IBP Northern Luzon Regional Convention
Jan. 18, 2007

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:

It has always been said that there are three reasons why a person goes to the City of Baguio .

The first is vacation. The second, honeymoon, The third, soul-searching. Vacation. Honeymoon. Soul-searching.

There is something in the nippy air of Baguio that makes it the only ideal place in the country to do all three. One comes here for vacations, because being in Baguio is being far from it all – from the hustle and stress of our daily grind.

People come here for their honeymoon, because being in Baguio ignites the flames of romance – a bit of irony because it is only here where romantic combustion takes place despite the frigid temperature.

One comes here for soul-searching. For retreats. There is something in the atmosphere and ambience of this City which allows one to be in touch with the core of his being. And being so in touch, it enables him to review the past. To savor the present. And to plan the future.

I am here today to do all three. To vacation. To honeymoon. To soul-search.

I am here on vacation, taking advantage of the brief time out from work that your invitation to me has provided. And for this, I am grateful to the leadership of the Northern Luzon Region of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, headed by Governor Abe Estrada . Vacation is not just a time to rest. It is also a time to enjoy the fellowship of those whom one values in his life. I am here to vacation with my beautiful wife and my two lovely daughters who will all arrive tomorrow afternoon. I am also here to have a vacation with my larger family – the legal community, the IBP.

I am also here on a honeymoon, taking advantage of the cold temperature here in Baguio to rekindle my passions. I am a believer in the principle that a honeymoon is not just what a couple does after the wedding; it is what a couple must continually do in order to keep the fervor of the proverbial “first time in love” alive and burning.
But I am not here just to honeymoon with my wife. Contrary to what some people suspect, the procreation of a third daughter or a first son – whatever the case may be – is not in my agenda in this particular visit. But I am not at all closing my mind to the idea. You see, I am married to a beautiful wife. And Baguio further enhances that sense of beauty. And a lawyer is also licensed to succumb to the occasional irrational surrender to the wiles of romance. Provided, of course, that the temporary departure from lucidity happens only in the company of one’s wife. The legal wife, that is.

I am also here to honeymoon with my calling to the legal profession. I am aware that most, if not all, of us occasionally suffer from the so-called job burn-out syndrome. The fatigue caused by long hours of hard work, especially by those in the frontlines of litigation, could cause one to “fall out of love” with his calling. The demands and stress of legal work push us to the limits of our physical stamina and emotional thresholds. It is important that we occasionally take time out to “honeymoon” with our calling, and thus revive and refresh that sense of the proverbial “first time in love” with our profession as lawyers.

More important, I am here on a soul-searching mission. I am taking advantage of my short visit to Baguio to touch base once more with the core of my being, to revisit the past, examine the present and assess the future for myself, my family and my profession.
There is one thing that happens when a person emerges from a vacation, a honeymoon or a meaningful soul-search. The word is “revitalized”. Meaning, “filled anew with life”.

And such is the anchor of your gathering: “Revitalizing the legal profession”.

How does one revitalize the legal profession? Perhaps the same formula with which one revitalizes a tired body and a sagging spirit applies. To revitalize the legal profession, the legal community needs to “vacation”, needs to “honeymoon” and needs to “soul-search”.

And I am pleased to invite the Northern Luzon IBP Region to do just that.

By vacation, I mean let us take time out to step back from our routine work and take advantage of the time we are spending together in this convention. We are a “community”. Thus, we share many things in common. Among these is STRENGTH.

As we “vacation” during this convention, let us bathe in the atmosphere of camaraderie and fellowship. In the process, let us experience the return of our strength. Much of it has been sapped by our dedicated service. It needs, therefore, to be replenished. The company of our fellow lawyers and the educational activities lined up in this convention are valuable means of replenishment.

