Sandiganbayan

Sandiganbayan
Seal of the Sandiganbayan
Flag of the Sandiganbayan
Jurisdiction	Philippines
Location	Centennial Building, Commonwealth Avenue, National Government Center, Diliman, Quezon City
Composition method	Presidential appointment from the shortlist submitted by the Judicial and Bar Council
Authorized by	Constitution of the Philippines
Appeals to	Supreme Court of the Philippines
Appeals from	Regional Trial Court
Number of positions	21
Annual budget	₱1.37 billion (2020)
Website	sb.judiciary.gov.ph
Presiding Justice
Currently	Hon. Amparo M. Cabotaje-Tang
Since	October 7, 2013

Facade in 2023

The Sandiganbayan (lit. 'Support of the nation') is a special appellate collegial court in the Philippines that has jurisdiction over criminal and civil cases involving graft and corrupt practices and other offenses committed by public officers and employees, including those in government-owned and controlled corporations. The special court was established by Presidential Decree No. 1486. It was subsequently modified by Presidential Decree No. 1606 and by Republic Acts 7975, 8249 and 10660. It is equal in rank to the Court of Appeals, and consists of fourteen Associate Justices and one Presiding Justice. The Office of the Ombudsman owns exclusive authority to bring cases to the Sandiganbayan.

The Sandiganbayan is housed in the Centennial Building, Commonwealth Avenue, National Government Center, Diliman, Quezon City, Metro Manila.

History

Sandiganbayan

The Sandiganbayan was established under the administration of President Ferdinand E. Marcos on June 11, 1978, by Presidential Decree No. 1486 in the 1973 Constitution. The court was equal in rank to the Regional Trial Courts (then known as the Courts of First Instance). On December 10, 1978, Presidential Decree No. 1606 elevated the ranking of the Sandiganbayan to match that of the Court of Appeals, the second-highest judicial court in the Philippines. The Sandiganbayan began operations on February 12, 1979.

Amendments were introduced in Republic Acts No. 7975 and No. 8249, after the EDSA Revolution in 1986, which limited the jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan to "cases involving public officials occupying positions classified as salary grade 27 and higher."

The Sandiganbayan currently sits in seven divisions of three justices each, as per R.A. No. 10660, amending P.D. No. 1606.

Sandiganbayan Building II

In October 2024, CJ Alexander Gesmundo led the groundbreaking for the 13-storey Sandiganbayan Building II. The green building will rise on a 2,588-square meter property adjacent to the Sandiganbayan Centennial Building. Designed by the University of the Philippines College of Engineering, the Building Research Services with the National Engineering Center is responsible for the preparation of the Detailed Architectural and Engineering Design.

Martial law

When the Sandiganbayan began operations in 1979, it was composed of only one division (with Hon. Manuel R. Pamaran as Presiding Justice and two Associate Justices) and a 15-membered skeleton crew. In 1981, a second division was launched. A third division was formed on August 4, 1982.

Aquino investigation

Main article: Assassination of Benigno Aquino Jr.

In the wake of the assassination of Benigno Aquino, Jr. in August 1983, Ferdinand Marcos submitted the case for an immediate trial to the Sandiganbayan. Marcos' critics, who included business leaders and church leaders, claimed that the Sandiganbayan had no experience in trying a murder and demanded an appointment of an imperial prosecutor and independent judicial body instead.

In 1984, the 26 people accused in the assassination of Aquino were acquitted by the Sandiganbayan in a 90-page verdict. The verdict disregarded all findings of the Agrava Commission, which was appointed to investigate the assassination.

On June 13, 1985, the Sandiganbayan, with the aid of the commission, threw out the case against General Fabian Ver, the chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, together with seven other military men. The Sandiganbayan voted for the exclusion of their testimonies in that they were self-incriminatory and inadmissible as evidence. The Supreme Court upheld this decision by a vote of 10–3 in August. Ver was soon reinstated as chief of staff by Marcos on December 2.

Post-martial law

1987 Constitution

Main article: 1987 Constitution

Corazon Aquino inauguration

On February 2, 1987, a new constitution was ratified under President Corazon Aquino. The 1987 Constitution dictated the separation of powers and a system of checks and balances between the executive, legislature, and judiciary branches.

The 1987 Constitution expanded the jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan to include cases investigated by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) involving only on ill-gotten wealth, dictated by Executive Orders No. 14 and No. 14-A (main SB site & EO 14). In April 1994, Imelda Marcos and three former officials of the Ministry of Human Settlements (MHS) were indicted for the misappropriation of Php 97.9 million in MHS funds in 1985. At the same time, however, the Sandiganbayan dismissed charges against Imelda Marcos in connection with the sale of $125.9 million in Central Bank Treasury notes in the 1980s.

Under the 1987 Philippine Constitution and the Ombudsman Act of 1989, the Office of the Ombudsman independently monitors all three branches of the government for political corruption.

Laws on graft and corruption in the Philippines

Laws on graft and corruption have been in effect as early as the 1950s, before the creation of the Sandiganbayan. Graft and corruption laws govern both public officers and natural persons. The collection of these laws is overseen by the Office of the Ombudsman.

