The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) has officially submitted its list of nominees to Malacañang to fill two key vacancies in the judiciary: one in the Sandiganbayan and another in the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA).
Following a series of en banc deliberations, the council finalized a list of 24 candidates vying for the CTA associate justice post. The seat was left vacant after the retirement of Associate Justice Catherine Manahan in January.
The aspirants for the tax court include:
- Marion Agaceta, Salex Alibogha, Bernard Bernal, Maria Rosario Bernardo, Romeo Buenaventura, Debbie Jean Dijamco, Anthony Fama, Vicky Fernandez, Allan Gepty, Josephine Gomez, Marie Grace Ibay, Catherine Monsod, Ethel Gutay, Jose Carlito Montenegro, Lily Ann Paden, Jose Marie Quimboy, Jean Francois Rivera III, Romeo Tagra, Teofilo Tambago, Paolo Teston, Clifford Torralba, Nenita Tuazon, Myla Olan, and Virginia Viray.
Simultaneously, the JBC released a separate shortlist of 23 nominees for the Sandiganbayan. This vacancy was created following the appointment of Associate Justice Ma. Theresa Dolores C. Gomez-Estoesta as Court Administrator in September 2025.
The nominees for the anti-graft court are:
- Jorge John Aganan, Janice Udarbe, Cresencio Aspiras Jr., Julia Abad, Mariam Bien, Cecilyn Villavert, Redentor Cardenas, Mila Perpetua Lauigan, Ronald Chua, Ira Fritzie Rojo, Lyn Chua Cacha, Madonna Echiverri, Burt Estrada, Dorcas Perez, Michael Francisco, Maria Luisa Lesle Betic, Rafael Hipolito, Rosalia Bunagan, Rosario Elena Cuevas, Melissa Rodriguez, Ma. Christina Lim, Charito Sawali, and Virgilio Macaraig.
Under the law, the President is tasked with selecting the final appointees from the pool of candidates vetted and submitted by the JBC.