Supreme Court Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo said that no decision is set in stone when asked about the P203B estate tax case of the late President Ferdinand Marcos’ family.
“The changes in the decision of the court is based on its composition,” Gesmundo said during forum at the Kapihan sa Manila Bay.
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“Just like in the United States, there are conservative and there are liberal. If the majority [of the justices] belong to the conservative, it’s difficult to have the decision reversed. But if majority is liberal, it’s very easy to do that. It’s just the same with our setup,” he added.
Gesmundo floats the possibility that some decisions may be reversed.
“Each magistrate has a different view on a case. We may be talking about one thing, but we’re all looking at different angles. So it depends on how good you are in defending your position,” Gesmundo continued.
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“In those instances, the court is always guided that cases should be terminated at a certain point in time, it is called res judicata,” he said.
“What is important are the issues being brought by the parties before the Supreme Court. Is it a question of constitutional rights blatantly violated? Then we have to take a second look. It depends on the situation and circumstances that are being brought before the Supreme Court to have a decision be modified or reversed,” he explained.