Republic Act Nos. 3019 and 1379

The Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act is a law that stipulates that the Philippine Government shall repress certain acts of both public officers and the natural persons that may constitute graft or corruption. Acts that are subject under these laws include graft, divulging otherwise private information, negligence in warranted requests, undue injury by a public officer to any party – private or government – in the form of unwarranted benefits or disadvantages.

In the case of unexplained accrual of wealth, R.A. No. 1379 states that a petition may be filed against any public officer who has acquired property unlawfully, be it through graft or any form of corruption. This petition should come from the Solicitor General of the Republic of the Philippines as per complaint by a taxpayer.

Republic Act No. 7080

Any public officer who amasses a certain amount of ill-gotten wealth (at least fifty-million pesos) through means of criminal acts – be it by himself or in connivance with other, shall be subject to reclusion perpetua, a form of imprisonment for life. Any accomplice shall be sentenced with the same.

Republic Act. No. 9184

Under the Government Procurement Reform Act, public officers who commits any of the following who colludes with private individuals performs the following illegal acts in RA 9184 will suffer an imprisonment of not less than six years and one day, but not more than fifteen years.

Jurisdiction

Position of the Sandiganbayan in the Philippine judicial system as presented by the Department of Budget and Management.

To determine whether the Sandiganbayan has jurisdiction, lawyers look into two criteria, namely: the nature of the offense and the salary grade of the public official.

The Sandiganbayan shall have original exclusive jurisdiction over:

• Violation of Anti-graft and Corrupt Practices Law (RA 3019)
• Forfeitures of Illegally Acquired Wealth (RA 1379)
• Crimes committed by public officers namely
  • Direct, Indirect and Qualified Bribery
  • Corruption of public officials
• Other offenses or felonies whether simple or complexed with other crimes committed in relation to their office by public officials.
• Civil and Criminal Cases filed pursuant to and in connection with Executive Orders 1, 2, 14 & 14-A issued in 1986
• Petitions for issuance of Writ of mandamus, prohibition, certiorari, habeas corpus, injunction and other ancillary writs and processes in aid of its appellate jurisdiction; Provided, jurisdiction is not exclusive of the Supreme Court.
• Petitions for Quo Warranto arising or that may arise in cases filed or that may be filed under EO 1, 2, 14 & 14- A

Provided that the accused belongs to a salary grade of 27 or higher, the Sandiganbayan has jurisdiction over:

• Violation of Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards (RA 6713)
• Violation of the Plunder Law (RA 7080)
• Violation of The Heinous Crime Law (RA 7659)
• Violation of The Anti-Money Laundering Law when committed by a public officer (RA 9160)
• Presidential Decree 46 referred to as the gift-giving decree which makes it punishable for any official or employee to receive directly or indirectly and for the private person to give or offer to give any gift, present or other valuable thing on any occasion including Christmas, when such gift, present or valuable thing is given by reason of his official position, regardless of whether or not the same is for past favors or the giver hopes or expects to receive a favor or better treatment in the future from the public official or employee concerned in the discharge of his official functions.
  • Included within the prohibition is the throwing of parties or entertainment in honor of the official or employee or his immediate relatives.
• Presidential Decree 749 which grants immunity from prosecution to any person who voluntarily gives information about any violation of Art.210, 211 or 212 of the RPC, RA 3019, Sec.345 of the NIRC, Sec. 3604 of the Customs and Tariff Code and other provisions of the said Codes penalizing abuse or dishonesty on the part of the public officials concerned and other laws, rules and regulations penalizing graft, corruption and other forms of official abuse and who willingly testifies against the public official or employee subject to certain conditions.

Private individuals can also be sued in cases before the Sandiganbayan if they are alleged to be in conspiracy with the public officer.

The Sandiganbayan is vested with appellate jurisdiction over final judgments, resolutions or orders of the Regional Trial Court whether in the exercise of their original or appellate jurisdiction over crimes and civil cases falling within the original exclusive jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan but which were committed by public officers below Salary Grade 27.

Composition

The Sandiganbayan has a total of fifteen departments (two head offices, twelve divisions, and one Legal Research and Technical Staff) and a total of 385 authorized positions. 335 of 385 of these positions are filled.

Electoral procedure

According to the Presidential Decree No. 1606, Section 1, the Presiding Justice and all Associate Justices shall be appointed by the president, as amended by Republic Act 8249.

Appointment of the Court Officials and other employees, however, is not dependent on the president. According to Rule II, Section 7 of the Revised Internal Rules of the Sandiganbayan, "The Supreme Court shall appoint the Clerk of Court, the Division Clerks of Court and all other personnel of the Sandiganbayan upon recommendation of the Sandiganbayan en banc chosen from a list of qualified applicants prepared in accordance with the Civil Service Law, rules and regulations."

Qualifications

Presidential Decree No. 1606 further states that "No person shall be appointed Presiding Justice or Associate Justice of the Sandiganbayan; unless he is natural-born citizen of the Philippines, at least 40 years of age and for at least ten years has been a judge of a court of record or been engaged in the practice of law in the Philippines or has held office requiring admission to the bar as a pre-requisite for a like period.

