In R.A. No. 9417 (2007), the Philippine Congress took concrete steps to strengthen the capability and increase the morale of the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), the over-all law office of the Government. The OSG has produced brilliant, respected and patriotic Filipino justices, political leaders, and diplomats. For legal research purposes of the visitors of this blog, the salient provisions thereof are as follows:
1. There are now at least thirty (30) legal divisions in the Office of the Solicitor General, with a corresponding increase in the general and administrative support personnel and provision for ample office space. Each division, permanently headed by an Assistant Solicitor General, consists of ten (10) lawyers and such other personnel as may be necessary for the office to effectively carry out its functions. In fine, the OSG has available positions for 300 lawyers all in all.
2. The administrative structure of the Office of the Solicitor General has been reorganized into the Financial Management Service, Docket and Case Management Services, and the Human Resources Management Service. Each of these shall be composed of the necessary divisions and sections.
3. The Solicitor General possesses a cabinet rank and the same qualifications for appointment, rank, prerogatives, salaries, allowances, benefits and privileges as the Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeals; an Assistant Solicitor General, those of an Associate Justice of the Court of Appeals.
4. A Senior State Solicitor possesses the equivalent rank of a Regional Trial Court Judge. A State Solicitor possesses the equivalent rank of Metropolitan Trial Court Judge and Municipal Trial Court in Cities Judge/
5. The salary grades in the OSG range from Grade 18 to Grade 31.
6. The positions and salaries of non-legal personnel in the Office of the Solicitor General have been raised to the level of their counterparts in the Court of Appeals.
7. The employees of the OSG are provided the following benefits:
(a) Health care services through a health maintenance organization (HMO). Expenses for the mandatory annual executive check-up of the Solicitor General, the Assistant Solicitors General, and Service Heads, shall be for the account of the office;
(b) All employees are covered by accident insurance policies procured by the office at its own expense during travels while in the performance of their official duties and functions;
(c) Without prejudice to efficiency in the service, scholarships to deserving employees on official time and at the expense of the Office of the Solicitor General to enhance their academic growth and upgrade their knowledge and skills. Scholars under this provision are selected on the basis of competitive examination; and
(d) A provident fund which shall consist of contributions made both by the Office of the Solicitor General and by its lawyers and employees to a common fund for the payment of benefits to such lawyers or employees or their heirs.
8. Fees for relevant seminars, as well as professional membership fees for lawyers, registration fees, and related miscellaneous expenses incurred in completing the mandatory continuing legal education (MCLE) course are borne by the office. Professional membership, registration fees, including those for mandatory continuing professional education (CPE), and related miscellaneous expenses of other employees holding positions for which a professional license is required by the office are borne by the Office of the Solicitor General.
9. Employees are provided with contracted transportation services until such time that the office can procure additional motor vehicles for this purpose.
10. Consistent with the provisions of Executive Order No. 292, otherwise known as the Revised Administrative Code of 1987, the legal staff of the Office of the Solicitor General are allowed to receive honoraria and allowances from client departments, agencies, and instrumentalities of the Government.
11. All official mail matters and telegrams of the Office of the Solicitor General addressed for delivery within the Philippines shall be received, transmitted, and delivered free of charge: Provided, That such mail matters when addressed to private persons or nongovernmental offices shall not exceed one hundred and twenty (120) grams.
12. The Solicitor General, Assistant Solicitors General, Senior State Solicitors, State Solicitors I and 11, and Associate Solicitors I to 111 are granted special allowances in amounts to be determined by the Secretary of the Department of Budget and Management and the Solicitor General. The grant of special allowances is implemented uniformly in such sums and amounts and up to the extent only that can be supported by the funding sources. Provided, That the said special allowance shall not exceed One hundred percent (100%) of the basic salary of solicitors as provided in Republic Act No. 6758, otherwise known as the Salary Standardization Law.
13. The funds required for the implementation of this Act, including those for health care services, insurance premiums, professional, educational, registration fees, contracted transportation benefits, and other benefits above, shall be taken from:
(i) five percent (5%) of monetary awards given by the Courts to client departments, agencies and instrumentalities of the Government, including those under court-approved compromise agreements;
(ii) fifty percent (50%) of fees collected by the Special Committee on Naturalization; and
(iii) all other income, fees and revenues earned and collected by the Office of the Solicitor General.
The Office of the Solicitor General is authorized to charge deputation, certification and other similar fees in the cases that it handles.
The amounts collected pursuant to this section constitute a trust fund in the name of the Office of the Solicitor General to be managed and used by the Solicitor General to carry out the provisions of the Act.
14. The Act repealed or amended accordingly the pertinent provisions of the following statutes: Executive Order No. 292, the Revised Administrative Code of
1987, as amended, Republic Act No. 9139, Executive Order No. 460 dated December 3, 1997, Executive Order No. 482 dated May 7, 1998, Administrative Order No. 117 dated February 17, 1994, and all laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations or parts thereof which are contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or amended accordingly.
