Legal Insights
Plain-language guides and case briefs on Philippine law — researched from the firm's law library of 184,000+ statutes, Supreme Court decisions, and agency issuances, and written so non-lawyers can understand and act on them.
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Navigating Tax Exemptions for Non-Profit Clubs: The Supreme Court's Ruling on Membership Fees
The Supreme Court clarifies that membership fees and assessment dues of recreational clubs are not subject to income tax and VAT.
Seafarer Disability Benefits: The 120/240-Day Rule on Medical Assessments
A Supreme Court ruling clarifies when a seafarer's disability is deemed permanent and total due to delayed medical assessments by company-designated physicians.
Navigating Disability Benefits for Seafarers: Work-Related Illnesses and Legal Presumptions
Understand how the Supreme Court protects seafarers' disability claims when company physicians fail to issue timely, definite assessments.
Navigating Disability Benefits for Seafarers: Key Insights From Recent Supreme Court Ruling
A Supreme Court ruling clarifies when seafarers may claim total and permanent disability benefits and how the company-designated physician's assessment affects claims.
Navigating Work-Related Illnesses: The Legal Path to Disability Benefits for Seafarers
The Supreme Court clarifies when a seafarer's illness is work-related and compensable under the POEA-SEC, including the 240-day disability assessment rule.
Unclear Medical Assessments Protecting Seafarers Rights TO Disability Benefits
A company doctor's vague medical report cannot defeat a seafarer's claim for total permanent disability benefits, the Supreme Court ruled.
Finality of Medical Assessments: Protecting Seafarers' Right to Full Disability Benefits
The Supreme Court clarifies when a company-designated physician's assessment is final and definitive, protecting seafarers' right to permanent total disability benefits.
Permanent Disability for Seafarers: Final Assessment and the Limits of the Third Doctor Rule
When a company-designated physician issues only an interim assessment, the third-doctor rule may not apply and the seafarer may be deemed permanently disabled.
Definitive Disability Assessments: Protecting Seafarers' Right to Full Compensation
The Supreme Court ruled that a company doctor's tentative or unclear disability rating does not bar a seafarer from claiming permanent total disability benefits.
Defining Final Assessment Seafarer Disability Benefits AND Employer Obligations
Seafarer Disability Claims: When the Company Doctor's Assessment Prevails
The Supreme Court clarifies when a company-designated physician's fitness-to-work assessment binds a seafarer, even if the seafarer's own doctor disagrees.
Seafarers Disability Claims Employers Duty TO Provide Timely Medical Assessment
Timely Action Required Prematurely Filed Disability Claims CAN BE Dismissed
Seafarers must wait for the company doctor's assessment or the 240-day period before filing disability claims. Learn from Guadalquiver vs. Sea Power.
Seafarers Disability When Delayed Assessment Trumps Third Doctor Rule
When the company-designated physician fails to issue a timely final assessment, the seafarer's disability is presumed total and permanent.
Probable Cause vs Due Process: Independent Judicial Assessment in Arrest Warrant Issuance
The Supreme Court clarifies the distinction between executive and judicial probable cause in arrest warrant issuance, and the limits of due process in preliminary investigation.
Seafarer Disability Claims: When the Company Doctor's Assessment Prevails
A look at Centennial Transmarine v. Sales on disability grading, the 120-day rule, and CBA vs POEA-SEC benefits.
Are Membership Fees of Recreational Clubs Taxable Income? SC Ruling
The Supreme Court clarifies when membership fees and assessment dues of recreational clubs are subject to income tax and VAT.
When Club Dues Are Not Income: BIR Circular Partly Invalidated
The Supreme Court ruled that membership fees and assessment dues of recreational clubs are not income or VAT receipts, partly invalidating BIR RMC No. 35-2012.
Are Club Membership Fees Taxable Income? The Supreme Court Weighs In
The Supreme Court ruled that membership fees and assessment dues of non-profit recreational clubs are not income or VAT-able receipts.
Seafarers Disability Claims: The Importance of Following Protocol and Timely Medical Assessments
A seafarer's disability claim failed because he filed suit before securing a second medical opinion. Learn the proper procedure.
Supreme Court: Membership Fees of Non-Profit Clubs Not Subject to Income Tax and VAT
The Supreme Court ruled that membership fees and assessment dues of non-profit recreational clubs are not income or VAT-liable, limiting BIR RMC No. 35-2012.
Seafarers' Rights: When Late Disability Assessments Mean Total Disability Benefits
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies that a company doctor's failure to issue a timely, final disability assessment entitles seafarers to total disability benefits.
Third Doctor's Opinion: A Seafarer's Duty to Resolve Conflicting Medical Assessments in Disability Claims
Learn how the Supreme Court ruled that seafarers must follow the third-doctor procedure under the POEA-SEC before filing disability claims.
Protecting Ecology When Amended Environmental Compliance Certificates Fall Short
The Supreme Court rules that amended Environmental Compliance Certificates cannot justify tree-cutting without a proper environmental impact assessment and public participation.