Justices

Division and roles

The Sandiganbayan originally had three divisions that assisted the Office of the Presiding Justice, according to the Article XIII of the 1973 Constitution. The number of divisions was raised to five divisions in 1995. In 2015, through the Republic Act 10660, under the Aquino Administration, the number of divisions was expanded to seven divisions. Currently, the Sandiganbayan has Office of the Presiding Justice, Office of the Clerk of Court, Legal Research and Technical Staff, seven divisions (Office of the Deputy Clerk of Court), and five other divisions namely Judicial Records Division, Administrative Division, Budget and Finance Division, Management Information System Division, Security and Sheriff Services Division. The functions and roles of these offices and divisions are:

• Office of the Presiding Justice – Enjoy precedence over the other members of the Sandiganbayan in all official functions; implements the policies, executes the resolutions and enforces the orders of the Court en banc; performs the functions specifically vested upon him by law, rules and regulations or those implied therefrom; performs all other functions and duties inherent in his position.
• Office of the Clerk of Court – The Clerk of Court is the administrative officer of the Sandiganbayan. He shall discharge his functions under the control and supervision of the Sandiganbayan en banc through the Presiding Justice. As administrative officer, he shall take direct charge of the administrative operations of the Sandiganbayan and exercise general supervision over its subordinate officials and employees except those belonging to the staff of the Presiding Justice and the Associate Justices. He shall assist the Presiding Justice in the formulation of programs and policies for consideration and action of the Sandiganbayan en banc. The Clerk of Court shall act as its secretariat and prepare its agenda, minutes of meetings and resolutions.
• Legal Research and Technical Staff – Provides legal and technical assistance to the Court by conducting legal research and studies; takes charge of all legal and related matters.
• Office of the Deputy Clerk of Court (seven divisions) – Assists the Clerk of Court in providing technical and administrative support and assistance to their particular Division of the Court; takes charge of the pre and post adjudicative matters relative to cases assigned to the First Division.
• Judicial Records Division – Takes charge of docketing of cases; plans, implements and evaluates programs for the systematic management of judicial records; and performs other related functions. Prepares entries of judgment; issues copies of decisions, resolutions and orders; maintains a systematic filing and records keeping; and handles the Court's information system, monitoring requests for statistical data.
• Administrative Division – Attends to the manpower development and service needs of the Court; and performs all functions relative to administrative and personnel matters. Attends to the procurement and maintenance of the properties, supplies and equipment of the Court, including the Court's physical plant Takes charge of the collection and disbursement of the Court.
• Budget and Finance Division – Prepares and executes the budget of the Court; initiates plans and formula for more effective utilization of funds allotted to the Court; fiscalizes the agency's financial interest including disclosure of deficiencies in control needing corrections. Keeps accounting records for the Court; prepares reports required by the Department of Budget and Management, Commission on Audit and other government agencies.
• Management Information System Division – Provides technical services related to the planning, development, implementation and maintenance of information systems; takes care of all information and communications technology requirements of the Court.
• Security and Sheriff Services Division – In charge of the formulation of plans, implements and evaluates program for the systematic management of security of the Sandiganbayan premises, property and personnel and performs other related functions; takes charge of the formulation of systems for the effective services of Court processes and enforcement of Writs issued by the various Divisions of the Court; serves as liaison office with the various law enforcement agencies and the media regarding all court orders and processes issued by the various divisions of the Court, and other court related matters; takes custody of all accused processing their bail for their temporary liberty and/or to turn-over accused who voluntarily surrenders to the authorized detention centers; oversee that all judicial and extrajudicial proceedings are accomplished; takes charge of the formulation of effective management and implementation of all kinds of court orders or processes and writs coming from the various divisions of the Court.

Cases

Procedures

The Sandiganbayan holds regular sessions in its principal office in Metro Manila. Sessions may be held outside of Metro Manila when authorized by the Presiding Justice. Cases are heard either en banc or more commonly, by divisions.

Cases are distributed among the divisions through a raffle system. The assignment of a case to a division is permanent, regardless of changes in constitution. Justices may inhibit (i.e., recuse) themselves from a case if they served as Ponente, the Member to whom the Court, after its deliberation on the merits of a case, assigns the writing of its decision or resolution in the case. in the appealed decision of the lower court, or if they or their family members are personally related with the case, or for any other compelling reason. In case of inhibition (recusal) or disqualification, the case will remain with the same division, but the recused justice will be replaced.

Cases may reach the Sandiganbayan either through an appeal from a Regional Trial Court or by original petition filed with the Sandiganbayan. After a case is raffled to a Division, the accused party must be arraigned within thirty days. A pre-trial conference is then held to reach an agreement and issue a pre-trial order. The case is then taken to trial. Following the Speedy Trial Act of 1998, no trial may exceed six months from its starting date. However, the act also allows for certain delays that are excluded from the computed time of trial, including delays caused by other related proceedings involving the accused, absence of the accused or essential witness, and mental or physical incompetence of the accused to stand trial.

