Ex-mayor's lawyers may be liable – DoJ

THE Department of Justice (DoJ) is assessing the liability of the legal counsels of dismissed Bamban, Tarlac mayor Alice Guo after it was discovered that they submitted fake documents in relation to the complaints that their client is facing. Justice Undersecretary Nicholas Felix Ty said the submission of fake documents by Guo's lawyers in the DoJ proceedings was a "serious concern." Ty said they had already tasked government prosecutors to look into the possible administrative or criminal liability of Guo's counsels. There is also the possibility of filing a disbarment case against the lawyers who committed the act, said Ty. "It is one of the things that is being considered, but we must realize that disbarment is a very serious punishment," he said. However, he stressed that the proceedings against the lawyers of Guo "could result in many things." "Right now, we are open to anything that is possible out there, and we are going to take action in due time," said Ty in an interview. Guo's lawyers were earlier accused of submitting an alleged fake counter-affidavit in her qualified human trafficking case. The validity of the dismissed mayor's documents was also an issue raised during Senate investigations. The DoJ said they were investigating Elmer Galicia, the lawyer who notarized Guo's affidavit despite the dismissed mayor not personally appearing before him. Ty said the proceedings were more about the counter-affidavit and not just the notarization. He pointed out that the counter-affidavit came from Guo's lawyers since they were the ones who attached it to the motion to admit, and they were the ones who made it part of the record at the DoJ. "They even benefited from it, especially since this counter-affidavit delayed the case. For us, there's no doubt — the counter-affidavit is fake, and such actions by lawyers should not be emulated. This could set a bad example for other lawyers, making them disregard our legal proceedings here," Ty said.