All 5 chief justice candidates make it to JBC shortlist

JBC. The Judicial and Bar Council commences the public panel interviews for the position of chief justice of the Republic of the Philippines, in view of the compulsory retirement of Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo on November 6, 2026.

Supreme Court of the Philippines

Marcos will pick his chief justice from the list that includes Leonen, Caguioa, Zalameda, Dimaampao, and Marquez

AT A GLANCE

• All five Supreme Court associate justices have made it to the Judicial and Bar Council's shortlist for the position of chief justice in the Philippines.
• President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will appoint the next chief justice from this shortlist, with a deadline to fill the vacancy by February 2027.
• Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen will serve as acting chief justice until the appointment is made, and the new chief justice will be Marcos' second or third appointee to the Supreme Court.

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MANILA, Philippines – All five Supreme Court (SC) associate justices aspiring to become the country’s next chief justice have made it to the Judicial and Bar Council’s (JBC) shortlist, SC spokesperson Camille Sue Mae Ting confirmed to Rappler on Thursday, October 29.

Multiple sources also confirmed to Rappler the said information.

This means that the following are eligible to be chosen as the country’s 28th chief justice and successor of Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo who is retiring on November 6:

• Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen
• Associate Justice Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa
• Associate Justice Rodil Zalameda
• Associate Justice Japar Dimaampao
• Associate Justice Jose Midas Marquez

The judiciary is a co-equal and independent branch of the government but under the rules, it’s the President who appoints people to the judiciary. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will pick his appointee from this shortlist provided by the JBC.

Under Article VIII, Sections 4 and 9 of the 1987 Constitution, the SC vacancy must be filled by Marcos within 90 days. So, he has until February 2027 to pick the next chief magistrate.

Leonen will serve as acting chief justice once Gesmundo retires until the President names his appointee.

After screening applicants, the JBC held the public interviews for the five qualified candidates on October 22 and 26. After this, it held deliberations and determined the shortlist.

The next chief justice would be Marcos’ second or third appointee to the SC, which is currently dominated by Duterte appointees. Marcos’ other pending appointment is the replacement for Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier, who retires on November 16. Either appointment could come first.

Once these appointments are made, there will now be three Marcos appointees to the High Court. Only Leonen and Caguioa were appointed by former president Benigno Aquino III.

Read the summary of the interviews of the those shortlisted below:

• ‘Justice is hope’: Here are Leonen’s 9 promises as aspiring chief justice
• Stewardship not leadership: Chief justice aspirant Caguioa’s plans for the judiciary
• Zalameda’s promises as chief justice bet: Solve case delays, more benefits for court staff
• Dimaampao vies to be PH’s first Muslim chief justice, vows a ‘more human judiciary’
• Marquez’s plan as chief justice bet: No more overburdened courts by 2032