𝗞𝘂𝘄𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗲𝘆𝘂𝗽𝘀 𝗔𝘁𝗯𝗽. 𝗯𝘆 𝗔𝘁𝘁𝘆. 𝗗𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗶𝘀 𝗚𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗼

The University of the Philippines College of Law (UP Law) dominated this year’s bar exams with six alumni making it in the top 20, including Rank One.

A total of 5,594 out of 11,420 examinees passed that represent 48.98% of the total takers who completed all three exam days.

The bar exam is a yearly spectacle on the performance of law schools measured by most number of topnotchers or those scoring the highest passing rates.

UP Law’s Jhenroniel Rhey Sanches placed first with a passing rate of 92.7% along with Marie Shantelle Sarmiento (8th, 90.8750%), followed by Jusmin Yap (10th, 90.3625%), Alfrancis Cabungcal (13th, 89.8%), Ignacio Villareal (15th, 89.7%), and Chinzen Viernes (19th, 89.35%).

The other top placers include four from University of Santo Tomas-Manila (UST): Spinel Albert Declaro (2nd), Alaiza Adviento (3rd), Marc Angelo Santos (5th) and Johan Raphael Gata (7th).

Schools with two topnotcher each include Ateneo de Manila University/ADMU (Enrico Gabriel Paguia, 6th and Mikaella Francesa Abisana, 18th) and University of the East (Patric Kiel Navarro, 12th and Ronald Vincent Gonzales 20th).

Schools with one topnotcher each include De La Salle Lipa (Angelica Mitra, 4th), University of San Jose-Recoletos (Jeowy Ompad, 6th), University of La Salette Inc. (Richmond Lucas, 9th), Arellano University (Allan Leo Paran, 11th), Bukidnon State University (Gerilin Gascon, 14th ), University of Santo Tomas Legazpi /Aquinas (Mae Angela Locsin, 16th), and Arellano University (Randall Pabilane, 17th).

UP is recognized as the 2nd top performing law school (with more than 100 candidates), with a 96.83% (214 of 221) passing rate for first-time takers and an overall rate of 94.63. UP has the biggest number of passers with 214 of which are first takers.

In the same category, the other top performing schools by overall passing rate include ADMU (96.52%), UST (87.16%), Dr. V. Orestes Romualdez Educational Foundation (64.88%) and Far Eastern University (59.22%).

The examinations were held last Sept. 7, 10, and 14 in 13 local testing centers across the country, including 6 in Metro Manila ( Makati City, Manila City, Muntinlupa City, Pasay City, Quezon City and Taguig City), 2 in Luzon ( Baguio City, Naga City), 3 in the Visayas (Cebu City, Iloilo City) and 2 in Mindanao (Davao City, Iligan City) in a bid to reduce the logistical, financial and emotional burdens for examinees, particularly those from the provinces.

From 1913 to 2025, UP has the highest number of bar topnotchers (male and female) with 52, followed by AdMU with 23, San Beda with 8, UST with 6, Philippine Law School with 5; FEU and University of Manila College of Law with 4 each, San Beda College Alabang with 3 and University of the Cordilleras with 2.

The first UP bar topnotcher was Manuel Roxas in 1913 who later became the fifth president of the Philippines (1946 to 1948).

Pedro Yap was the first UP Law topnotcher (1946) who became a Supreme Court Chief Justice in 1988.

In 1944, Jovito Salonga (UP) tied with Jose Diokno (UST), the first time that first place ended in a tie. Both became senators, Salonga even became senate president.

Between 1930 to 2024, there were 22 females who became bar topnotchers, wherein where 13 came from UP Law. Tecla San Andres was the first UP female topnotcher for the 1930 bar (89.4%) who later became a senator.

UP Law Dean Gwen Grecia De Vera said in a statement that “the unmatched distinction of your UP Law education carries the responsibility of serving as the principled advocates and visionary leaders our modern society needs. May your every step forward be a fulfillment of the promise to uphold justice, serve with integrity, and defend the rule of law.”

Included in the list are all four pioneer graduates the UP Law Extension Program in UP Visayas, posting a 100% passing rate in the campus’ first participation in the bar exam, namely Evette Jaimee Capungcol, Jules Duke Contreras, Kate Quinco, and Theresa Iana Rosales Tan.

As freshies in 1992 at UP Law, the imposing words of Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. welcomed us to Malcolm Hall: “The business of a law school is not sufficiently described when you merely say that it is to teach law or make lawyers. It is to teach law in the grand manner, and to make great lawyers.”

UP Law was among the first seven colleges established after the foundation of UP on June 18, 1908, through Act No.1870.

I entered UP Law in 1992 but took the bar in 1998 since I opted to shift to the working student program as a reporter for a broadsheet and other international news agencies.
I was among the lucky 1,465 examinees who passed the 1998 bar exams held in DLSU, or 39.63 percent out of the 3,697 examinees, with three UP batchmates landing in the top ten (2nd, 3rd, and 5th).

Former Solicitor General Florin Hilbay was my bar buddy who topped the following year’s (1999) bar exam with one of the lowest passing rates of 16.59 percent, with three UP Law again in the top ten.

“To teach law in the grand manner!” Mabuhay mga bagong Abogado ng Bayan!

(𝑃𝑒𝑦𝑢𝑝𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑖𝑘𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑈𝑛𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑖𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑃ℎ𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑠 𝐴𝑡𝑡𝑦. 𝐷𝑒𝑛𝑛𝑖𝑠 𝑅. 𝐺𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑐ℎ𝑜 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑎𝑓𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑟𝑠’ 𝑑𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑆𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑙𝑜 𝑉𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑧 𝐵𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝐵𝑢𝑙𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑛 𝑙𝑎𝑤 𝑜𝑓𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑒𝑠. 𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠, 𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑖𝑙 𝑖𝑛𝑓𝑜@𝑠𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑧.𝑐𝑜𝑚, 𝑜𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 09088665786)