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Republic of the Philippines mg ign
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ag Re EIVED a
Quezon City GF OCF 2016

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILLNO. 3939

Introduced by Hon. LAWRENCE LEMUEL H. FORTUN

EXPLANATORY NOTE

‘The bill seeks to strengthen the Office of the Chief State Counsel in the
Department of Justice. It was originally filed as House Bill No. 6632 in the 15
Congress and HB No. 1020 in the 16% Congress. It was approved by the
Committee on Justice in the 1st and 16% Congress and all of the supporting
documents and requirements were already submitted by the Department of
Justice to the Justice and Appropriations Committee.

This proposed legislation shall strengthen, streamline and expand the
functions of the Legal Staff in the Department of Justice (DOJ) which shall be
known as the Office of the Chief State Counsel. The current Legal Staff of the DOJ
plays a pivotal role in the country’s international commitments and economic
development.

The enactment of Republic Act No. 2705 on June 18, 1960 saw the creation
of the Legal Staff that is headed by the Chief Legal Counsel with the assistance of
thirty (30) attorneys. It was mandated to “assist the Secretary of Justice in the
performance of his duties as Attorney General of the Philippines, and as ex-officio
legal adviser of government corporations or enterprises.” The Legal Staff then
was mainly responsible for the issuance by the Secretary of Justice of various
written legal opinions requested by government entities, instrumentalities and
offices.

Over the years, the Legal Staff has evolved and been involved in more
undertakings of different fields. It adjudicates and arbitrates conflicts or
controversies between or among government offices and agencies, resolves the
legality of tax ordinances or measures, reviews citizenship and immigration
cases, implements the anti-dummy law, negotiates and executes executive
agreements and treaties, and determines the status of refugees in compliance
with our commitment to the 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to the
Status of Refugees and the 1954 United Nations Convention Relating to the
Status of Stateless Persons.

Today, the Legal Staff is engaged in more government programs and
international undertakings unprecedented in its history. Its indispensable
participation is seen in matters affecting not only foreign trade, financing and
investments in the Philippines, but also in international cooperation relating to
extradition, mutual legal assistance, trafficking, financial crimes and irregular
migration.



The multifaceted and demanding role required of State Counsels of the
Legal Staff, which has been unheralded and overlooked over the years, can
efficiently and effectively be met by recognizing the exceptional role of the Office,
strengthening its functions, expanding and streamlining the Office, augmenting
benefits and upgrading employee skills.

Presently, the Legal Staff is undermanned and in dire need of
organizational upgrading in order to function optimally. The highest point in the
career of a State Counsel is perhaps the position of Chief State Counsel. Yet, it is
unfortunate that the counterpart of the Chief State Counsel, the Government
Corporate Counsel in the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel and the
Solicitor General in the Office of the General, enjoy the rank of Associate Justice
and Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeals, respectively. The corresponding
judicial ranking proposed for State Counsel augurs well with the fact that the
Office is a veritable training ground for lawyers in very special fields of law. To
mention a few who worked in the Legal Staff of the Department of Justice and
rose to prominence in the legal field are Supreme Court Justice Florentino
Feliciano, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, Supreme Court Justice
Teresita Leonardo-De Castro, former Supreme Court Justice Leonardo
Quisumbing and former Supreme Court Justice Minerva P. Gonzaga-Reyes.

The counter-parts of State Counsels in the DOJ are the State Prosecutors
who were strengthened and rationalized, and given the same benefits in R.A. No.
10071 in 2010. It is high-time that the unheralded and overlooked State Counsels
of the Department of Justice likewise be given the same benefits as that of their
counter-parts in the Department.

Equally important is the pressing necessity to augment the salaries of the
State Counsels who are already overburdened due to the unforgiving demands of
their work. Inevitably, the Legal Staff has been unsuccessful in retaining and
maintaining the best legal minds, and thus continues to suffer from professional
exodus to more economically rewarding offices. Of similar economic situation as
the State Counsels are the administrative personnel of the Legal Staff who, over
the years, are equally burdened by the voluminous work in the Office,
Overworked and underpaid, they are undeniably the strategic partners who
facilitate the work of the State Counsels. Any economic gain by the State Counsels
should cascade to, and be shared with, the administrative personnel.

