MA. VIDIA B.

LARGO

LEGAL COUNSELING

MIDTERM EXAMINATION

18 NOVEMBER 2023

1. Any person who is admitted as a member of the bar, admitted in accordance with the
provisions of this rule and any person who is in good and regular standing is entitled to
practice law. According to the rule, the initial requirements are every applicant for
admission as a member of the bar must be a good citizen of the Philippines, at least
twenty-one years old, with good moral character and resident of the Philippines and
must produce before an evidence of good moral character and that no charges against
him, involving moral turpitude, have been filed or are pending in any court in the
Philippines. Futhermore, in continuing legal education, the requirement is that a lawyer
must be a member of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) to ensure that
throughout his/her career that he/she keep abreast with law and jurisprudence,
maintain the ethics of the profession and enhance the standards of the practice of law.

2. The members of the Bar are exempt from the MCLE requirement are the
President and the Vice President of the Philippines, and the Secretaries and
Undersecretaries of Executives Departments, the Senators and Members of the House
of Representatives, the Chief Justice and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court,
incumbent and retired members of the judiciary, incumbent members of the Judicial and
Bar Council and incumbent court lawyers covered by the Philippine Judicial Academy
program of continuing judicial education, the Chief State Counsel, Chief State
Prosecutor and Assistant Secretaries of the Department of Justice, the Solicitor General
and the Assistant Solicitor General, the Government Corporate Counsel, Deputy and
Assistant Government Corporate Counsel, the Chairmen and Members of the
Constitutional Commissions, the Ombudsman, the Overall Deputy Ombudsman, the
Deputy Ombudsmen and the Special Prosecutor of the Office of the Ombudsman,
heads of government agencies exercising quasi-judicial functions, incumbent deans, bar
reviews and professors of law who have teaching experience for at least 10 years
accredited law schools, the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor and members of the Corps of
Professors and Professorial Lectures of the Philippine Judicial Academy and the
Governors and Mayors.

Futhermore, those who are not in law practice, private or public. Those who have
retired from law practice with the approval of the IBP Board of Governors are also
exempted.
3. I, (state the name), do solemnly swear (affirm) that I accept the honor, privilege,
duty, and responsibility of practicing law in the Philippines as an Officer of the Court in
the interest of our people. I declare fealty to the Constitution of the Republic of
Philippines. In doing so, I shall work towards promoting the rule of law and a regime of
truth, justice, freedom, love, equality, and peace. I shall conscientiously and
courageously work for justice, as well as safeguard the rights and meaningful freedoms
of all persons, identities and communities. I shall ensure greater and equitable access
to justice. I shall do no falsehood nor shall I pervert the law to unjustly favor nor
prejudice anyone. I shall faithfully discharge these duties and responsibilities to the best
of my ability, with integrity, and utmost civility. I impose all these upon myself without
mental reservation nor purpose of evasion. So help me, God.

By taking the Lawyer's Oath, a lawyer becomes a guardian of the law and an
administrator of justice. The lawyer shall observe the highest degree of morality, adhere
to rigid standards of mental fitness and faithfully comply with the rules of the legal
profession. Failure to honor this covenant makes the lawyer unfit to continue in the
practice of law and accountable to society, the courts, the legal profession and the
client.

4. According to the rule, attorneys or persons reasonably believed by the client to

be licensed to engage in the practice of law cannot, without clients' consent, testify or be
examined as to any communication made by the client to them or as to their advice
given on such a communication in the course of, or with a view to, professional
employment; nor can an attorney's secretary, stenographer or clerk or other persons
assisting the attorney testify or be examined, without the consent of the client and the
attorney, concerning any fact the knowledge of which has been acquired in such
capacity. The Code requires a lawyer to preserve the confidence and secrets of their
client even after the attorney-client relationship is terminated.

It further provides that a lawyer shall not reveal a client's confidences or secrets
except if the services or advice of the lawyer were sought or obtained to enable or aid
anyone to commit or plan to commit what the client knew or reasonably should have
known to be a crime or fraud. As to a communication relevant to an issue between
parties who claim through the same deceased client, regardless of whether the claims
are by testate or intestate or by inter vivos transaction. As to a communication relevant
to an issue of breach of duty by the lawyer to their client or by the client to their lawyer.
As to a communication relevant to an issue concerning an attested document to which
the lawyer is an attesting witness. As to a communication relevant to a matter of
common interest between two or more clients if the communication was made by any of
them to a lawyer retained or consulted in common, when offered in an action between
any of the clients, unless they have expressly agreed upon.
 In order for a communication or information to fall under the coverage of
attorney-client privilege, the following requisites must be present. First, there must be an
attorney-client relationship. Second, there must be communication between the client
and the attorney. Third, communication must have been made in the course of or with a
view to professional employment

5. No, a client cannot refuse to pay the full amount of attorney’s fees as stipulated
in the contract. According to the rule, an attorney bases fees on such factors as the
degree of difficulty of a particular legal task, the amount of time involved, the
experience, and skill of the attorney in the particular area of law and the attorney's cost
of doing business. The cost of doing business, referred to as overhead, usually includes
rent, equipment, salaries, maintenance of a library, and costs associated with
maintaining the lawyer's level of professional skills and education. A client should
always discuss the prospective charges at the first meeting with the attorney. At the
initial meeting, the attorney and the client should discuss the time anticipated to resolve
the case, the difficulties likely to be encountered, and the complexity of the legal issues
in the particular case. An early agreement concerning fees will prevent surprises and
misunderstandings for both the client and the attorney. A client should be prepared to
decide how much money he or she can afford to invest in the resolution of the problem.
The attorney/client relationship involves a mutual commitment. Both parties have a
need from the outset to have a full and complete understanding of the commitment.

6. Yes, in here, there is a violation of the lawyer’s oath. Under the rule, a client will be
truthful and cooperative with Attorney, keep Attorney reasonably informed of
developments and of Client's address, telephone numbers and whereabouts and timely
make any payments required by this agreement.

7. a. No, Atty X reason is not valid. According to the rule, if your notice of appeal is late,
your appeal will be dismissed. The rulings on motions to extend the time to file a notice
of appeal are based on the actual facts. Some of the reasons that have been held to be
acceptable reasons for filing a late notice of appeal include miscalculating the
deadlines, clerical error. Futhermore, the requirement of timely filing a notice of appeal
is a jurisdictional requirement. This is a different and distinct deadline than a clerk's
deadline to file the records or your deadline to file a brief. In this case, Atty X is working
wit the XYZ Law Office and he can ask the help of his co-lawyers therefore, the
deadline can be extended for only very specific reasons.
b. No, my answer will be different.

8. This rule shall cover the limited practice of law by students certified herein. The
limited practice of law covers appearances, drafting and submission of pleadings and
documents before trial and appellate courts and quasi-judicial and administrative
bodies, assistance in mediation and other alternative modes of dispute resolution, legal
counselling and advice, and such other activities that may be covered by the Clinical
Legal Education Program of the law school as herein provided. Furthermore, no law
student shall be permitted to engage in any of the activities under the Clinical Legal
Education Program of a law school unless the law student has applied for and secured
the Level 1 certification, for law students who have successfully completed their first-
year law courses and or Level 2 ce1iification, for law students currently enrolled for the
second semester of their third-year law courses: Provided however, where a student
fails to complete all their third-year law courses, the Level 2 certification shall be
deemed automatically revoked. The certification issued shall be valid until the student
has completed the required number of courses in the clinical legal education program to
complete the law degree, unless sooner revoked for grounds stated herein.