Adjudication

Cases are deemed submitted for decision after the last brief, pleading, or memorandum is filed, or after the deadline for doing so has passed. All adjudicatory action is exercised through the divisions of the Sandiganbayan. The rendition of judgment or final order is based on the unanimous vote of the three Justices in the deciding division. When the Sandiganbayan sits en banc to resolve motions and other incidents, at least eight justices must vote in order to adopt a resolution.

In a joint trial involving multiple cases, a joint or separate judgment may be rendered by the division. In cases involving multiple accused, the division may also render judgment for one or more of the accused by a unanimous vote.

If a unanimous vote cannot be reached in any case, a special division of five will be formed to decide the case by majority vote. Promulgation is done by reading the judgment aloud with the accused present along with any Justice from the deciding division. Decisions are published in the Official Gazette or the official website of the Sandiganbayan.

Appeals

In general, a party sentenced to any penalty lower than death, life imprisonment, or reclusion perpetua may appeal by filing a motion for reconsideration or a motion for new trial within fifteen days of promulgation of judgment. If a new trial is granted, the previous judgment will be overruled and the new judgment rendered. New trials must also not exceed six months in duration, albeit allowing for certain delays as specified in the Speedy Trial Act. For civil cases, the accused party may file for a petition for a writ of certiorari with the Supreme Court. If the party files an appeal to the Supreme Court, any motion of reconsideration filed to the Sandiganbayan will be deemed abandoned.

If the accused party wishes to appeal from a sentence of life imprisonment or reclusion perpetua, a notice of appeal is filed with the Sandiganbayan and presented to the adverse party. In cases where the Sandiganbayan sentences the accused to death penalty, an automatic appeal follows where the Supreme Court will conduct a review of judgment before the final decision is rendered.

Notable cases

Jinggoy Estrada vs. Sandiganbayan

In June 2014, plunder charges against former Philippine senator Jinggoy Estrada and several other members of Congress allegedly involved in the pork barrel scam run by Janet Lim-Napoles were filed by the Ombudsman before the Sandiganbayan. Estrada was accused of plundering ₱183 million from the Priority Development Assistance Fund.

Withdrawal of justices

In December 2014, all three justices of the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division (Associate Justices Roland Jurado, Alexander Gesmundo and Ma. Theresa Gómez-Estoesta) assigned to the case against Estrada recused themselves from the case for "personal reasons". This marked the first time in the court's history that an entire division withdrew from hearing a case. Though the justices refused to elaborate on their reasons for recusal, the withdrawal was said to have been due to "pressure" from the public to deny Estrada's petition for bail.

Imelda Marcos vs. Sandiganbayan

In 1991, ten counts of graft were filed against former first lady Imelda Marcos before the Sandiganbayan. Marcos was accused of creating private Swiss foundations during her time as governor of Metro Manila, between 1978 and 1984. She was also accused of violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act by holding financial interests in multiple private enterprises. The government has since uncovered Marcos Swiss deposits amounting to $658 million.

Another corruption case against Marcos involving "unlawfully acquired" art collections amounting to $24 million has been brought to the Sandiganbayan by appeals from the Presidential Commission on Good Government and the Office of the Solicitor General. The case is being handled by the Special First Division of the Sandiganbayan.

Delays in court proceedings

The case against Imelda Marcos has been ongoing for over 26 years due to multiple causes of delay in court proceedings. In 2017, Marcos was absent from what was scheduled to be her last day of trial for the graft case. In the same year, the trial was reset by the Fifth Division due to the failure of the defense to present their last evidence in the case.

Membership

This list contains the current membership of the Sandiganbayan as of 02:59, Thursday, November 21, 2024 (UTC).

Incumbent justices

The Sandiganbayan consists of a Presiding justice and twenty associate justices. Among the current members of the Court, Rafael Lagos is the longest-serving justice, with a tenure of 5,096 days (13 years, 348 days) as of November 21, 2024; the most recent justice to enter the court is Juliet M. Manalo-San Gaspar, whose tenure began on September 26, 2023.
Number of Incumbent Justices by 2 (retirements of Justices Dela Cruz and Herrera Jr.)

