UST Law Review

CHIEF JUSTICE ROBERTO CONCEPCION:
THOMASIAN AND VANGUARD OF THE RULE OF LAW
By: Angelo M. Tapales

Abstract

In commemoration of the centenary of a great Thomasian, UST Law Review featured the late
Chief Justice Roberto Concepcion and his invaluable contribution to the legal profession and judicial system of the country.

The article starts out with how Chief Justice Concepcion developed from being a law student,
who graduated summa cum laude, to eventually being a Chief Justice. He initiated reforms in the judiciary and penned decisions which altered the legal plateau of the Philippines, like Stonehill v. Diokno, Tanada v. Cuenco, Lansang v. Garcia, and the Javellana Case. In all these landmark cases, he emphasized the rule of law, which he characterized as “the only acceptable touchstone by which a judge may test and weigh the options to him in a given case.” All other considerations, according to him, perform secondary role.

The article ended with a note paying tribute to the immortalized influence of Chief Justice
Concepcion and his contributions—how they will continue to provide guidance and inspiration to the legal profession, how his ideas such as the Rule of Law, administration of justice, and landmark decisions will reverberate throughout the years, and how his incorruptibility and punctiliousness will be the benchmark for future great servants of the Filipino people.