All trial courts in the country will start on Monday, Nov. 15, their “Nationwide Judgment Week” to decongest court dockets and jail facilities.
Court Administrator Jose Midas P. Marquez said the project will be implemented by all judges in the municipal trial courts, municipal circuit trial court, municipal trial court in cities, metropolitan trial courts, regional trial courts, and the Shari'ah courts.
In a circular issued for the Supreme Court (SC) by Marquez, trial court judges are mandated to set for hearing civil and criminal cases, particularly those involving persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) in various jails in the country.
Trial court judges had been ordered to conduct an inventory of the pending civil and criminal cases and to set them for hearing starting Nov. 15 “with the objective of terminating these cases pursuant to existing laws, rules, and guidelines.”
“This directive, however, should not prevent any court from promulgating judgments or releasing PDLs on an earlier date warranted by circumstances,” stated the circular of Marquez whose office supervises all lower courts for the SC.
“At the conclusion of the Nationwide Judgment Week (Nov. 15 to 19), all courts shall immediately accomplish the survey/report form to be posted at the Official Announcements and Issuances Teams Channel in the Philippine Judiciary Office 365 platform,” the circular also stated.
The program was launched by the Office of the Court Administrator in celebration of its 46th anniversary. OCA was created on Nov. 18, 1975 under Presidential Decree No. 828.