Office	Justice (Date of Birth)	Date Appointed	Appointed by	Date of Retirement (70 years old)	Replacing	Position
Presiding Justice	Amparo Cabotaje-Tang (1954-11-08) November 8, 1954	October 7, 2013	Aquino III	Nov 8, 2024	Villaruz, Jr	Third Division, Chairperson
Senior Associate Justice	Rafael Lagos (1954-12-22) December 22, 1954	December 9, 2010	Aquino III	December 22, 2024	Geraldez	Fifth Division, Chairperson
Associate Justice	Maria Theresa Dolores Gomez-Estoesta (1967-03-17) March 17, 1967	January 20, 2014	Aquino III	March 17, 2037	Cabotaje-Tang	Seventh Division, Chairperson
Associate Justice	Sarah Jane Fernandez (1969-05-14) May 14, 1969	May 5, 2015	Aquino III	May 14, 2039	Ong	Sixth Division, Chairperson
Associate Justice	Michael Frederick Musñgi Michael Frederick L. Musñgi (1965-04-14) April 14, 1965	January 20, 2016	Aquino III	April 14, 2035	New Seat	Fourth Division, Chairperson
Associate Justice	Geraldine Faith Abracia-Econg (1967-08-06) August 6, 1967	January 20, 2016	Aquino III	August 6, 2035	New Seat	Second Division, Chairperson
Associate Justice	Maria Theresa Mendoza-Arcega (1965-12-18) December 18, 1965	January 20, 2016	Aquino III	December 18, 2035	New Seat	First Division, Chairperson
Associate Justice	Karl Miranda (1957-10-09) October 9, 1957	January 20, 2016	Aquino III	October 9, 2027	New Seat	Sixth Division, Senior Member
Associate Justice	Zaldy Trespeses (1972-12-30) December 30, 1972	January 20, 2016	Aquino III	December 30, 2042	New Seat	Seventh Division, Senior Member
Associate Justice	Bernelito Fernandez (1955-06-09) June 9, 1955	October 28, 2016	Duterte	June 9, 2025	Diaz-Baldos	Third Division, Senior Member
Associate Justice	Lorifel Lacap-Pahimna (1961-02-10) February 10, 1961	Mar 1, 2017	Duterte	February 10, 2031	Inoturan	Fourth Division, Senior Member
Associate Justice	Edgardo Caldona (1970-02-12) February 12, 1970	Mar 10, 2017	Duterte	February 12, 2040	Hernandez	Second Division, Senior Member
Associate Justice	Bayani Jacinto (1969-04-30) April 30, 1969	May 29, 2017	Duterte	April 30, 2039	Jurado	First Division, Senior Member
Associate Justice	Kevin Narce Vivero (1960-01-02) January 2, 1960	November 28, 2017	Duterte	January 2, 2030	Martires	Sixth Division, Junior Member
Associate Justice	Maryann Corpus-Mañalac (1966-07-27) July 27, 1966	December 8, 2017	Duterte	July 27, 2036	Cornejo	Fifth Division, Senior Member
Associate Justice	Georgina Dumpit-Hidalgo (1964-04-14) April 14, 1964	January 18, 2018	Duterte	April 14, 2034	Ponferrada	Seventh Division, Junior Member
Associate Justice	Ronald Moreno (1970-01-23) January 23, 1970	June 8, 2018	Duterte	January 23, 2040	Gesmundo	Third Division, Junior Member
Associate Justice	Arthur Oliveros Malabaguio (1965-01-10) January 10, 1965	March 4, 2022	Duterte	January 10, 2035	Cruz	Second Division, Junior Member
Associate Justice	Juliet M. manalo-San Gaspar (1971-07-02) July 2, 1971	September 26, 2023	Marcos Jr.	July 2, 2041	Quiroz	First Division, Junior Member
Associate Justice			Marcos Jr.		Herrera Jr.	Fourth Division, Junior Member
Associate Justice			Marcos Jr.		Dela Cruz	Fifth Division, Junior Member

Membership Timeline (Cabotaje-Tang court)

Note: The vertical Blue line denotes "now" (21 November 2024).

Bar Key:   Macapagal-Arroyo appointee   Aquino III appointee   Duterte appointee   Marcos Jr. appointee

Demographics

By appointing President

President	Total (Percentage)	Justices	Seat Change
Aquino III	9 (42.86%)	A. Cabotaje-Tang Presiding Justice R. Lagos Senior Associate Justice M. Gomez-Estoesta G. Econg S. Fernandez M. Mendoza-Arcega K. Miranda M. Musñgi Z. Trespeses	by 1
Duterte	9 (42.86%)	E. Caldona M. Corpus-Mañalac B. Fernandez G. Hidalgo B. Jacinto L. Lacap-Pahimna A Malabaguio R. Moreno K. Vivero
Bongbong Marcos	1 (4.76%)	J. Manalo-San Gaspar
Vacant		2 (9.52%)	by 2

Number of Justices by appointing President

President	Number of Justices appointed
Benigno Aquino III	9
Rodrigo Duterte	9
Bongbong Marcos	1

By gender

Gender	Total (Percentage)	Justices	Changes in Numbers
Male	10 (47.62%)	C. Caldona B. Fernandez B. Jacinto R. Lagos Senior Associate Justice A. Malabaguio K. Miranda R. Moreno M. Musñgi Z. Trespeses K. Viviero	by 2
Female	9 (42.86%)	A. Cabotaje-Tang Presiding Justice M. Corpus-Mañalac G. Econg S. Fernandez G. Hidalgo M. Gomez-Estoesta L. Lacap-Pahimna J. Manalo-San Gaspar M. Mendoza-Arcega
Vacant		2 (9.52%)	by 2

Number of Justices by Gender

Gender	Number of Justices by Gender
Male	10
Female	9

By tenure

Year	Total Retiring	Justices
2024	2	A. Cabotaje-Tang Senior Associate Justice R. Lagos
2025	1	B. Fernandez
2027	1	K. Miranda
2030	1	K. Viviero
2031	1	L. Pahimna
2034	1	G. Hidalgo
2035	3	M. Musñgi M. Mendoza-Arcega A. Malabaguio
2036	1	M. Corpuz-Mañalac
2037	3	M. Gomez-Estoesta S. Fernandez G. Econg
2039	2	B. Jacinto J. Manalo-San Gaspar
2040	2	R. Moreno E. Caldona
2041	1	J. Manalo-San Gaspar
2042	in1	Z. Trespreses