‘The foregoing are the compelling reasons for the enactment of this
proposed legislation.



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 3939

Introduced by Hon. LAWRENCE LEMUEL H. FORTUN

AN ACT STRENGTHENING
‘THE LEGAL STAFF OF THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE,
RENAMING IT AS THE OFFICE OF THE CHIEF STATE COUNSEL,
REDEFINING, EXPANDING, RATIONALIZING AND FURTHER
PROFESSIONALIZING ITS ORGANIZATION, AND APPROPRIATING
FUNDS THEREFOR

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Republic
of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. — This Act shall be known as the “State
Counsel Act.”

SEC. 2. Office of the Chief State Counsel. — The Legal Staff created
under Republic Act (RA) No. 2705, as amended by R.A. No. 4152, shall be
renamed as the Office of the Chief State Counsel (“OCSC”).

The OCSC shall be under the supervision and control of the Secretary of
Justice and shall assist the Secretary of Justice in the exercise of his functions as
Attorney General of the Philippines and ex officio legal adviser of departments,
agencies and instrumentalities, including government-owned or controlled
corporations, or enterprises and their subsidiaries.

SEC. 3. Powers and Functions. — All matters concerning the
following shall be referred to and acted upon by the Office of the Chief State
Counsel :

(a) Requests for legal opinion;

(b) Requests for opinion/comments on the legality and validity of foreign
loan agreements and guarantee agreements, and in certain cases,
agreements related to domestic borrowings;

(c) Requests for comments and position papers on proposed legislations;
(a) Affirmation of Orders of the Bureau of Immigration concerning

recognition of Filipino citizens or cancellation of alien certificate of
registration;


(e) Appeals or petitions for review on any action in the exercise of the
quasi-judicial function of the attached agencies under the control and
supervision of the Secretary of Justice;

(f) Administrative settlement or adjudication of disputes, claims and
controversies between or among government offices, agencies and
instrumentalities, including government-owned and controlled
corporations;

(g) Legality and validity of tax ordinances and revenue measures;

(h) Applications for special authority to employ foreign nationals under
Commonwealth Act (C.A) No. 108 entitled “An Act to Punish Acts of
Evasion of the Laws on the Nationalization of Certain Rights, Franchises
or Privileges” or the Anti-Dummy Law, as amended;

(i) Applications for determination of refugee and statelessness status of
foreign nationals, as well as protection matters of refugees and stateless
persons;

(j) Applications for, and implementation of, special non-immigrant visas
which may be issued by the President under Sec. 47(a)(2) of C.A. No. 613
entitled “An Act to Control and Regulate the Immigration of Aliens into
the Philippines’, otherwise known as the Philippine Immigration Act of
1940, as amended;

(k) Applications for validation of land titles filed pursuant to Presidential
Decree (P.D.) No. 1271 entitled “An Act Nullifying the Decrees of
Registration and Certificates of Title Covering Lands Within the Baguio
Townsite Reservation”;

(1) Requests on matters involving the implementation of treaties on
mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, extradition and transfer of
sentenced persons;

(m) Cases for representation before the courts relating to extradition and
mutual legal assistance in criminal matters;

(n) Requests for legal advice from other government agencies in the
negotiations and implementation of international agreements, including
participation in the negotiations, whenever so requested;

(0) Negotiations and implementation of international agreements where
the Department of Justice (DOJ) is the Central Authority or implementing
agency, including bilateral, regional or multilateral treaties and
conventions within the purview of the DOJ’s mandate or function;

(p) Requests for legal advice from other government agencies in the
negotiations and implementation of international agreements, including
participation in the negotiations, whenever so requested;

(q) Supervision of the Department Law Library as well as its personnel;
and

(r) Such other functions and duties as may be delegated by the Secretary
of Justice.


