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    Request For Legal Opinion - Loc Gov

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    juan aldaba
    The City of Cotabato hired private lawyers as consultants in 2015 to assist the mayor and legal officer. The Commission on Audit inquired if COA concurrence and OSG conformity were obtained first per COA circulars, which the city claims do not apply. The city requested a legal opinion from DILG on whether OSG conformity and COA concurrence are required before hiring private lawyer consultants.

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    Request For Legal Opinion - Loc Gov

    Uploaded by

    juan aldaba
    1K views2 pages
    The City of Cotabato hired private lawyers as consultants in 2015 to assist the mayor and legal officer. The Commission on Audit inquired if COA concurrence and OSG conformity were obtained first per COA circulars, which the city claims do not apply. The city requested a legal opinion from DILG on whether OSG conformity and COA concurrence are required before hiring private lawyer consultants.

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    Request for Legal Opinion - Loc Gov

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    The City of Cotabato hired private lawyers as consultants in 2015 to assist the mayor and legal officer. The Commission on Audit inquired if COA concurrence and OSG conformity were obtained first per COA circulars, which the city claims do not apply. The city requested a legal opinion from DILG on whether OSG conformity and COA concurrence are required before hiring private lawyer consultants.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    1K views2 pages

    Request For Legal Opinion - Loc Gov

    Uploaded by

    juan aldaba
    The City of Cotabato hired private lawyers as consultants in 2015 to assist the mayor and legal officer. The Commission on Audit inquired if COA concurrence and OSG conformity were obtained first per COA circulars, which the city claims do not apply. The city requested a legal opinion from DILG on whether OSG conformity and COA concurrence are required before hiring private lawyer consultants.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    of 2

    REQUEST FOR LEGAL OPINION:

    The independent component City of Cotabato engaged the


    services of private lawyers as consultants for Calendar Year (CY)
    2015. These lawyers-consultants were primarily engaged to assist
    the City Mayor Atty. Frances Cynthia J. Guiani-Sayadi and City
    Legal Officer Atty. Rico S. Pelandoc in affording legal opinion and
    giving legal advice on matters indorsed to the Office of the City
    Mayor by other departments including those indorsed by the
    Sangguniang Panlungsod headed by Vice Mayor Graham Nazer G.
    Dumama. They also assisted the City Legal Officer Atty. Rico S.
    Pelandoc in rendering legal advice to the indigent constituents of
    the City.

    In a letter dated February 1, 2016, the Commission on Audit


    inquired from the City of Cotabato if the city requested
    concurrence from the Commission on Audit (COA) and prior
    written conformity from the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG)
    in the hiring of private lawyers-consultants during CY 2015 in
    accordance with COA Circular No. 95-011, as amended by COA
    Circular No. 98-002.

    In its reply, the City of Cotabato emphasized that the subject


    of COA Circular No. 95-011 is on the prohibition against
    employment by government agencies and instrumentalities,
    including government-owned or controlled corporations, of private
    lawyers to handle their legal cases while COA Circular No. 98-002
    covers prohibition against employment by local government units
    of private lawyers to handle their legal cases.

    The City of Cotabato likewise cited Section 2 (a), Book I Title


    I Chapter I of the Local Government Code which provides

    It is hereby declared the policy of the State that the


    territorial and political subdivisions of the State
    shall enjoy genuine and meaningful local
    autonomy to enable them to attain their fullest
    development as self-reliant communities and make
    them more effective partners in the attainment of
    national goals. Toward this end, the State shall
    provide for a more responsive and accountable
    local government structure instituted through a
    system of decentralization whereby local
    government units shall be given more powers,
    authority, responsibilities, and resources. The
    process of decentralization shall proceed from the
    national government to the local government
    units

    To further clarify the matter, the City of Cotabato requested a


    legal opinion from the Department of Interior and Local
    Government (DILG) on the following issue:

    Whether or not prior written conformity from


    the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) and
    concurrence from the Commission on Audit
    (COA) are required prior to the hiring of
    private lawyers-consultants by the City
    Government of Cotabato

    As a legal researcher of the DILG, provide a legal opinion


    on the matter citing pertinent laws, issuances, guidelines and
    decisions of the Supreme Court. No minimum and maximum
    number of words (A4 paper, Arial Font Size 12). Kindly submit the
    draft legal opinion online on or before December 4, 2017 at
    [email protected].

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