Rodil Zalameda officially took his oath of office as the country’s 28th Chief Justice on Friday, November 6, succeeding retired Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo.
Senior Associate Justice Marvic M.V.F. Leonen administered the oath at the Supreme Court’s session hall, with all incumbent members of the high tribunal in attendance. Following the ceremony, Chief Justice Zalameda briefly left the session hall and returned alongside Gesmundo, where attendees sang a birthday song for the outgoing chief magistrate.
Zalameda’s appointment leaves a vacancy for an associate justice on the 15-member bench. It remains unconfirmed whether the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) will immediately open applications for the newly vacated post.
An additional vacancy will open on November 16 due to the compulsory retirement of Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70.
The JBC has already interviewed aspirants for Lazaro-Javier’s seat and submitted a shortlist of 11 nominees to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who has 90 days to appoint a replacement under the Constitution.
The JBC shortlist includes:
- Court of Appeals (CA) Associate Justice Ramon M. Bato Jr.
- Solicitor General Darlene Marie Berberabe
- Commission on Audit Chairperson Gamaliel Cordoba
- CA Associate Justices Ramon Cruz, Maria Elisa Sempio Diy, and Myra Garcia-Fernandez
- CA Presiding Justice Fernanda Lampas Peralta
- Commission on Elections Commissioner Ernesto Maceda Jr.
- CA Associate Justices Ronaldo Roberto Martin and Walter Ong
- Court of Tax Appeals Associate Justice Maria Rowena San Pedro
The JBC handles the screening and nomination of appointments across the judiciary, the Office of the Ombudsman, and the Legal Education Board, with Chief Justice Zalameda serving as its ex-officio chairperson.