Strike 2 at Supreme Court for Marcos ‘antipoverty czar’ Gadon

Lorenzo “Larry” Gadon—File photo by Niño Jesus Orbeta, Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court has again penalized disbarred lawyer and presidential antipoverty adviser Lorenzo Gadon, this time for gross misconduct when he committed perjury and made accusations based on hearsay, fining him P150,000.

In a resolution dated May 21, a full copy of which is yet to be made public, the Supreme Court en banc found Gadon guilty of gross misconduct in a disbarment case filed against him by lawyer Wilfredo Garrido Jr. in 2018.

Gadon, the poverty alleviation adviser of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., said the decision was “suspicious” and “tainted with [a] vendetta” and that he would study the ruling to decide whether to file an impeachment complaint against the justices who supported it.

In his complaint filed before the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP), Garrido accused Gadon of making false allegations in his impeachment complaint in the House of Representatives against then Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno.

Gadon was also accused of filing baseless criminal cases against several Supreme Court officials.

IBP recommendation

The IBP’s committee on bar discipline recommended Gadon’s suspension for two years after finding that he lied under oath when he claimed that Sereno falsified a Supreme Court temporary restraining order.

It dismissed his allegations against court officials for lack of evidence.

The IBP Board of Governors increased the recommended penalty to a three-year suspension.

The Supreme Court adopted the IBP’s findings but ruled that Gadon’s gross misconduct was punishable by disbarment. But since he was already disbarred in 2023, the same penalty would no longer be imposed but would still be recorded in his personal file.

The court decided to fine him P150,000 and to make him ineligible for judicial clemency.

‘Unfounded accusation’

“The Court found that Gadon committed perjury for making allegations in his impeachment complaint not based on his personal knowledge or on any authentic records, contrary to his sworn guarantee in the verification attached to his complaint,” the Supreme Court said in a statement on Thursday.

Even while he knew that he had no personal knowledge nor any authentic document to support his accusation against Sereno, the justices said Gadon still included it in his verified impeachment complaint — an attempt to “lend a semblance of credibility to his unfounded accusation.”

“This not only deceived the HOR, but also revealed an intent to inflict unnecessary harm to the reputation of a lawyer and former member of the Court,” the high tribunal said, as it noted Gadon’s “malicious intent to malign and defame Sereno.”

Show of disrespect

The justices cited Gadon for violating Canon II, Section 11 of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability, which makes him liable for committing the serious offense of gross misconduct for making false statements.

The Supreme Court added that the nullification of Sereno’s appointment as Chief Justice, as well as the preliminary findings of the lower chamber’s Committee on Justice, did not absolve Gadon.

“His disregard for the verification requirement in impeachment complaints shows disrespect for the impeachment process, using it to advance his personal agenda rather than air genuine and legitimate grievances,” it said.

His response

In a statement, Gadon slammed the P150,000 penalty as “exorbitant and has no basis in jurisprudence.”

Gadon said the Supreme Court had no jurisdiction over the impeachment complaint that he filed against Sereno.

“The Supreme Court has no power to declare any allegations therein as true or false. It is only the House [that] can issue such pronouncements. The Supreme Court, therefore, clearly committed an extremely grave abuse of discretion,” he said.

The disbarred lawyer added that the high court had no jurisdiction to announce findings on a pending case that he lodged against some Supreme Court officials.

He said allegations he made in the impeachment complaint against Sereno “were not fully ventilated and heard” because the hearings abruptly ended and overtaken by Sereno’s removal.

‘Vendetta,’ timing

He added that the IBP’s recommendation and the high court’s resolution were “tainted with a vendetta,” citing the impeachment case that he filed against Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen in 2019.

“The timing of the release of the Supreme Court resolution is also suspicious at this time that I publicly criticized ABS-CBN and at this time that I have announced plans to urge the House to open the case of ABS-CBN anew. The public information officer of the Supreme Court now is a former ABS-CBN reporter,” Gadon added.

In a unanimous vote in 2023, the Supreme Court ruled to disbar Gadon for repeatedly cursing and uttering profanities against journalist Raissa Robles. A video of him doing that had gone viral.

The court found his action “indisputably [scandalous, discrediting] the legal profession.”