By “honeymoon”, I mean let us take time out to let our passion for the legal profession return to the its original fervor. Let us “fall in love” again with our calling. This is what we have been destined to do. Meaningful work must have an element of “romance”. Otherwise, the rest of our years of practice would be a drudgery, a mere imposition on our spirits.

And when one does work merely out of obligation, he will tire out. Love is the only fuel that could sustain our original dedication to the legal profession.

We are a “community”. Thus, we share many things in common. Among these is LOVE.

As we “honeymoon” during this convention, let us enjoy the affirmation of other “lovers” – our colleagues who have not lost their passion, fervor and dedication for the legal profession. It is not difficult to spot them. They are beside you, in front of you, seated behind you.

We are, after all, not just a community of lawyers. We are also community of lovers. Consider this: as lawyers, we hardly ever turned down a client, particularly those in the deepest of bind, no matter how guilty they could be. We have stood by clients who have owned up to crimes, ensuring that they get all the protection guaranteed to the accused by the law. We have stood by victims of crimes, holding back our own tears in an effort to keep our rationality despite the inhumanity staring us in the face. Amid all these instances of empathy and sharing our human suffering, we have respected our confidentiality agreements with our clients.

When one can faithfully stand by another person, suffer with that person, protect that person and keep that person’s secret – that is not just lawyering. That is an act of love.

Lastly, I invite you to a time of soul-searching. Let us look at the past, but not be held captive by its failures and inadequacies. Let us look at the present, but not be enticed with its seeming success. Let us look at the future, but not be imprisoned by the fears that its uncertainty brings along.

The failures of the past. The enticements of the present. The fear of the future. Our need to be free from these are anchored only on one ability – the ability to overcome.

We are a “community”. Thus, we share many things in common. Among these is COURAGE.
As we “soul-search” during this convention, let us allow ourselves to be contaminated by the courageous in our midst – our colleagues who are forever looking forward, always threading the path of our shared destiny, constantly crafting a future for the IBP that is meaningful not just to lawyers but to the public that we have vowed to serve.

From where I stand as national president of the IBP, that future has a name. it’s name is “E-IBP”. The letter “E” has become a buzz prefix in the age of cyber-communication.

It was affixed to the word “mail” and thus brought written communication to a techno-age of lightning speed. It was affixed to the word “commerce” and thus the speed and magnitude of business transactions was brought to global proportions.

“E-mail”. “E-commerce”. And now, “E-IBP”.

From where I stand as national president of the IBP, I see the revitalization of the legal profession as being anchored on our entry into the age of speedy electronic communication. It is fast. It is paperless. It is boundary-less. It is done in what is called “real-time”.

This is the backdrop of the launching of our Public Service Portal project a few weeks ago. In so doing, we are moving the legal profession in the country one step forward. We are tapping the power of mobile communications technology and of the internet protocol to advance the legal sector. In so doing, we shall be doing our dissemination and exchange of information at speeds limited only by the boundaries of modern electronic technology. At the same time, we are opening up access to continuing legal education materials and updates in the legal profession wider and faster.

“E-IBP” is a step forward. It is also a challenge. “E-IBP” calls us to hone our skills in the use of modern electronic communications technologies. They are user-friendly. We just have to look at them as our friend.

In the corporate world, the use of E-technologies have led to the revitalization of business, commerce and the management of human resources. It is my hope that “E-IBP” would be a significant contribution to our shared aspiration for the very theme governing your convention: the revitalization of the legal profession.

Thank you for the chance to vacation, to honeymoon and to soul-search with you.

I am not sure if my wife and I would be coming home with a new-born baby nine months from now.

But of this I am certain: this convention shall give birth to fresh ideas and a clearer view of the future.

I would like to have the privilege of knowing soonest what the results of the convention are. But don’t write or call me. Just text me. Or e-mail me. Or better yet, click on the “contact” icon on our public service portal to send me a message.

The era of “E-IBP” has, indeed, begun.

Thank you so much and Mabuhay ang Integrated Bar of the Philippines.