PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has named Court Administrator Chief Raul B. Villanueva as the new associate justice, his first appointment in the Supreme Court (SC).
The new high court magistrate took his oath before Mr. Marcos on Tuesday in the presidential palace. He replaced Justice Mario V. Lopez, who mandatorily retired at the age of 70 last June 4.
Mr. Villanueva has been serving as head of the Office of the Court Administrator since 2022, the office tasked to assist the SC in exercising administrative supervision over all courts.
He joined the judiciary in 2002 when he was appointed presiding judge of the Las Piñas City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 255. He later served as the executive judge of the Las Piñas RTC and also held posts as acting presiding judge of the Taguig City RTC Branch 267 and the Manila RTC Branch 4.
In 2010, Mr. Villanueva was appointed deputy court administrator, a position he held until then-Court Administrator Jose Midas P. Marquez was appointed as associate justice.
Like several other appointees of the president, Mr. Villanueva is an Ilocano. A native of Narvacan, Ilocos Sur, he graduated at the top of his class at Narvacan South Central School in 1976 and completed high school with honors at Lourdes School in Quezon City in 1981.
He earned his economics degree from the University of the Philippines in 1985 and his law degree from the same university in 1990.
Mr. Villanueva is Mr. Marcos’ first appointee to the high court, which remains dominated by justices named by his predecessor, Rodrigo R. Duterte. Of the 15 sitting members of the SC en banc, 12 were appointed by Mr. Duterte, including Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo.
Two justices, Senior Associate Justice Marvic MV.F. Leonen and Associate Justice Alfredo Benjamin S. Caguioa, were appointed by the late former president Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III.
Mr. Marcos’ next opportunity to appoint justices to the top court will be next year, when Mr. Gesmundo and Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier are set to retire. He will then have the chance to name both a new chief justice and an additional associate justice.
During Mr. Villanueva’s oath-taking, Mr. Marcos said he hopes the appointment will help the executive and judiciary have a closer relationship.
“I know that the appointment of our new justice will continue that trend and bring the departments of government even closer than before and so that the function of government is smoother, better, and that we are unified in our goal to making life better for all Filipinos,” the President said. — Chloe Mari A. Hufana
