Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 25) — The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued another show cause order against Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) chief Persida Acosta for her recent actions on a certain provision in their updated code of conduct, which allows public lawyers to represent opposing parties in court cases.
The SC public information office said the high court wants Acosta to explain why she should not be reprimanded over her Office Order No. 096, which gave public attorneys the “discretion and disposition” to comply with the “conflict of interest” provision of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability (CPRA).
The subject Canon III Section 22 of the CPRA reads, “A conflict of interest of any of the lawyers of the PAO incident to services rendered for the Office shall be imputed only to the said lawyer and the lawyer’s direct supervisor. Such conflict of interest will not disqualify the rest of the lawyers from PAO from representing the affected client, upon full disclosure to the latter and written informed consent.”
The SC said Acosta advised public attorneys to reconcile the provision with Article 209 of the Revised Penal Code – which penalizes betrayal of trust and revelation of secrets by lawyers – to avoid any criminal responsibility and imprisonment.
The court further described Acosta’s order as “an insinuation that compliance with the CPRA will amount to the commission of such offenses” and accused her of further “instigating disobedience.According to the SC, Acosta also urged public attorneys to adopt precautionary measures in handling conflict-of-interest cases “to protect their life and limb.
“The Court deemed the foregoing instructions in Atty. Acosta’s Office Order as belligerent and disrespectful as she effectively accused the Court of directly exposing the Public Attorneys not only to criminal and administrative liability, but also physical danger,” the statement read.
