PH Supreme Court Strategic Plan Extolled by Italian High Council of the Judiciary, International Development Law Organization

Philippine Ambassador and Permanent Representative Neal Imperial (fourth from left) joins Associate Justice Henri Jean Paul Inting (middle) in a meeting between the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the Philippines and the Senior Leadership Team of the International Development Law Organization (IDLO) held at the IDLO Headquarters in Rome on 19 February 2024. Also in photo (from left to right: Ms. Daniela Di Lorenzo, Regional Program Manager-Asia; Mr. Giampaolo Carmelo Rizzo Alvarado, Chief of Partnerships and Governance; Ms. Karen Johnson, General Counsel; Mr. Franco Sanchez-Hidalgo, Director of Programmes; Associate Justice Jhosep Y. Lopez; Associate Justice Antonio T. Kho, Jr.; and Associate Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh. (Rome PE photo)

ROME 27 February 2024 – Four Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the Philippines were in Rome on 19 February 2024 to attend meetings with the high officials of the International Development Law Organization (IDLO), the only global intergovernmental organization exclusively devoted  to promoting the rule of law to advance peace and sustainable development. 

Accompanied by Permanent Representative to IDLO, Philippine Ambassador Neal Imperial, Associate Justices Henri John Paul Inting, Antonio Kho, Jhosep Lopez, and Maria Filomena Singh attended the meeting at the IDLO Headquarters. IDLO was represented by a delegation led by Mr. Franco Sanchez-Hidalgo, Director of Programmes. 

The Associate Justices of the Supreme Court presented the Supreme Court of the Philippines’ Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovation 2022-2027 that was conceptualized, initiated, launched and implemented under the leadership of Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo. The Strategic Plan is a policy document that aims to establish new frameworks and adopt new approaches, but at the same time, build on and repurpose existing ones, to achieve the longtime aspiration of delivering responsive and real-time justice. It is a plan dedicated to promoting the best interest of litigants, the Bench, the Bar, court officials and personnel, and all stakeholders in the justice system. It hopes to achieve three main outcomes: Efficiency in its operations, Innovation and leveraging advanced technologies to speed up the delivery of services, and improving Access to Justice. In response, IDLO extolled the development of the Strategic Plan, and pledged support for it through the provision of capacity-building training for prosecutors and judges in the Philippines in various areas such as environmental law, climate law and climate justice. The Philippines is a founding member of the IDLO since 1989.

The Supreme Court Justices also engaged in a dialogue with their counterparts in the Supreme Court of Cassation of Italy, and its High Council of the Judiciary or Consiglio Superiore della Magistratura. At the Supreme Court of Cassation of Italy, they were welcomed by its First President Dottoressa Margherita Cassano. At the High Council, they were met by its high officials led by Prof. Michele Papa. 

In separate meetings, the Justices of the Philippine Supreme Court shared with Italy’s Supreme Court of Cassation, as well as the High Council, the characteristics of the Philippine judicial system, as well as the challenges it is facing in the administration of justice, as well as the the ongoing reforms it seeks to implement guided by its Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations. In response, the Supreme Court of Cassation and the High Council noted the importance of the exchanges, and praised the Strategic Plan and its programs and projects it seeks to implement with the end goal of providing timely, fair, transparent, accountable, equal, and inclusive justice for all.  END. 

The Philippine delegation, headed by Associate Justice Henri Jean Paul B. Inting, met with Prof. Michele Papa, President of the International Relations Committee of the Consiglio Superiore della Magistratura (High Council of the Judiciary or HCJ), on 19 February 2024, to discuss the nature, jurisdiction, and functions of the HCJ, as well as the judicial system of Italy and of the Philippines. In photo (from left to right): Justice Antonio T. Kho, Jr.; Ms. Zsuzsa Mendola, Magistrate in charge of the 9th Committee; Justice Jhosep Y. Lopez; Prof. Michele Papa, President of the International Relations Committee of the HCJ; Justice Henri Jean Paul B. Inting; and Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh. (Rome PE photo)

The Philippine delegation, headed by Associate Justice Henri Jean Paul B. Inting, met with First President of the Supreme Court of Cassation Margherita Cassano on 19 February 2024, for a brief exchange of information on the similarities and differences between the Supreme Courts of the Philippines and Italy. In the photo are Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh; Justice Jhosep Y. Lopez; First President of the Supreme Court of Cassation Margherita Cassano; Justice Henri Jean Paul B. Inting;  Justice Antonio T. Kho, Jr.; and other justices of the Supreme Court of Cassation of Italy. (Rome PE photo)

For more information, visit https://www.romepe.dfa.gov.ph,  https://www.facebook.com/PHinItaly/ or https://twitter.com/PHinItaly.