Question & AnswerQ&A (PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 1439)
The main purpose of Presidential Decree No. 1439 is to create additional branches of the Courts of First Instance and City Courts, and to establish new and additional Juvenile and Domestic Relations Courts in certain provinces and cities to handle the rising caseload due to population growth and to address juvenile and domestic relations problems efficiently.
In the First Judicial District, sixteen judges are commissioned: seven judges for the provinces of Cagayan and Batanes, five judges for Isabela, three judges for Nueva Vizcaya, and one judge for Quirino, each assigned to specific branches as enumerated in the decree.
In provinces and cities without Juvenile and Domestic Relations Courts, the Supreme Court may designate and authorize any branch of the Court of First Instance there to function as a Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.
The permanent station of the judges of the Sixth Judicial District shall be in the City of Manila.
Judges appointed to Juvenile and Domestic Relations Courts must possess the same qualifications and enjoy the same privileges and salary as judges of the Courts of First Instance.
Upon appointment of a judge to a newly created branch, all pending cases in the branches pertaining to one administrative area where trial has not commenced shall be equitably distributed among the branches as prescribed by the Supreme Court. Cases where trial has started remain with the original branch until final disposition.
An appropriation of P19,000,000 is authorized for Courts of First Instance, P2,000,000 for City Courts, and P3,000,000 for Juvenile and Domestic Relations Courts, with subsequent appropriations to be included in the Annual General Appropriations Decree.
PD No. 1439 creates 4 additional city court salas for Quezon City, increasing the total from 9 to 13.
Juvenile and Domestic Relations Courts in the Cities of Manila, Quezon, Caloocan, and Pasay have jurisdiction over all cases within the entire Metro Manila area, with specific territorial jurisdictions defined by the Supreme Court.
The existing Criminal, Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court of Dumaguete City is converted into a regular Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court with jurisdiction over specified provinces and cities, and the incumbent judge continues without a new appointment. Pending criminal cases not within the Juvenile and Domestic Relations court's jurisdiction are transferred to regular City Courts.