TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
)
iigi
of tlK »T(;Tt<up
25 AUG 20 P5.-03
RECEIVED BY:
SENATE 
S. No.
Introduced by Senator Manuel "Lito" M. Lapid
AN ACT
PROVIDING FOR RULES ON PLEA BARGAINING AGREEMENT IN CRIMINAL 
CASES, PROVIDING PENALTIES IN VIOLATION THEREFOR, AND FOR
OTHER PURPOSES
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Section 2, Rule 116 of the Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure lays down the 
basis for plea bargaining, a process whereby the accused and the prosecution enter 
into a reciprocally satisfactory disposition of the case subject to Court approval. Such 
Rule presents the basic requisites upon which plea bargaining may be made, i.e., that 
it should be with the consent of the offended party and the prosecutor, and that the 
plea of guilt should be to a lesser offense which is necessarily included in the offense 
charged.
Since its introduction into our judicial system, jurisprudence has enriched its 
application. People of the Philippines v. ViHarama ruled that "the acceptance of an 
offer to plead guilty to a lesser offense is not demandable by the accused as a matter 
of right but is a matter that is addressed entirely to the sound discretion of the trial 
court." People of the Philippines v. Court of Appeals dictates that "as regards plea 
bargaining during the pre-trial stage, the trial court's exercise of its discretion should 
neither be arbitrary nor should it amount to a capricious and whimsical exercise of 
discretion."


The intent of plea-bargaining is to speed up the prosecution of cases by 
minimizing the need for trial. This lessens the dockets of the prosecution service and 
the courts and allows them to focus on the contested cases. However, a policy must 
also be provided to ensure that it is not abused, thereby negating the deterrent nature 
of our criminal laws.
Imbued with public interest, plea bargaining is ideally intended to primarily 
serve the best interest of justice, of the State and of its people, without unduly 
transgressing over the right of the accused to due process. While the intended benefits 
of plea bargaining to all the stakeholders is not contested, our very own history, 
however, proves witness to the unfortunate misuse and abuse of the process, often 
to the great disadvantage of the Filipino people.
Thus, there is an urgent need for the development of a formal policy to 
establish concrete guideposts in the implementation of plea bargaining. The setting of 
guidelines, including the imposition of sanction for violation thereof, ensures that the 
process does not become a mere vehicle for diluting the gravity of the offense charged 
against the accused, for destroying the deterrent value of the law intended to 
proscribe the offense committed, and/or for creating opportunities for graft and 
corrupt practices.
In view of the foregoing, the passage of this bill is earnestly sought.
MANUEL "LITO" M. LAPID
Senator


- - ^*v
senate
o( tl)1' ;25‘'tir!;,rP
TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
)
SENATE
S. No. 1232
25 AUG 20 P5:03
RECEIVED BY:
Introduced by Senator Manuel "Lito" M. Lapid
AN ACT
PROVIDING FOR RULES ON PLEA BARGAINING AGREEMENT IN CRIMINAL 
CASES, PROVIDING PENALTIES IN VIOLATION THEREFOR, AND FOR
OTHER PURPOSES
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled:
1 
SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Plea Bargaining Act
2 
of 2025"
3 
SEC. 2. Plea Bargaining; Definition. - Plea Bargaining is the process in criminal
4 
proceedings whereby the accused and the prosecution work out a mutually
5 
satisfactory disposition of the case, as expressed and contained in the plea bargaining
6 
agreement, and subject to court approval, including the plea of the accused to a lesser
7 
offense than that charged in the complaint or information, or to only one or some of
8 
the counts of a multi-court indictment, and in conformity with other conditions
9 
imposed by the prosecution, in return for a lighter sentence than that for the graver
10 
charge.
11 
SEC. 3. Principles. - Plea bargaining shall be entered into by and between the
12 
prosecution and the accused, and approved by the court, in accordance with the
13 
following principles:
14 
a. Plea bargaining is a matter imbued with public interest. As such, its initial
15 
consideration and final terms should both primarily redound to the
16 
benefit of the public.


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
b. When a plea bargain is offered by the accused, or a plea-bargaining 
agreement is entered into, the prosecution and the court are both duty- 
bound to inquire carefully into the circumstances and motivations on 
which these are premised, to the end that the interest of justice and of 
the public will be served.
c. Plea bargaining is not a matter of compromise for the convenience and 
benefit of the accused. It is not demandable by the accused as a matter 
of right but is addressed to the sound discretion of the trial court.
d. Plea bargaining shall not be entered into when it will only serve to 
trivialize the seriousness of the offense charged against the accused and 
negate the deterrent value of the law intended to proscribe the offense 
committed.
13 
SEC. 4. Plea of Guilty to a Lesser Offense. - As part of a plea-bargaining
14 
agreement, the accused, with the consent of the offended party and the prosecutor,
15 
may be allowed by the trial court to plead guilty to a lesser offense which is necessarily
16 
included in the offense charged.
17 
For purposes of plea bargaining, a lesser offense which is necessarily included
18 
in the offense charged is one that has some of the essential elements of the original
19 
offense charged the lesser offense shall also belong to the same classification or title
20 
under the Revised Penal Code or the relevant special laws as the offense charged in
21 
the original information.
22 
In all cases, the penalty for the lesser offense to which the accused may be
23 
allowed to plead guilty shall not be more than two (2) degrees lower than the
24 
imposable penalty for the offense charged, notwithstanding the presence of mitigating
25 
circumstances.
26 
SEC. 5. Consent of the Offended Party. - In offenses charged where there is
27 
no private offended party, the offended party whose consent is necessary for the plea
28 
bargaining shall be a) the People of the Philippines, as represented by the prosecution;
29 
and b) the government agency responsible for the enforcement of the law violated or


