Case Digest (A.M. No. 16-12-03-CA, IPI No. 17-248-CA-J)
Facts:
Re: Letter of Lucena Ofendoreyes alleging illicit activities of a certain Atty. Cajayon involving cases in the Court of Appeals, Cagayan De Oro City; Re: Letter-Complaint of Sylvia Adante charging Hon. Jane Aurora C. Lantion, A.M. No. 16-12-03-CA; IPI No. 17-248-CA-J, June 06, 2017, the Supreme Court En Banc, Perlas-Bernabe, J., writing for the Court.The consolidated administrative matters arose from two single-page letters sent to the Office of the Ombudsman. Complainant Sylvia Adante submitted a letter (dated October 15, 2016) alleging that she was "intimated to [her]" that Atty. Dorothy Cajayon of Zamboanga City was in cahoots with Associate Justice Jane Aurora C. Lantion of the Court of Appeals, Cagayan de Oro (CA‑CDO), to sell favorable decisions to the highest bidder. Complainant Lucena Ofendoreyes filed a separate letter (dated October 17, 2016) likewise requesting investigation and action to stop the purported partnership between Atty. Cajayon and Justice Lantion in selling decisions.
The Ombudsman referred Adante’s letter to the Supreme Court (docketed IPI No. 17-248-CA-J) on November 22, 2016, and Ofendoreyes’s letter (docketed A.M. No. 16-12-03-CA) on November 23, 2016. By Resolution dated January 10, 2017, the Supreme Court referred the matters to the Office of the Court Administrator (OCA) to study possible consolidation. In a Memorandum dated February 14, 2017, the OCA recommended consolidation (the Court granted consolidation by Minute Resolution dated March 7, 2017) but observed that both letters were deficient: they were unverified and lacked affidavits or documentary support; the allegations rested on hearsay and the writers had no personal knowledge of the acts complained of.
The central question before the...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Should Atty. Dorothy Cajayon and Associate Justice Jane Aurora C. Lantion be held administratively liable based on the letter-complaints filed by Sylvia Adante and Lucena Ofendo...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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