court

ORGANI
ZATION
AL
STRUCT
URE OF
THE
JUDICIA
RY

Number of Courts in the Philippines

FirstLevelCo No.
urts

MetropolitanTr
ialCourts

SecondLevelCo No.
urts

82 RegionalTrialCou 950
rts
MunicipalTrial 183
5
ShariaDistrictCo
CourtsinCities
urts
389
MunicipalTrial
470
Courts

QUALIFICATION OF JUSTICES AND

JUDGES

COMPOSITION OF THE
SUPREME COURT
Pursuant to the provision of the 1987
Constitution the Supreme Court is composed
of;
1 Chief Justice and
14 Associate justices
Who shall serve until the age of seventy
(70). The court may seat En Banc or in
division.

SUPREME COURT SUPERVISION

OVER LOVER COURT
Section 6 of 1987 Constitution states that The
Supreme Court shall have administrative
supervision over all courts and personnel
thereof.
It is enshrined by the Judiciary
Reorganization Act of 1980 which
transferred from the Secretary of Justice to
the Supreme Court the administrative
supervision of all courts and their

ORGANIZATION OF COURTS :
REGULAR COURT

Court of Appeals
Is comprises of 69 justices headed by
a presiding Justice which operates in
23 divisions each comprising three
members. The court sit en banc only
to exercise administrative, ceremonial,
or other non adjudicatory functions.

JURISDICTION OF
COURT OF APPEALS
Original Jurisdiction to issue writ of
mandamus, prohibition, certiorari,
habeas corpus, and quo warranto and
auxiliary writs or processes.
Exclusive and original jurisdiction over
actions for annulment of judgement of
the RTC.

ORGANIZATION OF COURTS :
REGULAR COURT

REGIOANAL TRIAL COURT

Is composed of 720 Regional Trial
Judges in each of the 13 regions of
the country.
METROPOLITAN TRIAL COURT &
MUNICIPAL TRIAL COURT

THE END!