Chief Justice Peralta to retire early

Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta will retire a year ahead of his mandatory retirement which will be on 27 March next year.

Peralta notified Supreme Court (SC) justices during their en banc session Tuesday that he has “decided to retire optionally effective 27 March 2021, my birthday.” He provided no reason for advancing his retirement which initially was set for the same date of 2022.

Supreme Court spokesperson Brian Keith Hosaka confirmed the new retirement date, telling reporters: “The Chief Justice did not elaborate further but said that he will make a formal announcement in due time.”

Peralta was appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte as chief justice October last year, meaning he would have only served as top magistrate for one year and 5 months.

Even if Peralta had chosen to stay until his mandatory retirement on 27 March 2022, President Rodrigo Duterte would still get to appoint his replacement because there is no midnight appointments ban in the High Court.

This early retirement of Peralta gives the President a wide opening, or more time, to appoint a new chief justice — his fourth in the course of his presidency.

The President has opened a revolving door in the Supreme Court for chief justices and associate justices.

In Duterte’s term, three of his chief justices that include Peralta, have and will retire, and five of his appointed associate justices have also already bowed out of service.

The retirement of Associate Justice Priscilla Baltazar in November due to health reasons created a vacancy in the 15-person high bench and the retirement of Peralta would also open up another vacancy by March next year.

The spots would have started opening up only in 2022, beginning with Associate Justice Rosmari Carandang in January, Senior Associate Justice Estela Perlas- Bernabe in May, and Associate Justice Edgardo delos Santos on June 12 of that year.

In the hierarchy, Bernabe is the second most senior next to Peralta, followed by Bernabe’s fellow Aquino appointees, Associate Justices Marvic Leonen and Benjamin Caguioa, respectively.

Leonen is currently under threat of quo warranto from the Office of the Solicitor General over his Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth.

Associate Justice Alexander Gesmundo is the next most senior at number 5 as he will serve until 6 November 2026.

When Duterte ends his term in 2022 Leonen and Caguioa will be the only non-Duterte appointees in the High Court.

The most junior Justice Ricardo Rosario, appointed only in October, will serve until October 2028.