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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Understanding Intent to Kill: The Fine Line Between Attempted Murder and Serious Physical Injuries
The Supreme Court clarifies when a violent attack is attempted murder or only serious physical injuries, focusing on intent to kill and spontaneous desistance.
Self-Defense and Intent to Kill: Understanding the Nuances in Philippine Law
When does self-defense apply in Philippine criminal law? The Supreme Court explains the fine line between justified killing and criminal liability.
Illegal Discharge of Firearm: Key Lessons from a Philippine Supreme Court Case
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies that firing a gun without intent to kill is still a crime, even without bullet holes or injury.
Less Serious Physical Injuries: When Intent to Kill Is Absent
The Supreme Court clarifies when a mauling results in less serious physical injuries rather than attempted homicide, and how a brawl differs from a tumultuous affray.
Conspiracy and Intent: When Multiple Assaults Do Not Prove Discernment in Minors
The Supreme Court clarifies that intent to kill and conspiracy do not automatically prove a minor's discernment, requiring separate proof for criminal liability.
Conspiracy and Intent: Establishing Guilt in Multiple Stabbing Incidents
A Supreme Court ruling explains how implied conspiracy and intent to kill establish guilt in a coordinated multiple-stabbing attack.
Intent to Kill: Distinguishing Attempted Murder From Slight Physical Injuries in Philippine Law
The Supreme Court clarifies when a harmful act is attempted murder or only slight physical injuries, focusing on intent to kill.
Superior Strength and Criminal Intent: The Oscar Mat-an Murder Case
The Supreme Court clarifies when abuse of superior strength qualifies killing as murder and why intent to kill matters for attempted crimes.
Intent to Kill: Distinguishing Frustrated Homicide From Physical Injuries in Philippine Law
The Supreme Court explains how intent to kill separates frustrated homicide from physical injuries, and why a gunshot wound proves it.
Intent to Kill in Philippine Law: How Courts Prove Homicide and Fix Penalties
Philippine courts explain how intent to kill is proven in homicide cases, and when penalty and damages must be corrected on appeal.
Reckless Assault or Intent to Kill: Distinguishing Homicide from Tumultuous Affray
The Supreme Court clarifies when a mauling that causes death is Homicide, not Death Caused in a Tumultuous Affray, and explains intent-to-kill rules.
Frustrated Homicide: Intent to Kill and Damages in Roque v. People
The Supreme Court clarifies intent to kill in frustrated homicide and awards temperate damages when receipts are missing.
Intent to Kill: Distinguishing Attempted Murder From Physical Injuries in Philippine Law
The Supreme Court explains how intent to kill separates attempted murder from physical injuries, and what evidence proves it.
Intent to Kill: What Separates Frustrated Homicide from Serious Physical Injuries
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies how intent to kill distinguishes frustrated homicide from serious physical injuries, with practical guidance on evidence.
Understanding Frustrated Homicide: Intent to Kill and Penalties in Philippine Law
The Supreme Court clarifies intent to kill in frustrated homicide and corrects penalty and damages awards in De Guzman v. People.
Intent to Kill: Assessing the Elements of Frustrated Homicide in Philippine Law
How Philippine courts determine intent to kill in frustrated homicide cases, explained through a Supreme Court ruling on a scythe attack.
Self-Defense and Intent to Kill: The Boundaries of Justification in Philippine Law
The Supreme Court clarifies when self-defense fails and intent to kill prevails in frustrated homicide cases under Philippine law.
Conspiracy and Intent in Attempted Homicide: Establishing Criminal Collaboration
The Supreme Court clarifies how conspiracy and intent to kill are proven in attempted homicide cases, using the Cabildo ruling.
Mistaken Identity or Intent to Kill: The Boundaries of Attempted Murder and Physical Injuries
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies when a shooting is attempted murder versus less serious physical injuries, and how positive identification defeats alibi.
When Circumstantial Evidence Leads to Conviction: Understanding Parricide in Philippine Law
The Supreme Court explains how circumstantial evidence can prove parricide and intent to kill in People v. Castillo.
Intent to Kill: Understanding the Nuances of Murder in Philippine Law
The Supreme Court explains how intent to kill and treachery are established in murder cases, using a fatal explosive bottle attack as the example.
Intent to Kill vs Intent to Rob: Distinguishing Murder From Robbery With Homicide in Philippine Law
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies when a killing is murder, not robbery with homicide, based on the accused's intent.
Intent to Kill: How Philippine Courts Determine Attempted and Frustrated Homicide
Learn how Philippine courts distinguish attempted from frustrated homicide through intent to kill, based on a 2006 Supreme Court ruling.
Intent to Kill, Conspiracy, and Premeditation in Philippine Murder Cases
The Supreme Court explains how intent to kill, conspiracy, and evident premeditation are proven in murder cases, using a 2004 Bacolod double-attack case.