Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 19) — A bill seeking free tuition to students pursuing legal education in state universities and colleges (SUCs) was filed in the Senate in a bid to address the supposed lack of lawyers.
Authored by Senator Raffy Tulfo, Senate Bill 1610 will require SUCs to establish a free legal education program for deserving students.
It will cover tuition at the rate approved by the SUCs, government-mandated bar examination and licensure fees, prescribed books, student registration fees, and library fees.
“One of the reasons for lack of access to justice in the Philippines is the shortage of practicing lawyers,” Tulfo said in the explanatory note to the bill.
He said 40,000 lawyers under the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, the national organization of lawyers in the country, translate to only one lawyer for roughly 2,500 people.
“Very far from the ideal ratio of one lawyer for every 250 persons,” Tulfo said.
According to the bill, tuition in top private law schools ranges from P75,000 to P98,000 per semester, while tuition in state universities is from P24,000 to P30,000.
Tulfo said he hopes the measure will also help increase the workforce in the legal profession.
According to the Supreme Court Public Information Office, 9,183 out of the 10,006 candidates finished the 2022 Bar examinations in November. This translates to a 91.77% turnout, lower than the 92.01% attendance rate on the first day of the exams on Nov. 9.
READ: 91.77% of candidates complete last day of Bar exams — SC
