Civil law prof appointed as Supreme Court justice

by Ian Patrick Laqui

Justice Japar Dimaampao (left) takes his oath as the 191st Associate Justice of the Supreme Court before Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo (right). Photo from Philippine Supreme Court Public Information Office.

A civil law professor on Tuesday, September 14 was appointed as associate justice of the Supreme Court.

Justice Japar Dimaampao, 57, will serve the High Court for 13 years, taking the associate justice post vacated by Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo.

Dimaampao served for four years as a regional trial court judge in Mandaluyong and became a Court of Appeals justice at the age of 40.

Dimaampao is the second Muslim justice of the Supreme Court, after retired justice Abdulwahid Bidin who was appointed in 1987. He is also the first Magistrate from the Bangsamoro region and is known as a strong advocate for the enrichment of the Sharia law.

Dimaampao teaches Taxation, Mercantile Law, and Commercial Law Review at the UST Faculty of Civil Law.