The Office of the Solicitor General has been renamed…
OFFICE OF THE SUPREME GODDESS! Haha! Just kidding. =)
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When I was in first year, I always wished that I would have my OJT at the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG). I really don’t know why but I just had an inkling that I would be able to expand whatever legal knowledge I have acquired from law school in said Office and apply whatever legal skills (legal writing, analysis, problem-solving) that I have obtained in the course of my studies. And so when the application for internship started last month, I only had one thing in mind–OSG. I should get in there by any means, lawful or otherwise. Just kidding.
I went there on a Friday (March 13) to pass my application with my good friend and co-bully at the Law Review, ate Charm. It’s a good thing that they interviewed us on the same day and didn’t ask us to come back the following week as it was our final exams week. We had to wait though for five hours.
When I got in the room where the interview was being conducted, the chairman of the panel, ASG Miranda, started firing me with questions before I had the chance to sit down. It was a grueling 45-minute interview. I think for the most part of it, I babbled nonsense. But the highlight of the interview was when I was asked to speak Tagalog. It was the most difficult thing that the panel asked me. ASG Miranda said:
“Tell us why you entered this room, why you are here and answer in Tagalog.”
FUDGE.
*while looking up the ceiling* “Nandito ako dahil gusto…. kong matuto… at….naniniwal ako na… matututunan ko ang mga bagay na kailangan kong…”
“MATUTUNAN? ‘Matuto’ is the only Filipino root word you know?” ASG Miranda interrupted.
I smiled and tried again but I ended up saying “matuto” the whole time so ASG Miranda cut me off and said, “We’re going to have a problem.”
For the next weeks, I waited for them to inform me of the results. I was told they would let us know on or before April 8. As that set date approached, I started to get the feeling that I wasn’t accepted so I applied at the Public Attorney’s Office. Ate Charm and I were immediately accepted after the interview and we just had to go back the following day to submit the letter from school, saying that we are eligible for the internship program.
Later that day, I received a text message from a friend that a UST student received a text from the OSG, informing her that she was accepted. I rushed to the computer to check my e-mail. Nada. I went to check my phone but there was not message or call from them. I then resigned myself to my fate…that I hadn’t been accepted.
Seconds later, I received a text message from a number not registered in my phonebook. And you guessed it right, it was from the OSG! YAY! =)
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Last Monday, we, the interns (from UST, UP, Ateneo, San Beda, FEU-La Salle, St. Louis, U. San Carlos and Arellano) had the orientation and were assigned to our respective divisions. I was assigned to ASG Gloria Victoria C. Yap-Taruc. She is very nice and received me with a warm welcome. I like the lawyers working there too. They’re young so it’s sort of easier to jive with them. And oh, my co-intern is very nice herself. So far, so good.
The first task assigned to me by ASG Taruc was to research on the rationale behind the rule that the decisions of the Ombudsman in the imposing disciplinary measures against erring public officials are immediately executory even pending appeal. It was to be used as an additional argument in a case handled by the division. I worked on it for about two days. I even had to go to the Office of the Ombudsman to obtain documents, circulars or opinion explaining the rationale of such rule. (I believe my trip to the OMB deserves a separate blog entry. Hello Ice Cream and Deneseee! It was nice to have lunch with you there! Hehe. Let’s have lunch again the next time I go there!) It didn’t help much though. I still had to research on relevant cases. It was only last Friday that I was able to accomplish the task and write the additional argument for that case. PHEW.
On Monday, I’m going to work on writing a Comment on a case. The task was assigned to me by one of the lawyers there. And God, the records of the case is about 9 inches thick! Good luck to me! =(
Although the workload is starting to get quite heavy and am already exhausted, I definitely am ENJOYING my OJT at the OSG. I’d rather be asked to do a lot of work than just be there in the office and do nothing. I want to keep on learning new things. I want to feel and be useful. I know, I’m such a weirdo.
Alrighty, I have to sign off for now. Goodmorninght, world. =)
The UST Law Review and Me Through the Years…
When my Political Law professor asked me to join the UST Law Review almost three years ago, I barely had any idea on what the organization was about. Nevertheless, I agreed to submit the requirements for application.
I asked some friends about the activities of the organization. I was told that they release an annual publication at the end of every school year. A newsletter, perhaps, I thought to myself.
It was July 2006. I submitted my resume and the application form, together with a sample of my work. (I remember it was a short story about a little girl, accompanied by ther mother, visiting her friend’s father in prison. She asked her mother what his crime was and she was told he was incarcerated for being a sidewalk vendor. She thought it was utter injustice for him to be jailed for trying to find ways to feed his family. She then asked her mother the best way she could help people in similar situation as her friend’s father. Her mother told her she could be a lawyer when she grows up. Before they left the jail, she promised her friend that she would be a lawyer when she grows up and help her father and others who are victims of injustice. I know, it’s a very sloppy story.) Few days later, we were informed of our interview schedule.
There were four of us from the first year applying. I was pretty nervous because it was a panel interview, which panel consisted of the editorial board. But I tried to stay as calm as possible and cling on to whatever confidence I had in myself.
I was finally called to go inside the room where the interview was being conducted. I greeted the panel and sat down when I was asked to.