SEC. 4. Expansion, upgrading and creation of positions. — The
OCSC is hereby expanded and their positions upgraded as follows :

From i Positi To
Old Position | No. of | Salary ines pera "No. of | Salary
Position | Grade Position | Grade
| Chief State 1 | 5¢30 | chief State Counsel 1 | 3630
Counsel | steps
Assistant Chief >| sqa9 | Deputy Chief state Counsel | 4 | ca ag
| State Counsel _ an
“State Counsel V 6 5G 28 _| Senior State Counsel 10 | sG29
State Counsel IV oP) $627 Assistant Senior State 15 5G 28
_ | Counsel
State Counsel Ill 12 | SG 26 _| State Counsel 20
State Counsel II 12 SG 25 | Associate State Counsel Ill 20
State Counsel | a5 SG 24 | Associate Sate Counsel I! 20
| | Associate State Counsel | 10 |
60 L 100

The Chief State Counsel and the Deputy Chief State Counsels shall be
appointed by the President of the Philippines. All other State Counsels and
administrative personnel shall be appointed by the Secretary of Justice upon
recommendation by the Promotion and Selection Board to be chaired by the
Chief State Counsel.

Appointments of the State Counsels shall be deemed permanent upon
compliance with the prescribed qualification standards under the law. The State
Counsels occupying the positions affected by the changes in this Act at the time of
its approval shall thereafter occupy and discharge the duties and functions of the
upgraded positions and receive the corresponding salary, benefits and privileges
without necessity of new appointment.

In the interest of greater efficiency in the discharge of its functions, the
OCSC may be organized into divisions and units, as may be necessary.

There shall be positions created for administrative personnel equivalent to
at least one (1) support staff for every two (2) State Counsels.

SEC. 5. Standards, Compensation and Benefits. — The
qualifications for appointment, rank, prerogatives, salaries, allowances,
emoluments, and privileges, of State Counsels shall be the same as that of their
counterparts in the Office of the Solicitor General, specified as follows:

Chief State Counsel - Assistant Solicitor General
Deputy Chief State Counsel - Assistant Solicitor General
Senior State Counsel = Senior State Solicitor
Deputy Senior State Counsel - State Solicitor II

State Counsel - State Solicitor I

Associate State Counsel III - Associate Solicitor II
Associate State Counsel II - Associate Solicitor II

Associate State Counsel I “ Associate Solicitor I



No person shall be appointed as Chief State Counsel or Deputy Chief State
Counsel unless he is a natural-born citizen of the Philippines and has been
engaged in the practice law in the Philippines for at least fifteen (15) years.

Senior State Counsels must be members of the Philippine Bar for at least
ten (10) years prior to their appointment while Deputy Senior State Counsels and
State Counsels must be members of the Philippine Bar for at least five (5) years
prior to their appointment.

The Secretary of Justice shall determine the qualifications, prerogatives
and responsibilities of Associate State Counsels.

All salaries, benefits and privileges of the lawyers of the OCSC granted
under this Act shall further be increased to match any corresponding increase in
the salaries, benefits and privileges subsequently granted to their respective
counterparts in the Office of the Solicitor General.

SEC. 6. Retirement Benefits. - When a State Counsel, who has
rendered at least fifteen (15) years of service either in the OCSC or in any branch
of government, or in both, retires for having attained the age of sixty-five (65)
years or resigns by reason of incapacity to discharge the duties of his/her office,
he/she shall, during the residue of his/her natural life, in the manner hereinafter
Provided, receive a retirement pension based on the highest monthly salary, plus
the highest monthly aggregate of transportation, living and representation
allowances, which he/she was receiving at the time of his/her retirement or
resignation.

