Judge Mel Berano-Robite: Making significant strides in the judiciary
JUDGE Meliza Joan Perez Berano-Robite, the presiding judge of the Municipal Trial Court in Cities Branch 2 in Iloilo City, proved that women lawyers could make significant strides in the Philippine judiciary through a commitment to justice, equality, and the rule of law.
Known f or her keen intellect, unwavering integrity, and deep understanding of the law, Judge Berano-Robite espouses for equal chance for lady lawyers to be appointed in the judiciary, believing that women l awyers are “equally smart and capable of presiding courts as their male counterparts.”
In celebration of Women’s Month, and the International Day of Women Judges on March 10, Panay News chatted with Judge Berano-Robite, known to many as Judge Mel, who shared her journey in work and in life that led to where she is now, and her thoughts on the male-dominated world of the judiciary.
Before her appointment to the judiciary in 2017, Judge Berano- Robite worked as court attorney IV of Justice Efren N. de la Cruz in the Sandiganbayan’s First Division in Quezon City. She also served as public attorney of the Iloilo City District Office I at the Public Attorney’s Office in Iloilo City.
J udge Berano- Robite graduated cum laude from the College of Law of Central Philippine University ( CPU) and passed the bar examinations in 2006. She finished her Master of Laws degree in 2017 at San Beda College.
She taught various political science subjects in the College of Arts and Sciences of CPU and after passing the bar, taught law subjects in the university’s College of Law as well as in the School of Law and Justice of Emilio Aguinaldo College in Dasmariñas City, Cavite.
In 2017, Judge BeranoRobite was appointed as presiding judge of the Municipal Trial Court in Cities, Branch 2 in Iloilo City.
In 2019, she was chosen by the city government as one of the Ten Outstanding Women in Iloilo City in the Judiciary/ Legal Services Category in the celebration of Women’s Month. She was designated as the acting presiding judge of the Municipal Trial Court ( MTC) in Oton, Iloilo in December 2020.
In February 2024, the Supreme Court in an en banc Resolution commended Judge Berano- Robite for being an exemplary judge, her court ( MTC Oton, Iloilo) having attained the top 10 highest clearance rates or highest number of disposed cases in 2022 for first-level courts in Region 6.
She recently participated in The Hague Academy of International Law’s Advanced Courses in the Philippines conducted at The Judicial Academy of the Philippines in Tagaytay City, which was in partnership with the Supreme Court of the Philippines and the Philippine Judicial Academy.
What inspired you to pursue a career in law and eventually become a judge?
I am a Political Science graduate, so taking up law after graduating from my Political Science studies was inevitable, although I did not dream of being a lawyer in my youth. I did not immediately take up law after graduating from college because my husband Brun and I went to Dubai and Bahrain after graduation to professionally sing folk, country, and love songs as Brun and Joan Duet in hotels. After going home, while singing at Marymart Food Court and Ocean City in Iloilo City, I realized that I could not directly help as many people as I wanted to if I just stayed on stage and sang for them. Because I wanted to be of meaningful public service as my way of serving the Lord, I thought of taking up law which I did, and passed the September 2006 bar exam after graduating from the College of Law of Central Philippine University in April 2006. Eventually, I rendered public service through Sandiganbayan as Justice Efren dela Cruz’s court attorney, later through the Public Attorney’s Office ( Iloilo City District Office I) as a public defender, and now as presiding judge of the Municipal Trial Court in Cities, Branch 2, Iloilo City and as acting presiding judge of the Municipal Trial Court, Oton, Iloilo.
What unique perspectives or skills do you think women bring to the judiciary?
Women possess motherly instincts, genuine care, and concern which make them more capable of connection with the public, especially in family court cases where female judges do very well in settling family disputes and in resolving family matters. This increases public perception of the image of the judiciary and accelerates the public’s trust in the judiciary in resolving their conflicts instead of taking the law into their own hands.
How do you balance the demands of being a judge with other aspects of your life?
I make that balance by trying to avoid stress through effective time management: eight hours of rest, eight hours of work, and eight hours for anything else every day, as much as I can follow this. I also remind myself to be grateful and see life as a half-filled glass instead of a halfempty glass because hey, t here will always be problems and no one can have it all. I surround myself with positiveminded friends who are visual reminders to me of God’s love for me, I listen to good music and watch good films, I try to keep fit, I read God’s promises in the Bible, and I do organic gardening and vermiculture. I review laws for easier work and to maintain my love for the law.
Have you faced any particular challenges as a woman in your legal career? How did you overcome them?
When I was a new judge, there was an elderly male lawyer who talked in a highhanded manner to me when he appeared in my court during a preliminary conference without the required Special Power of Attorney from his absent clients in an ejectment case which eventually resulted in the dismissal of the case. With as much patience as I could muster, I reminded him that as an officer of the court, he is expected to display courtesy in court and that if he cannot do so simply because I was a woman and a new and relatively young judge, he should at least respect my position as a judge. He apologized before I declared him in contempt of court.
How do you approach cases involving genderrelated issues, such as discrimination or domestic violence?
Mine is not a family court having j urisdiction over family court cases usually laced with domestic violence or discrimination. But I was short-listed to a family court and two other branches of the Regional Trial Court of general jurisdiction where, if appointed, I would encourage and emphasize the need to
properly respect humanity in general and gender and gender preferences in particular, knowing this to be a sensitive issue, because where there is respect for humanity and gender, it is easier to resolve issues and differences which the court as a peacemaker is tasked to do under its general duty of administration of justice. Justice is not only obtained in convicting the guilty or acquitting the innocent in criminal cases or in granting rightful claims or denying false ones in civil cases, but also, in appropriate cases, helping the parties resolve their conflicts and arrive at settlements through court-assisted mediation which is cost-cutting and a win-win solution of the case between the parties long before the court decides the merits of the case.