1 
directly affected by the offense committed, as represented by its highest ranking
2 
official, such as its president, chief executive, or head.
3 
SEC. 6. Additional Parties in Certain Cases. - In cases of plunder and money
4 
laundering, the consent of the Ombudsman and the President are required.
5 
SEC. 7. Time of Avaiiment - At arraignment, the accused, \A/ith the consent of
6 
the offended party, the prosecutor, and any additional party required by law to give
7 
its consent, may be allowed to plead guilty to a lesser offense which is necessarily
8 
included in the offense charged.
9 
During the course of trial, the period after arraignment- during or after the
10 
presentation of the evidence of the prosecution, but before the presentation of the
11 
evidence of the defense, and in no case after the dismissal by the court of a demurrer
12 
to evidence- the accused may still be allowed to plead guilty to a lesser offense after
13 
withdrawing a plea of not guilty to the original offense charged. No amendment of the
14 
complaint or information is necessary. Plea bargaining at this stage shall be subject to
15 
the conditions provided in Section 8 of this Act.
16 
SEC. 8. Piea Bargaining during the Course of the Trial; Conditions. - The
17 
prosecution may enter into plea bargaining with the accused, with the consent of the
18 
offended party under Section 7, during or after the presentation of the evidence of
19 
the prosecution, but before the presentation of the evidence of the defense, and in
20 
no case after the dismissal by the court of a demurrer to evidence, provided that all
21 
of the following conditions are present:
22 
a. The evidence of the prosecution is insufficient to prove the offense
23 
charged beyond reasonable doubt;
24 
b. In cases involving the recovery by or restitution to the offended party of
25 
property in crimes against property and those committed by public
26 
officers in relation to public funds such as, but not limited to, the crime
27 
of plunder, graft and corrupt practices, bribery, and malversation, the
28 
accused makes a full restitution of the property or public funds involved;
29 
and


1
2
3
4
5
6
c. In cases of conspiracy and when the accused has not yet qualified as a 
state witness in accordance with the Rules of Criminal Procedure, the 
accused fully cooperates by providing, among others, documentary, 
object, and testimonial evidence, against the principal conspirators 
responsible for the commission of the offense charged and who are most 
guilty.
7 
SEC. 9. Procedure. - For purposes of plea bargaining, the following procedure
8 
shall be followed:
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
a. The intention to plead guilty to a lesser offense must be manifested by 
the accused before the court. Immediately thereafter, the prosecutor 
shall move for the suspension of the proceedings to enable him to confer 
with the offended party, to evaluate the implications of the offer to plead 
to a lesser offense and secure the consent of the offended party.
b. If the penalty imposable for the offense charged is prision mayor, or six 
years and one day imprisonment, or higher, or a fine exceeding one 
million two hundred thousand pesos (Php 1,200,000.00), the plea 
bargaining agreement shall first be approved in writing by the City 
Prosecutor, Provincial Prosecutor, or the Prosecutor General in criminal 
cases handled by the National Prosecution Service; or the Ombudsman 
in criminal cases handled by the Office of the Special Prosecutor; or the 
head of the agency in the case of other agencies authorized to prosecute 
criminal cases, before it is submitted to the court for approval. In no 
case shall the subject plea-bargaining agreement be allowed without the 
written approval of the above approving authorities.
c. The prosecution and the accused shall file a joint motion for the approval 
of the plea-bargaining agreement. Attached to the joint motion is the 
plea-bargaining agreement itself. In no case shall the accused be re­
arraigned and plead guilty to a lesser offense other than that agreed 
upon and without the requisite court approval of the plea-bargaining 
agreement shall render the plea null and void ab initio.


1 
d. The prosecution may dispense with the presentation of evidence unless
2 
the court directs it to do so for purposes of determining the penalty to
3 
be imposed.
4 
SEC. 10. Penalty. - For violations of this Act, the penalty of imprisonment
5 
ranging from six months and one day to six years, and a fine ranging from forty
6 
thousand (Php 40,000.00) to two hundred thousand pesos (Php 200,000.00) shall be
7 
imposed.
8 
SEC. 11. Repeal of Inconsistent Laws. - All laws, decrees, orders, rules and
9 
regulations, and other issuances or parts thereof which are inconsistent with or
10 
contrary to this Act, are hereby repealed, amended, or modified accordingly. Existing
11 
laws disallowing plea bargaining for certain offenses and crimes shall remain in force
12 
and effect.
13 
SEC. 12. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within ninety (90) days after
14 
the approval of this Act, the Department of Justice, in consultation with the Supreme
15 
Court, shall issue the necessary rules and regulations for the effective implementation
16 
of this Act.
17 
Sec. 13. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part hereof is held invalid or
18 
unconstitutional, the remainder of the law of the provision not otherwise affected shall
19 
remain valid and subsisting.
20 
Sec. 14. EffectMty Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
21 
publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation.
Approved,