Winners of 2007 Judicial
Excellence Awards known

THE Supreme Court, in conjunction with the Society for Judicial Excellence (SJE), has announced the winners of the 2007 Judicial Excellence Awards, the court’s annual search for outstanding judges and clerks of court.

Leading the awardees are Manila regional trial court Judge Manuel M. Barrios (Chief Justice Cayetano Arellano Award) and Iloilo RTC Judge Roger B. Patricio (Chief Justice Jose Abad Santos Award) in the Second Level Court Judges Category.

Barrios began as assistant fiscal in Roxas City where he was nominated for the Outstanding Criminal Justice Achiever’s Award. He was named Executive Judge four times and his branch ranked no. 1 in terms of cases decided on the merits only three years after he was designated Presiding Judge of Branch 55 of RTC Manila.

Patricio balances his duties as Executive Judge and law professor and writes occasionally for the Lawyers’ Review.

The awardees for the First Level Court Judges Category are Quezon City MTC Judge Maria Filomena D. Singh, (Don Antonio P. Madrigal Award); Oriental Mindoro MTCC Judge Manolo A. Brotonel, and Cebu City MTCC Judge Francisco A. Seville Jr.

Singh is noted for raising the status of her branch from bottom-dweller to a model of efficiency, transparency, and productivity, having reduced the number of cases pending in her docket from 4,000 to an impressive 1,151 by the end of 2006.

Brotonel’s almost 30 years of public service is characterized by prompt and responsive action. He also lectures on the Katarungang Pambarangay Law for barangay officials and gives seminars on the rudiments of "arrest, search, and seizure" for local police officers.

Seville had extensive experience in private practice and once served as Talisay, Cebu councilor. Adept at multi-tasking, he is current president of the University of San Carlos Law Alumni Association, an Associate Professor in the same university, a Master of Laws student at the USC San Beda College Consortium and the Cluster Head of the Talisay City Chapter of Couples for Christ.

Chosen Outstanding Clerks of Court were Atty. Mauro R. Muñoz, Baguio RTC (second level courts), and Teodora dela Rosa-Balboa, Manila MeTC (first level courts).

The SJE decided not to give out the Chief Justice Ramon Avanceña Award for Outstanding RTC Judge and the Atty. Luzviminda Delgado Puno Award for Outstanding Clerk of Court since no one qualified for the honor.

The awarding ceremonies will be held at the main SC building’s session hall in Padre Faura, Manila on Sept. 19 at 3 p.m.