They asked different kinds of questions. I remember they even asked me to sing and speak in Arabic. Haha.
I got out of the room just fine. We were told that the results would be posted in the ULR Bulletin Board. A week later, I checked and fortunately (and unfortunately for the organization), I got in along with the other three applicants. =)
The Editor-in-chief at that time was ate Michie (Atty. Mischelle R. Maulion). I find her very nice, personality- and work-wise. Though she held the top position, she was very approachable and mingled with the understudies (that’s us, the four new members). She would occassionally ask us how we were doing with our studies and Law Review assignments. She would also show sincere appreciation to our works and would continuously encourage us to do better. She really is my “idol” EIC. Hehe. =)
My first position in the Law Review was Liason Officer. For the next school year, the editorial board gave me the position of Associate Case Law Editor. I really enjoyed doing my job as such because…I love reading cases!!! Haha. NERD ALERT. But yeah, I did. I enjoyed reading the latest important jurisprudence, assigning them to the understudies for purposes of digesting them and making them report on them during the monthly meeting. (It was practically like the typical law school class recitation. Hehe.) For the following school year, I still worked as jurisprudence editor. After a few months, we had some problem with the organizational structure so the senior members had to create a new position for me–Articles and Jurisprudence Editor. Hehe. I still did the same job though.
I must say I really am happy to be part of the Law Review. Not only do I get to do the things I enjoy, like reading cases and writing on matters which I believe need to be addressed, it’s been my sanctuary from the depressing monotony of studying the law. It has allowed me to express my own view on certain legal matters, which is almost impossible in the classroom setup. In class, the professor would normally ask after a student recites the facts a case, “And what did the Supreme Court say?” In the Law Review, there’s a chance for the student-members to answer the question, “And what can you say about the Supreme Court’s ruling?” Indeed, the Law Review has served as an avenue for me to think freely, to express my thoughts without fearing that a professor might rebuke me.
Last Thursday (April 2, 2009), the Law Review officially launched the 53rd Edition and the website before students and some professors. In the course of the program, we showed this AVP to the audience on what the Law Review has achieved throughout its existence. I know it might sound stupid but I was so moved and felt so proud that I got all teary-eyed. I just felt so joyful and proud for being part of the Law Review family. =)
Thank you, UST Law Review for imparting with me the knowledge that I could not have obtained in class. Thank you for helping me keep my sanity amidst the rigorous demands of law school. And thank you for giving me the chance to find good people (the members, both former and present) and be friends with them. Thank you. For all the good things you have given me, I shall, with Allah’s help and guidance, do my best to come up with a quality 54th edition for the next year Inshaallah, Ameen. =)
What do you do…
when you’re no longer happy?
Still worth it?
What if you’re giving so much of yourself to somebody–your life, your future–and yet you don’t feel that she’s giving you what you expect to receive for the sacrifices you make? What if, after giving up so much of yourself, she doesn’t show you that she cares and loves you as much? And instead of doing something about it, she tells you that she’s done her best and that the problem is with you, that is, you’re not appreciative enough? What if she only tells you that she loves you but her actions say otherwise, as evinced by small incidents? For instance, there’s a chance for the two of you to meet up but she chooses not to meet up with you…and you find out later that she could have conveniently?
IS THIS PERSON STILL WORTH THE SACRIFICES THAT YOU MAKE? This person who often leaves you feeling hollow, unappreciated and not loved enough? This person who doesn’t make you feel your worth? This person who takes you for granted? This person who always leaves you behind?
Ladies and gentlemen, this is very characteristic of my relationship with my girlfriend named…Haha. Just kidding. Frivolity aside, my relationship with law school has been similar to that of a very bad, abusive relationship. Hehe.
In the coming school year, I will be in my fourth year, Inshaallah. Time, not only airplanes, flies so fast. I can still remember the days when I was still a freshman student…I must admit, they will always be my favorite days in my entire law school life.
During my three-year stay in law school, there have been many times that I almost gave up. Just this last semester, I took a 1-week (unauthorized) leave from school for medical reasons…and I took that time too to think about my stay in law school. My self-confidence is on the brink of reaching zero level. I’ve been battered so much. No matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to get back to how I was before. I loved (and still love) law school with my life, I gave everything for it. I gave up my social life (as if I had one before) and my music life so I could devote all of it to law school. But every end of the semester, my efforts always get overlooked. Sigh.
But despite all the hardship that I’ve been through…surprisingly, I still want to be in law school. (Duh, I’m already in my fourth and last year, Inshaallah!) The dream to become a lawyer and a respected jurist (ahem) in the future is still burning within me…as bright and incendiary as before. I LOVE LAW SCHOOL. I really do want to become a lawyer. Ya Allah, please help me in transforming this dream into reality. Ameen.
Had this been any other kind of relationship, I certainly would have WALKED AWAY a long time ago. Law school is an asshole but a lovable one at that. Had it been any other asshole, I’d certainly kick his/her ass out of my life. Law school is the exception to the adage that “sometimes love just ain’t enough.” Haha.
Here’s to a HAPPY FOURTH YEAR, Inshaallah! Ameen. 