Can you share a particularly memorable or impactful case that you’ve presided over?
For me, each case that I can help settle between the parties, especially between f amily members and neighbors, is memorable and impactful due to the unique personalities and circumstances involved in each case, and due to the peace that is instantly generated in the family and in the neighborhood, which is a win-win situation for all, thereby also doing away with long trials and increased hostilities between parties. I remind them that more than anything, relationships are important because lasting peace between those who belong to the same family or community is priceless, and peace between them is what they can give the generations to come to the family and neighborhood after they are long gone. So many heartaches and lives are saved by good, early, and effective mediation between the parties, and the court could be very instrumental in making this happen. Nothing beats the joy of seeing siblings and neighbors in the courtroom shake hands, hugging each, other saying sorry to each other, forgiving each other, and restoring broken relations after years of resentment. At the MTC level and especially in rural areas like that where MTC Oton, Iloilo is situated, parties are often relatives and neighbors, so cases filed in court often end in settlements and compromises with effective mediation in court. With an improved skill in courtassisted mediation, cases are promptly disposed of. The Supreme Court recently gave utmost commendation to this judge and MTC Oton for being among the top 10 first-level courts in Region 6 for having the highest clearance rates (highest number of disposed cases for 2022), giving due recognition to the judges of these Top 10 courts for “exemplifying exceptional commitment in the pursuit of efficient case disposition even amid the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, their unwavering dedication standing as a beacon of inspiration for all judges to emulate.”
How do you stay updated with legal developments and maintain your expertise in the field?
Like the rest of the judges (and justices and court attorneys), I attend webinars ( online) and seminars ( face- to- face) on the latest laws, rules and circulars applicable to the cases we handle, conducted by the Supreme Court under the excellent leadership of Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo through the Office of the Court Administrator, the very able and active Hon. Raul B. Villanueva, constantly keeping us abreast with laws and supplying us with materials containing updates on laws and cases. I also teach law to review and reinforce my legal knowledge and skills. Recently, I participated in The Hague Academy of International Law’s Advanced Courses i n the Philippines conducted at The Judicial Academy of the Philippines in Tagaytay City, which Academy was in partnership with the Supreme Court of the Philippines and the Philippine Judicial Academy. I specially studied Conflict Coaching and Mediation Training under Peacemaker Ministries and Peace Builders Ministry in Manila to improve my skills in conflict mediation.
How do you foster a sense of fairness and justice in your courtroom?
It is important to me that my court maintains its independence and impartiality and the public perception thereof, so I assure the parties that my decisions, as dictated by law and judicial ethics and above all, by God, are based on the facts and the evidence tending to prove such facts and that I will be fair and just in hearing and trying their cases. If circumstances exist that necessitate that I inhibit from hearing the case due to close personal relations with any of the parties or previous close professional relations with the counsels, I promptly divulge such relations to the parties and counsels without waiting for them to find out about it from other sources, and I voluntarily inhibit myself from further hearing the case unless the parties and counsels insist that despite the same, they still want me to hear the case because they believe that I will decide the case fairly despite such relations. However, there are cases in which I have to compulsorily inhibit myself from further hearing the case as provided under the rules. These are all to promote fairness and justice in my courtroom to the public.
In the male-dominated world of the judiciary, what advice would you give to young women aspiring to become judges or enter the legal profession?
I would tell them that women should not be an exception in the legal profession and the judiciary because God created both men and women equal and capable of learning new skills and leading society. In the research of UP Diliman’s Imelda B Deinla contained in her vlog entitled ‘Women Judges and the Rise and Fall of Philippine Democracy’ dated 11 November 2021[ 1], women in the judiciary comprise over half of the lower courts but are however under-represented in the upper courts. Since the government of Ferdinand Marcos Sr. from 1965-1986, there have only been 15 women justices appointed to the Supreme Court, with only two appointed during Marcos’ 20 years in office. Since democratization in 1986 and eventually under the first female president of the Philippines, Corazon C. Aquino, women judges have only comprised between two to four out of 15 justices in the Supreme Court, except for the five who were appointed during the term of the second female president, Gloria MacapagalArroyo (2001-2010). Presently, there are two female justices in the Supreme Court out of 15, demonstrating the persistence of formidable institutional barriers for women lawyers to gain equal representation in the highest court. It is still a male-dominated profession in a country where the ratio in 2021 of females to males is 100.79 to 100, or a female population of 49.80% to a male population of 50.20%; almost one is to one. Women judges should be given an equal chance to be appointed to the judiciary because they are equally smart and capable of presiding over courts as their male counterparts.
What reforms or changes would you like to see in the legal system to promote gender equality and diversity in the judiciary?
I hope to see more women lawyers get short-listed by the Judicial and Bar Council and appointed to the judiciary by the President, thereby reducing inequality that has contributed to women having less access to power, economic empowerment, lower social status, and generally limited opportunities than men. In the same research of Deinla contained in her vlog entitled “Women Judges and the Rise and Fall of Philippine Democracy” dated 11 November 2021[ 2], Filipino women have generally elevated their position in society through education and by asserting their rights for equal recognition and respect. Women lawyers have broken the glass ceiling by becoming partners in law firms, establishing their practices, and attaining senior executive roles in the public and private sectors. They continue to dominate bar examinations and many have received judicial excellence awards in performing their functions. Women lawyers do excel, and I have the same vision for women in the judiciary./