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.
Retraction vs Truth: Evaluating Testimony in Philippine Rape Cases
How Philippine courts weigh a rape victim's testimony against retraction and alibi defenses, explained through a landmark child rape case.
Witness Credibility and Alibi Defense: How the Supreme Court Affirmed a Rape Conviction
The Supreme Court affirms a qualified rape conviction, explaining why a child victim's credible testimony outweighs the defense of denial and alibi.
Incestuous Rape: Why the Supreme Court Upheld the Victim's Testimony Against Her Brother
The Supreme Court affirms a death sentence for incestuous rape, explaining why a victim's testimony against her own brother deserves full credence.
Eyewitness Testimony and Treachery: Proving Murder Beyond Reasonable Doubt
How positive eyewitness identification and treachery established murder beyond reasonable doubt in People v. Bagsit, and what this means for criminal cases.
Positive Identification Prevails Over Alibi in Murder Conviction
The Supreme Court explains why eyewitness identification by face outweighs alibi and how treachery must be proven in murder cases.
Incestuous Rape: Broad Complaint Dates and Victim Credibility in Philippine Criminal Law
The Supreme Court affirms an incestuous rape conviction, ruling that inexact complaint dates are allowed and a young victim's credible testimony suffices.
Trust Receipts Law Liability: When Agents Face Estafa Charges
Learn when corporate agents can face criminal liability for estafa under the Trust Receipts Law, based on the Supreme Court's ruling in Ong v. Court of Appeals.
Dying Declarations and Juvenile Offenders: Defining Justice in Rape with Homicide Cases
The Supreme Court affirms a rape-with-homicide conviction based on a dying declaration but spares a 15-year-old from death.
Dying Declarations in Rape-Homicide: Admissibility and the Minor Offender's Penalty
A rape-homicide conviction anchored on the victim's dying declaration, and why the minor accused escaped the death penalty.
Supreme Court Upholds Murder Conviction Despite Fugitive Status
The High Court affirms a murder conviction even as the accused remains at large, ruling on treachery, alibi, and the retroactive application of procedural rules.
Rape and the Burden of Proof: Establishing Minority in Statutory Rape Cases
In People v. Tupaz, the Supreme Court ruled that a rape victim's bare testimony of her age is insufficient to prove minority for the death penalty.
Eyewitness Testimony, Confessions, and Conspiracy: Lessons from the Payumo Massacre Case
The Supreme Court's ruling in the Payumo Massacre case clarifies the rules on eyewitness credibility, inadmissible confessions, and conspiracy in Philippine criminal law.
Credibility of Witnesses: How Courts Assess Testimony in Philippine Homicide Cases
Learn how Philippine courts weigh witness credibility and alibi in homicide cases, based on the Supreme Court's ruling in People v. Hugo.
Rape and Consent: Examining Force and Intimidation in Philippine Law
The Supreme Court affirms a death sentence for statutory rape of a six-year-old, clarifying that force is presumed when the victim is under twelve.
Safeguarding Suffrage: Due Process and Valid Service of Summons in Election Protests
A look at Sandoval v. HRET, where the Supreme Court nullified defective substituted service of summons, upholding due process in election contests.
Rape Conviction Hinges on Specificity: Charges Define the Crime
Philippine Supreme Court ruling explains why specific allegations in rape informations matter, and how penetration is proven in statutory rape cases.
Reasonable Doubt and the Limits of Sole Identification in Rape Convictions
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on alibi, positive identification, and the elements of robbery with rape under Article 294.
Self-Defense or Murder: The Limits of Justifiable Force in Philippine Law
A Supreme Court ruling clarifies when a claim of self-defense fails and treachery turns a killing into murder under Philippine law.
Rape Conviction Upheld: Father Figure's Moral Ascendancy Equals Force and Intimidation
Philippine Supreme Court affirms rape conviction, ruling that a father figure's moral ascendancy over a minor victim substitutes for force and intimidation.
Rape and Stepfather Relationship: When Death Penalty Applies in Philippine Law
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies when a stepparent's rape of a minor warrants death penalty versus simple rape.
Rape Conviction Affirmed: Positive Identification Prevails Over Alibi in Forcible Abduction Case
Supreme Court affirms rape and forcible abduction conviction, ruling positive identification outweighs alibi and denial in criminal cases.
Positive Identification Overrules Alibi in Vergara Robbery Case
Supreme Court affirms robbery conviction, holding that a victim's positive identification prevails over an accused's alibi and bare denial.
Religious Ties and Criminal Liability: When Alibi Fails in Murder Cases
Examining conspiracy and accountability in murder, and why alibi and lack of motive cannot overcome positive eyewitness identification.
Witness Credibility and Treachery in Murder Cases: People v. Manzano
The Supreme Court affirms a murder conviction based on a lone eyewitness's credible testimony and treachery, explaining key rules on alibi and damages.