Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said yesterday that Supreme Court Associate Justice Lucas Bersamin has accepted the nomination for Chief Justice.
“SC Associate Justice Lucas Bersamin has accepted his automatic nomination for the CJ post,” said Guevarra, a member of the Judicial and Bar Council tasked by the Constitution to screen applicants for posts in the Judiciary.
Bersamin accepted the nomination before the July 26 deadline when all applicants and nominees for Chief Justice should have completed and submitted all their requirements.
Under the rules, the five most senior SC justices are automatically nominated for Chief Justice. However, they still have to formally accept the nomination to be officially considered as nominee or applicant.
There are five senior justices in the SC. They are Bersamin, acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio, and Justices Presbitero Velasco Jr., Teresita Leonardo de Castro, and Diosdado Peralta. (Jeffrey G. Damicog)
