The Supreme Court (SC) has re-organized the memberships in two of its three divisions with the appointment of Associate Justice Japaar B. Dimaampao who was assigned to its second division.
Justice Dimaampao will be also working with the SC’s third division as an additional member to complete the membership of five justices per division.
The re-organization was contained in a special order issued by Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo.
There was no change in the SC’s first division composed of Chief Gesmundo as chairperson, Associate Justice Alfredo Benjamin S. Caquioa as working chairperson, and Associate Justices Amy C. Lazaro Javier, Mario V. Lopez, and Jhosep Y. Lopez as members.
The second division is headed by Senior Associate Justice Estela M. Perlas Bernabe with Associate Justices Ramon Paul I. Hernando, Henri Jean Paul B. Inting, Samuel H. Gaerlan, and Dimaampao as members.
The third division is composed of Associate Justices Marvic M.V.F. Leonen as chairperson and Rosmari D. Carandang, Rodil V. Zalameda, Ricardo R. Rosario, and Dimaampao (additional member) as members.
The SC meets as a full court every Tuesday, while its three divisions meet Mondays and Wednesday.
Under the rules, Chief Justice Gesmundo can call special sessions in the full court and in the divisions when circumstances warrant.
There still is one vacancy in the 15-member SC left by the early retirement of Associate Justice Edgardo L. Delos Santos last June 30. As of Thursday noon, Sept. 16, President Duterte has not named his appointee from the nominees submitted by the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC).
With the appointment of Dimaampao, there are now only six nominees named by the JBC to the post vacated by Delos Santos. The list of nominees was submitted to the President last Aug. 27.
Nominated were Court of Appeals Associate Justices Ramon R. Cruz and Maria Filomena D. Singh; Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo M. Cabotaje Tang and Associate Justice Geraldine Faith A. Econg; and Court Administrator Jose Midas P. Marquez and Deputy Court Administrator Raul B. Villanueva.