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Sunday, September 10, 2006
Malilong: De Gracia: outstanding RTC judge
By Frank Malilong
The Other Side
I first heard about it from a mutual friend and fellow tennis aficionado, Justice Pampio “Poy” Abarintos. Early this week, the Supreme Court made it official: Cebu Regional Trial Court Judge Fortunato M. De Gracia Jr.
has been chosen to receive the prestigious Chief Justice Ramon Avancena Award for Outstanding RTC Judge in 2006.
The selection was made by the Society for Judicial Excellence after carefully screening the records of nominees from all over the country. De Gracia, who was cited for his “exceptional performance in the judiciary”, will receive his trophy in appropriate ceremonies on September 19 at the Session Hall of the Supreme Court.
Not bad for someone, who at one time when his name was unjustly dragged into a scandal involving an accused and his lawyers in a drugs case, confessed that he felt like he had fallen from the pedestal in the eyes of his grandson. As they say, you can’t put a good man down.
(For the peace of mind of my editors and my brother lawyers, let me state that I am not representing anyone in any case before Judge de Gracia and that I will voluntarily withdraw from any that may be raffled to him. I promised myself to devote my Sunday columns to edifying stories - those that, in the words of Andre Agassi, renew your faith in the human spirit - and De Gracia’s story is one of them.)
The award caps a long and successful public career that traversed both the military and civil service for De Gracia, who was a retired police chief superintendent before his appointment to the judiciary.
A native of Naga, he finished high school at the Cebu Institute of Technology, took up pre-law at the University of San Carlos where he also spent his first three years in law school before transferring to Lyceum of the Philippines.
He was admitted to the Philippine bar in 1961, joined the Armed Forces in 1973 and was, at the time of his retirement in September, 1994, deputy regional commander of the old Regional Command 7 of the Philippine National Police based in Cebu City.
He was appointed RTC judge in November, 2000, presiding over Branch 15 which was designated a special court to try drug cases the following year. He is presently the Cebu RTC’s 2nd Vice Executive Judge.
When I learned about his award, I teased the judge if it meant aspiring for the Court of Appeals, a career path taken by most of the judicial excellence awardees in the past. He smiled and said, “I have climbed enough mountains already.”
I took it to mean that he planned to spend more time polishing his ground strokes in the near future. The trial court’s loss is going to be the tennis court’s gain.
(fmmalilong@yahoo.com)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (September 10, 2006 issue)
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