PAO chief asks Supreme Court to amend Canon III

By Rio N. Araja

PUBLIC Attorney’s Office chief Persida Acosta is appealing to the Supreme Court to remove a provision in the newly approved New Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability or Canon III due to conflict of interest.

Along with eight other senior officials, Acosta, in a 22-page letter, “humbly and respectfully” urged

Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo to omit Section 22, Canon III of the New Code stating that “the current client’s written informed consent to the conflict-of-interest representation is no longer necessary.”

PAO maintained that there is conflict of interest when a public defender would represent the accused and another public defender on behalf of the complainant in one and the same case.

“With due respect and without any intention of challenging the authority and prerogatives of this Honorable Court in setting standards of conduct for all members of the legal profession, but only for the purpose of ensuring constitutional guarantees, we most humbly submit that the subject provision in the New Code violates the 1987 Constitution, viz: equal protection of the law,” the April 20 letter read.