Supreme Court fight looms

Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno (right) and Associate Justice Teresita Leonardo de Castro (left). INQUIRER FILES

A fight is looming between two female magistrates of the Supreme Court.

Senior Associate Justice Teresita Leonardo de Castro has asked the 15-member tribunal to look into the supposed arbitrary decision of Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno to provide allowances for her staffers traveling abroad.

In a July 10 memorandum to all members of the high court, De Castro also questioned Sereno’s appointment of lawyer Brenda Jay Mendoza, who was designated to head the Philippine Mediation Center of the Philippine Judicial Academy (Philja) without the approval of all the justices.

She said Mendoza’s appointment was not even endorsed by Philja in violation of the court’s administrative rules.

“The Constitution vests upon the Supreme Court the power to ‘appoint all officials and employees of the judiciary in accordance with the civil service laws,’” De Castro said in her five-page memorandum.

“Hence, unless duly delegated by court resolution, the power to appoint court officials and employees can only be exercised by the court en banc,” she argued.

She said the Chief Justice also approved the release of court funds for the travel allowances of Sereno’s staff members “without court approval.”

In addition, the magistrate also raised the “long delay in the filling up” of vacancies in senior posts in the high court, including two positions for assistant court administrator.