REPUBLIC ACT NO. 5204 - AN
ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 24, 32, 33 AND 37 OF REPUBLIC ACT NUMBERED TWO
HUNDRED NINETY-SIX, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS "THE JUDICIARY ACT OF 1948", AS
AMENDED, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Section 1. Section twenty-four of Republic Act Numbered Two
hundred and ninety-six, is hereby further amended to read as
follows:
"Sec. 24. The Court of Appeals. — The Court of
Appeals of the Philippines shall consist of a presiding justice and
twenty-three Associate Justices who shall be appointed by the President
of the Philippines, with the consent of the Commission on Appointments
of the Congress. The Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeals shall be
so designated in his commission, and the other Justices of the Court
shall have precedence according to the date of their respective
commissions, or when the commissions of two or more of them shall bear
the same date, according to the order in which their commissions have
been issued by the President of the Philippines; Provided, however,
That any member of the Court of Appeals who has been reappointed to
that court after rendering service in any other branch of the
government shall retain the precedence to which he is entitled under
his original appointment and his service in the court shall, to all
intents and purposes, be considered as continuous and
uninterrupted.
"The Presiding Justice and the Associate Justice of the Court of
Appeals shall not be removed from office except on impeachment upon the
grounds and in the manner provided for in Article IX of the
Constitution.
"The Court of Appeals shall, as a body, sit en banc, but it may sit in
eight divisions of three justices each. The eight divisions may sit at
the same time."
Sec. 2. Section thirty-two of the same Act is
hereby also amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 32. Place of holding sessions. — The Court of
Appeals shall have its permanent office in the City of Manila. Upon the
recommendation of the Secretary of Justice, with the certification of
the Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeals and when public interest
demands, the Supreme Court of the Philippines may authorize any
division or divisions of the Court to hold sessions periodically at
such time and place outside the City of Manila as the Supreme Court may
determine for the purpose of hearing and deciding cases originating
from a specific group of judicial districts. Copy of the rules or
resolution for the holding of sessions outside Manila shall be sent to
the Secretary of Justice, who, upon receipt thereof, shall make the
necessary arrangements with the provincial or national officers
concerned to provide the divisions with appropriate halls, office
spaces and accommodations for the holding of said sessions."
Sec. 3. Section thirty-three of the same Act is
hereby also amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 33. Quorum of the Court. — Fifteen justices of
the Court of Appeals shall constitute a quorum for its sessions en
banc; and three justices shall constitute a quorum for the sessions of
a division. In the absence of a quorum, the Court or the division shall
stand ipso facto adjourned until such time as the requisite number
shall be present, and a memorandum showing this fact shall be inserted
by the clerk in the minutes of the Court. The affirmative vote of
thirteen justices is necessary to pass a resolution of the Court en
banc. The unanimous vote of the three justices of a division shall be
necessary for the pronouncement of a judgment. In the event that the
three Justices do not reach a unanimous vote, the Presiding Justice
shall designate two Justices from among the other members of the Court
to sit temporarily with them, forming a division of five Justices, and
the concurrence of a majority of such division shall be necessary for
the pronouncement of a judgment.
"Every decision of the Court of Appeals shall contain complete findings
of fact on all issues properly raised before it.
"All cases submitted to a division of the Court of Appeals for decision
shall be decided or terminated therein within the term in which they
were heard and submitted for decision: Provided, however, That when a
case is complicated or otherwise attended with special circumstances
which demand additional time for its study or consideration, the Court
of Appeals, sitting en banc, may, upon petition of the division
concerned, grant an additional period not exceeding two months for its
disposition or termination."
Sec. 4. Section thirty-seven of the same Act is
further amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 37. Appointment by Court of Appeals of deputy
clerks of and other officers. — The Court may appoint eight deputy
clerk of court, who shall have the same qualifications as those of the
clerk of the Court of Appeals, with an annual compensation of eleven
thousand one hundred pesos for the first deputy, and ten thousand eight
hundred pesos each for the other deputy clerks, and other officers in
such number and with such compensation as may be hereafter
authorized."
Sec. 5. This Act shall take effect upon its
approval.
Approved: June 15, 1968
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