Editing Politics of the Philippines (section)

== Judiciary ==
{{Main|Judiciary of the Philippines}}
[[File:Supreme Court in Manila.JPG|right|thumb|[[Supreme Court of the Philippines]]]]

The judiciary is headed by the [[Supreme Court of the Philippines|Supreme Court]], which lies at the top of three lower court levels. The Supreme Court is the court of last resort,<ref name="Pangalangan">{{cite journal |editor1-last=Pangalangan |editor1-first=Raul C. |title=The Philippine Judicial System |date=March 2001 |url=https://aboutphilippines.org/doc-pdf-ppt-etc/05_Philippine-Judicial-System.pdf |journal=Asian Law Series |publisher=Institute of Developing Economies |archive-date=March 5, 2021 |access-date=January 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210305185845/https://aboutphilippines.org/doc-pdf-ppt-etc/05_Philippine-Judicial-System.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>{{rp|6–7}} and can [[judicial review|decide on the constitutionality]] of laws.<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|48–49}} Vested with the responsibility of overseeing the other branches of government, the Supreme Court has significant powers, able to go as far as overruling discretionary decisions made by political and administrative individuals and bodies,<ref name="Context">{{cite book |last1=Pangalangan |first1=Raul C. |editor1-last=Jiunn-rong Yeh |editor2-last=Wen-Chen Chang |title=Asian Courts in Context |date=2015 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-06608-3 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yk1sBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA356 |chapter=The Philippines' post-Marcos judiciary: the institutional turn and the populist backlash}}</ref>{{rp|356–357}} giving it powers usually seen as those of the executive and legislature.<ref name="Ristroph">{{cite journal |last1=Ristroph |first1=Elizabeth Barrett |title=The Role of Philippine Courts in Establishing the Environmental Rule of Law |journal=Environmental Law Reporter |date=September 2012 |volume=42 |issue=9 |url=https://www.elr.info/sites/default/files/article/2012/08/42.10866.pdf|pages=10866–10887}}</ref>{{rp|10874}} The court can effectively [[Judicial activism|create law]] without precedent, and such decisions are not subject to review by other bodies.<ref name="Context"/>{{rp|367–368}}

All lower levels of courts have their bases through legislation, rather than the constitution.<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|39}} Their proceedings are determined by the Supreme Court.<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|46}} Courts are arranged in a three-level hierarchy,<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|8–9}} with each level able to review only rulings at lower levels.<ref name="CACJ-JudicialBranch">{{cite web |url=https://cacj-ajp.org/web/philippines/the-judicial-branch |title=The Judicial Branch |publisher=Council of ASEAN Chief Justices |access-date=December 10, 2020 |archive-date=June 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605154040/https://cacj-ajp.org/web/philippines/the-judicial-branch |url-status=dead }}</ref> Within the regular court system,<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|8–9}} the [[Court of Appeals of the Philippines|Court of Appeals]] is the second-highest appellate court.<ref name="CACJ">{{cite web |url=https://cacj-ajp.org/web/philippines/philippine-court-system |title=Philippine Court System |publisher=Council of ASEAN Chief Justices |access-date=December 10, 2020 |archive-date=October 8, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201008071305/https://cacj-ajp.org/web/philippines/philippine-court-system |url-status=dead }}</ref> Below this, [[Regional Trial Court]]s have original jurisdiction on most criminal matters, and are the main [[trial court]]s. The Regional Trial Courts are organized within judicial regions, which correspond to the administrative [[Regions of the Philippines|regions]].<ref name="CACJ"/> The lowest level courts are the Metropolitan Trial Courts.<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|41}}<ref name="CACJ"/>

Alongside the regular courts, a variety of special courts have been set up at various levels of the judicial system.<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|8}} The [[Court of Tax Appeals of the Philippines|Court of Tax Appeals]] was set up specifically to rule on tax matters.<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|43}} The [[Sandiganbayan]] is a special court set up to deal with cases of government corruption.<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|42, 52}} Some Regional Trial Courts specialize in a particular sort of case, such as heinous crime courts, [[family court]]s, and environmental courts.<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|44–45}}<ref name="Hilario">{{cite journal |last1=Davide |first1=Hilario G. Jr. |last2=Vinson |first2=Sara |title=Green Courts Initiative in the Philippines |journal=Journal of Court Innovation |date=2011 |volume=3 |issue=1 |url=https://law.pace.edu/sites/default/files/IJIEA/jciDavide_Philippines%203-17_cropped.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140708081726/http://law.pace.edu/sites/default/files/IJIEA/jciDavide_Philippines%203-17_cropped.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 8, 2014 |page=124 }}</ref> [[Sharia in the Philippines|Sharia]] courts, which have been set up in some regions on the same level as Regional and Metropolitan courts,<ref name="CACJ"/> rule on personal law where both parties are Muslim.<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|8}}<ref name="AIJC">{{cite web |url=https://aboutphilippines.org/files/code_muslim_sharia_courts.pdf |title=Courts for Muslims A Primer on the Philippine Shari'a Courts |publisher=Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication |access-date=December 16, 2020 |pages=4–5 |archive-date=June 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605154042/https://aboutphilippines.org/files/code_muslim_sharia_courts.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> Some administrative bodies are able to exercise very specific quasi-judicial powers, as determined by law.<ref name="Pangalangan"/>{{rp|7, 9}}

The president appoints justices and judges to the judicial system. For an appointment to the Supreme Court, the president must select from a short-list provided by the [[Judicial and Bar Council]], although they have influence over the shortlist and can ask for it to be changed.<ref name="Rose-Ackerman"/>{{rp|302-206}} The Judicial and Bar Council is responsible for vetting appointments. Congress has no control over appointments, to reduce its political influence on the judiciary.<ref name="Abinales2005"/>{{rp|14}}<ref name="Context"/>{{rp|364}} However, the Chief Justice can be impeached by the legislature, which took place for the first time with the [[Impeachment of Renato Corona|conviction]] of Chief Justice [[Renato Corona]] in 2012.<ref name="Relacion"/> Political pressure is thought to be behind inconsistencies between some court decisions.<ref name="Ristroph"/>{{rp|10875–10876}} Traditionally the most senior [[Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines|associate justice]] became the [[Chief Justice of the Philippines|Chief Justice]]. However, this tradition was broken by President [[Gloria Macapagal Arroyo]], and her successor President [[Benigno Aquino III]] also bypassed seniority in some judicial appointments.<ref name="Relacion"/>

The [[Ombudsman of the Philippines]] is selected by the president from a list provided by the Judicial and Bar Council. This selection does not need confirmation, and lasts for a seven-year term with no re-appointment. The Ombudsman investigates and prosecutes public officials and agencies, except for the president, who is [[Presidential immunity|immune while in office]]. Considerable power lies with the position to request information and direct public officials to carry out certain tasks as required by law.<ref name="Rose-Ackerman"/> The [[Office of the Solicitor General of the Philippines|Office of the Solicitor General]] is an independent body that represents the government in legal cases.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/iq/fast-facts-osg-solicitor-general |title=FAST FACTS: The Office of the Solicitor General and its roles |last=Lim |first=Gerard |work=Rappler |date=January 11, 2016 |access-date=May 2, 2021}}</ref>