Roll of Sandiganbayan Justices (1978–present)

No.	NOSJ	SOT	Pos.	AO	Rep.	PJ (s)	EOT
1	Manuel Pamaran	Dec 1, 1978	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	+	First Presiding Justice	Dec 10, 1978
		Dec 10, 1978	PJ	Marcos, Sr.	+	First Presiding Justice	Mar 31, 1986
2	Bernardo Fernandez	Dec 10, 1978	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	+	Pamaran	Jun 11, 1981
3	Romeo Escareal	Dec 10, 1978	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	+	Pamaran	Mar 5, 1996
4	Buenaventura Guerrero	Dec 8, 1980	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	+	Pamaran	May 16, 1986
5	Conrado Molina	Dec 8, 1980	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	+	Pamaran	Jul 18, 1992
6	Moises Kallos	Dec 8, 1980	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	+	Pamaran	Dec 15, 1983
7	Ramon Jabson	Nov 20, 1981	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	Fernandez	Pamaran	May 18, 1988
8	Fidel Purisima	Aug 4, 1982	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	+	Pamaran	Mar 10, 1984
9	Francisco Consolacion	Aug 4, 1982	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	+	Pamaran
10	Romulo Quimbo	Aug 4, 1982	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	+	Pamaran	May 16, 1986
11	Augusto Amores	Oct 7, 1984	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	Kallos	Pamaran	Jul 5, 1995
12	Amante Alconcel	Oct 7, 1984	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	Purisima	Pamaran	May 16, 1986
13	Bienvenido Vera Cruz	Oct 7, 1984	AJ	Marcos, Sr.	Consolacion	Pamaran
14	Francis Garchitorena	Apr 18, 1986	PJ	C. Aquino	Pamaran	Escareal (acting)	Jan 16, 2002
15	Regino C. Hermosisima Jr.	May 16, 1986	AJ	C. Aquino	None	Garchitorena	Jul 18, 1995
16	Luciano Joson	May 21, 1986	AJ	C. Aquino	None	Garchitorena	Jan 20, 1990
17	Cipriano del Rosario	May 22, 1986	AJ	C. Aquino	None	Garchitorena	Mar 15, 2001
18	Jose Balajadia	May 30, 1986	AJ	C. Aquino	None	Garchitorena	Feb 14, 1998
19	Nathanael Gorospe	Dec 2, 1988	AJ	C. Aquino	Jabson	Garchitorena	Jan 16, 1993
20	Sabino de Leon Jr.	Mar 13, 1990	AJ	C. Aquino	Joson	Garchitorena	Oct 11, 1999
21	Narciso Atienza	Sep 14, 1992	AJ	Ramos	Molina	Garchitorena	Dec 17, 1993
22	Minita Chico-Nazario	May 10, 1993	AJ	Ramos	Gorospe	Garchitorena	Feb 28, 2003
		Feb 26, 2003 acting since Jan 16, 2002	PJ	Macapagal-Arroyo	Garchitorena	Sandoval (acting)	Feb 10, 2004
23	Roberto Lagman	Nov 28, 1994	AJ	Ramos	Atienza	Garchitorena	Feb 14, 1998
24	Harriet Demetriou	Aug 28, 1995	AJ	Ramos	Amores	Garchitorena
25	Edilberto Sandoval	Mar 11, 1996	AJ	Ramos	+	Garchitorena	Sep 17, 2010
		Sep 17, 2010	PJ	Macapagal-Arroyo	Geraldez	Villaruz Jr. (acting)	Oct 4, 2011
26	Leonardo Cruz	Mar 11, 1996	AJ	Ramos	Hermosisima Jr.	Garchitorena	Mar 11, 1997
27	Teresita De Castro	Sep 8, 1997	AJ	Ramos	Escareal	Garchitorena	Dec 15, 2004
		Dec 15, 2004	PJ	Arroyo	Chico-Nazario	Sandoval (acting)	Dec 3, 2007
28	Anacleto Badoy Jr.	Sep 8, 1997	AJ	Ramos	L. Cruz	Garchitorena	Mar 11, 2002
29	German Lee Jr.	Sep 8, 1997	AJ	Ramos	+	Garchitorena	Dec 17, 1998
30	Godofredo Legaspi	Sep 8, 1997	AJ	Ramos	+	Garchitorena	Sep 8, 2006
31	Narciso S. Nario	Sep 8, 1997	AJ	Ramos	+	Garchitorena	Jan 15, 2002
32	Catalino Castañeda Jr.	Sep 8, 1997	AJ	Ramos	+	Garchitorena	Jan 15, 2002
33	Alfredo Gustillo	Oct 5, 1998	AJ	Estrada	+	Garchitorena	Mar 3, 1999
34	Gregory S. Ong	Oct 5, 1998	AJ	Estrada	Ballajadia	Garchitorena	Sep 23, 2014
35	Ricardo Ilarde	Oct 7, 1998	AJ	Estrada	Lagman	Garchitorena	Mar 3, 2001
36	Rodolfo Palattao	Oct 9, 1998	AJ	Estrada	Demetriou	Garchitorena	Mar 3, 2003
37	Maria Cristina Cortez-Estrada	Oct 19, 1998	AJ	Estrada	Lee, Jr.	Garchitorena	Jul 2, 2009
		Jul 2, 2009	PJ	Arroyo	Peralta	Villaruz Jr. (acting)	Nov 30, 2009
