The Supreme Court (SC) approved on Tuesday the oath-taking ceremony of the 2019 Bar examination passers this month through online video conference.

In a statement, the High Court said the proceedings to be held on June 25 will be linked to a government television network for broadcast.

After the oath-taking, the Bar passers would sign their names in the roll of attorneys to be considered lawyers.

The Court noted that the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic made it impossible to hold the oath-taking ceremony in the traditional way, as it had to take into consideration the existing government policies on public health, particularly the prohibition on mass gatherings.

The SC said that the online oath-taking is only for the 2019 Bar passers.

The resolution cited Article VIII, Section 5 (5) of the Constitution which is the rule-making power of the SC concerning the admission to the practice of law as its basis.

The Court authorized the Bar Confidant, under the guidance of the 2019 Bar chairperson, Senior Associate Justice Estela Perlas-Bernabe, to perform all necessary acts, under existing rules, regulations, and resources, to carry out the oath-taking as stated in the resolution.

A total of 2,103 examinees or 27.36 percent of the 7,685 takers passed the examinations.

Last year, a total of 1,800 or 22.07 percent out of the 8,158 examinees passed the 2018 Bar Examinations. This is lower than the 25.5 percent or equivalent to 1,724 out of 6,748 examinees who passed the 2017 Bar Examinations.

The Bar exams, held annually every November, cover eight subjects: Political Law, Civil Law, Taxation, Labor Law, Criminal Law, Remedial Law, Mercantile Law and Legal and Judicial Ethics. (PNA)