Leonen: We need to think if bar exam should be the 'be all, end all'

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Supreme Court (SC) Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen, a candidate for the position of chief justice, said Thursday that there is a need to review whether the Bar Examinations for aspiring lawyers should be the primary mode of who is qualified to practice law in the country.

"The cultural pressure that we put on the Bar Exam is too tremendous," he said.

"I think we need to rethink whether it should be the be all and end all of any law school. And I think our law school curriculum should follow whatever the admission process is," said Leonen, a former professor at the University of the Philippines (UP) College of Law.

Leonen made the remark during his interview by the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) for position of chief justice, which will be vacated by incumbent Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo.

"My question always is, for an architect to become an architect, why is it that they need to practice first architecture under the supervision of an architect for thousands of hours before they take the board exam?" he said.

"By the time they take the board exam, they are now so familiar with what is required in architecture that it is already easy," he added.

During his interview for position of chief justice, Leonen said the method of teaching in classrooms should be changed.

He said sometimes, the Socratic method does not create critical minds.

"Sometimes the Socratic method does not really work. The Socratic method is really inculcating the student to be subservient to a doctrine and not creating more critical minds. So that is one concept that I think we need to review," he said.

Leonen was interviewed by Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida, Senator Kiko Pangilinan, Batangas Representative Gerville Luistro, retired SC Associate Justice Jose Catral Mendoza, lawyer Nesauro Firme, retired Court of Tax Appeals Associate Justice Erlinda Piñera, and lawyer Jose Meija.

Gesmundo is set to compulsorily retire on November 6 at the age of 70. — VDV, GMA News