38	Raoul Victorino	Jan 31, 2000	AJ	Estrada	Gustillo	Garchitorena	Feb 15, 2005
39	Nicodemo Ferrer	Jan 31, 2000	AJ	Estrada	de León, Jr.	Garchitorena	Feb 15, 2002
40	Francisco Villaruz Jr.	Oct 2, 2001	AJ	Arroyo	Ilarde	Garchitorena	Oct 5, 2011
		Oct 5, 2011	PJ	B. Aquino III	Sandoval	G. Ong (acting)	Jun 8, 2013
41	Diosdado Peralta	Jun 14, 2002	AJ	Arroyo	del Rosario	Chico-Nazario	Mar 28, 2008
		Mar 28, 2008	PJ	Arroyo	de Castro	Sandoval (acting)	Jan 14, 2009
42	Norberto Geraldez	Jan 21, 2003	AJ	Arroyo	Nario, Sr.	Chico-Nazario	Feb 28, 2010
		Feb 28, 2010	PJ	Arroyo	Cortéz-Estrada	Villaruz Jr. (acting)	Apr 4, 2010
43	Roland Jurado	Oct 3, 2003	AJ	Arroyo	Castañeda, Jr.	Chico-Nazario	Feb 1, 2017
	Efren de la Cruz	Oct 10, 2003	AJ	Arroyo	Chico-Nazario	Chico-Nazario	June 18, 2024
45	Teresita Diaz-Baldos	Oct 17, 2003	AJ	Arroyo	Ferrer	Chico-Nazario	Jul 22, 2016
46	Jose Hernandez	Mar 9, 2004	AJ	Arroyo	Bádoy, Jr.	Chico-Nazario	Nov 22, 2016
47	Rodolfo Ponferrada	Aug 23, 2004	AJ	Arroyo	Palattao	Chico-Nazario	Sep 13, 2017
48	Alexander Gesmundo	Oct 15, 2005	AJ	Arroyo	Leonardo-de Castro	de Castro	Aug 14, 2017
49	Samuel Martires	Oct 15, 2005	AJ	Arroyo	Victorino	de Castro	Mar 2, 2017
50	Napoleon Inoturan	April 4, 2008	AJ	Arroyo	Legaspí	Peralta	Aug 1, 2016
51	Alex Quiroz	Dec 11, 2008	AJ	Arroyo	Peralta	Peralta	Jul 28, 2022
52	Maria Cristina Cornejo	May 1, 2010	AJ	Arroyo	Cortéz-Estrada	Sandoval	Mar 1, 2017
53	Rafael Lagos	Dec 9, 2010	AJ	B. Aquino III	Geraldez	Sandoval	Incumbent
54	Oscar Herrera Jr.	Apr 26, 2011	AJ	B. Aquino III	Sandóval	Villaruz, Jr.	May 23, 2024
55	Amparo M. Cabotaje-Tang	Jun 11, 2012	AJ	B. Aquino III	Villaruz, Jr.	Villaruz, Jr.	Oct 7, 2013
		Oct 7, 2013	PJ	B. Aquino III	Villaruz, Jr.	G. Ong (acting)	Incumbent
56	Maria Theresa Dolores Gomez-Estoesta	Jun 20, 2014	AJ	B. Aquino III	Cabotaje-Tang		Incumbent
57	Sarah Jane Fernandez	May 5, 2015	AJ	B. Aquino III	G. Ong	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
58	Michael Frederick Musñgi	Jan 20, 2016	AJ	B. Aquino III	+	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
59	Reynaldo Cruz	Jan 20, 2016	AJ	B. Aquino III	+	Cabotaje-Tang	Feb 21, 2020
60	Geraldine Faith Econg	Jan 20, 2016	AJ	B. Aquino III	+	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
61	Maria Theresa Mendoza-Arcega	Jan 20, 2016	AJ	B. Aquino III	+	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
62	Karl Miranda	Jan 20, 2016	AJ	B. Aquino III	+	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
63	Zaldy Trespeses	Jan 20, 2016	AJ	B. Aquino III	+	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
64	Bernelito Fernandez	Oct 28, 2016	AJ	Duterte	Díaz-Baldos	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
65	Lorifel Pahimna	Mar 1, 2017	AJ	Duterte	Inoturan	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
66	Edgardo Caldona	Mar 10, 2017	AJ	Duterte	Hernández	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
67	Bayani Jacinto	May 29, 2017	AJ	Duterte	Jurado	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
68	Kevin Narce Vivero	Nov 28, 2017	AJ	Duterte	Martires	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
69	Maryann Corpus-Mañalac	Dec 8, 2017	AJ	Duterte	Cornejo	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
70	Georgina Hidalgo	Jan 18, 2018	AJ	Duterte	Ponferrada	Cabotaje-Tang	incumbent
71	Ronald Moreno	Jun 8, 2018	AJ	Duterte	Gesmundo	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
72	Arthur Malabaguio	May 24, 2021	AJ	Duterte	Cruz	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
73	Juliet Manalo-San Gaspar	Sep 27, 2023	AJ	Marcos Jr.	Quiroz	Cabotaje-Tang	Incumbent
74	Gener M. Gito	October 10, 2024	AJ	Marcos Jr.	Herrera Jr.
75	J. Ermin Ernest Louie Miguel	October 10, 2024	AJ	Marcos Jr.	Dela Cruz

