THE Judicial and Bar Council has submitted to President Rodrigo Duterte a shortlist of the nominees aspiring for the Supreme Court seat to be vacated by Associate Justice Jose Mendoza, who will retire on Aug. 13.
The seven-member council led by Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno approved the shortlist, which comprises eight members of the judiciary, after its deliberations on Friday.
Six of the eight candidates coming from the Court of Appeals were earlier also endorsed by the JBC to replace retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Bienvenido Reyes.
They are CA Presiding Justice Andres Reyes Jr. and CA Associate Justices Rosmari Carandang, Jose Reyes Jr., Apolinario Bruselas, Japar Dimaampao and Amy Lazaro-Javier.
Those who also made it to the shortlist were CA Justice Ramon Paul Hernando and Sandiganbayan Justice Alexander Gesmundo.
Duterte has 90 days to choose from the shortlist the successor of Mendoza, his fraternity brother at the San Beda College of Law-based Lex Talionis Fraternitas Inc.
The JBC is constitutionally mandated to vet the nominees for the vacancies at the 15-member Supreme Court and the Office of the Ombudsman and Deputy Ombudsman.
Besides Sereno, the JBC is composed of ex-officio members Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguierre II, Senator Richard Gordon and Mindoro Oriental Rep. Reynaldo Umali.
The council’s regular members are retired Supreme Court Justice Angelina Sandoval-Gutierrez, Lawyer Jose Mejia, representing the Academe, Milagros Fernan-Cayosa representing the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, and retired Judge Toribio Ilao representing the private sector.