When a State Counsel has attained the age of sixty (60) years and has
rendered at least fifteen (15) years of service in government, the last five (5) years
of which must have been continuously rendered in the OCSC, he/she shall
likewise be entitled to retire and receive during the residue of his/her natural life
the same benefits Provided for in this section: Provided, however, that those with
less than fifteen (15) years of service in the government shall be entitled to a pro-
rata pension computed as follows:

No. of years Basic Pay Plus the Highest
In Government Monthly Aggregate of
ee: Transportation, Living and
15 years Representation Allowances

SEC. 7. Conditions. - To maintain entitlement to the pension herein
Provided, no State Counsel, during the time he/she is receiving said pension,
shall appear as counsel before any judicial or quasi-judicial or quasi-judicial
agency in any civil case wherein the Government or any agency, subdivision, or
instrumentality thereof is an adverse party, or in any criminal case wherein any
officer or employee of the Government is accused of an offense committed in
relation to his/her office, or collect any fee for his/her appearance in any
administrative proceedings to maintain an interest adverse to the government ,
whether national, provincial, or municipal or to any of its legally constituted
officers. When a State Counsel covered under this Act shall assume an elective
public office, he/she shall not, upon assumption of office and during his/her
term, retrieve the monthly pension or any of the allowance due to him/her.



SEC. 8. Automatic Increase. - All pension benefits of retired State
Counsels of the OCSC shall be automatically increased whenever there is an
increase in the salary and allowance of the same position from which he retired.

SEC. 9. Retroactivity. - The benefits mentioned in Sections 4, 5 and 8
hereof shall be granted to all those who retired prior to the effectivity of this Act.

SEC. 10. Applicability. - All benefits heretofore extended under
Republic Act No. 910, as amended, and all other benefits that may be extended by
the way of amendment thereto shall likewise be given to the State Counsels
covered by this Act.

SEC. 11. Authority to Collect Fees. — The OCSC is hereby authorized
and collect fees for various services rendered in accordance with Section
apter 12, Book IV of Executive Order No. 292, otherwise known as the
‘Administrative Code of 1987, and other laws. These collections shall be deposited
as a Special Trust Fund which shall be administered by the Secretary of Justice as
special allowance for lawyers of the OCSC who are actually performing the
functions under Section 3 hereof duly certified by the Chief State Counsel;
Provided, That such special allowances shall not exceed One Hundred Percent
(100%) of the basic salary as provided under Republic Act No. 6758 otherwise
known as the Salary Standardization Law, as amended.

SEC. 12. Seminar and Other Related Fees. — Subject to availability
of funds, fees for relevant seminars, as well as professional membership fees for
lawyers, registration fees and related miscellaneous expenses incurred in
completing the mandatory continuing legal education (MCLE) shall be borne by
the OCSC.

SEC. 13. Franking Privilege. — The OCSC may transmit through
ordinary mail and/or registered mail with return card, free of charge, all official
communications and papers directly connected with the conduct of its duties and
functions.

SEC. 14. Appropriation. — There is hereby appropriated initially the
sum of Fifty Million Pesos (P50,000,000.00) from the funds of the National
Treasury not otherwise appropriated for the initial implementation of this Act.
Thereafter, the amount needed for the implementation of this law shall be
appropriated in the budget of the Department of Justice under the Annual
General Appropriations Act.

SEC. 15. Implementing Rules and Regulations. — Within sixty (60)
days from the approval of this Act, the Department of Justice and the
Department of Budget and Management shall promulgate such rules and
regulations as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 16. Separability Clause. — If any of the provisions of this Act is
declared invalid or unconstitutional, the provisions not affected thereby shall
continue to be in full force and effect.


SEC. 17. Repealing Clause. — Provisions of Republic Act No. 2705, as
amended by R.A. No. 4152,and other provisions of E.0. No. 292 (Section 7,
Chapter 2, Title III, Book IV, Administrative Code of 1987) are hereby repealed.
All other issuances inconsistent with any provision of this Act are likewise hereby
repealed, amended and/or modified accordingly.

SEC. 18, Rffectivity. — This Act shall take effect after fifteen (15) days
from its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general
circulation.

Approved,