by Appointing President

Number of Justices by appointing President

President	Number of Justices appointed
Ferdinand Marcos Sr.	13
Corazon Aquino	7
Fidel V. Ramos	12
Joseph Estrada	7
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo	13
Benigno Aquino III	11
Rodrigo Duterte	9
Bongbong Marcos	1

by Gender

Number of Justices by gender

Gender	Number of Justices by gender
Male	60
Female	13

Timeline of Justices by Presiding Justice (1978-present)

During the Presiding Justiceship of Manuel Pamaran (1978-1986)

Bar Key:   Marcos appointee

During the Presiding Justiceship of Francis Garchitorena (1986-2002)

Tanda:   Marcos appointee   C. Aquino appointee   Ramos appointee   Estrada appointee   Macapagal-Arroyo appointee

During the Presiding Justiceship of Minita Chico-Nazario (2002–2004)

Bar Key:   Ramos appointee   Estrada appointee   Macapagal-Arroyo appointee

During the Presiding Justiceship of Teresita de Castro (2005-2007)

Bar Key:   Ramos appointee   Estrada appointee   Macapagal-Arroyo appointee

During the Presiding Justiceship of Diosdado Peralta (2008–2009)

Bar Key:   Ramos appointee   Estrada appointee   Macapagal-Arroyo appointee

During the Presiding Justiceship of Maria Cristina G. Cortez-Estrada (July 2 - November 30, 2009)

Bar Key:   Ramos appointee   Estrada appointee   Macapagal-Arroyo apppintee

During the Presiding Justiceship of Norberto Geraldez (2010)

Bar Key:   Ramos appointee   Estrada appointee   Macapagal-Arroyo apppintee

During the Presiding Justiceship of Edilberto G. Sandoval (2010-2011)

Bar Key:   Estrada appointee   Macapagal-Arroyo apppintee   Tinalagq ni Aquino III 

During the Presiding Justiceship of Francisco Villaruz, Jr. (2011-2013)

Bar Key:   Estrada appointee   Macapagal-Arroyo apppintee   Tinalagq ni Aquino III 

The rule of seniority

The Associate Justices of the Court are usually ordered according to the date of their appointment. There are no official ramifications as to this ranking, although the order determines the seating arrangement on the bench and is duly considered in all matters of protocol. Within the discretion of the Court, the ranking may also factor into the composition of the divisions of the Court.

The incumbent Justice with the earliest date of appointment is deemed the Senior Associate Justice. The Senior Associate Justice has no constitutional or statutory duties, but usually acts as Acting Presiding Justice during the absence of the Presiding Justice. The Senior Associate Justice is not usually designated as the chairperson of the second division of the Court.

The following became Senior Associate Justices in their tenure in the Sandiganbayan:

* Appointed as Supreme Court Associate Justice

* Appointed as Presiding Justice of the Sandiganbayan

No.	SAJ	DA	TRE
1	Bernardo Fernandez	1978.12.10	1978.12.10	1981.0..11
2	Romeo Escareal	1978.12.10	1981.06.11	1996.03.05
3	Cipriano Del Rosario	1986.05.22	1996.03.05	2001.03.15
4	Minita Chico-Nazario	1993.05.10	2001.03.15	2003.02.28*
5	Edilberto Sandoval	1996.03.11	2003.02.28	2010.09.17
6	Gregory S. Ong	1998.10.05	2010.09.17	2014.09.23
7	Roland Jurado	2003.10.03	2014.09.23	2017.02.01
8	Efren N. de la Cruz	2003.10.17	2017.02.01	2024.06.18
9	Rafael Lagos	2010.12.09	2024.06.18	incumbent

Graphical Representation

Bar Key:   Term   Term as Senior AJ

See also

• 2011 Armed Forces of the Philippines corruption scandal
• Chief Justice of the Philippines
• Constitution of the Philippines
• Court of Appeals of the Philippines
• Court of Tax Appeals of the Philippines
• Political history of the Philippines

References

Sources

• About the Sandiganbayan

External links

• Media related to Sandiganbayan at Wikimedia Commons
• Sandiganbayan – Official Website
• Sandiganbayan – Chan Robles Virtual Law Library – Information on the Sandiganbayan