THE SUPREME Court (SC) is set to hold oral arguments today, March 5, on the petitions questioning the validity of the nationwide exams for those who aspire to enter law school. In an advisory, the SC said an oral argument is also scheduled on March 12. The main issues that will be tackled include the validity of the Legal Education Board’s Memorandum Order (LEBMO) No. 7, series of 2016, which requires the nationwide uniform law school admission test tagged as the Philippine Law School Admission Test (PHILSAT). It will also discuss whether Republic Act (RA) No. 7662, which creates the LEB as an attached agency to the executive branch, “encroaches upon the function of the Supreme Court in violation of separation of powers. Invited as Amici Curiae (friends of the court), or those who are not parties to the case are former Ateneo law dean Sedfrey M. Candelaria and former University of the Philippines law dean Merlin M. Magallona. The case stems from the petition filed by retired Makati regional trial court Judge Oscar B. Pimentel, along with several others, including lawyers and aspiring law students in 2017. Mr. Pimentel’s petition was consolidated with a similar petition filed on November 2018 for the oral arguments. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

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