Self-employed professionals are not required to submit appointment books for proper tax assessment
Dear PAO, I am a dentist with a small clinic in Manila. My CPA-friend told me that for the purposes of proper tax assessment, I need to submit my appointment books, along with the list of my professional fees, to the BIR. However, I think that this is a potential violation of physician-patient confidentiality. Am […]
Playing music from a radio in an eatery, a form of copyright infringement?
Dear PAO, I have this neighborhood eatery (carinderia) and happen to put on my favorite radio on blast at night for my diners’ enjoyment. I feel that music over the radio helps with my sales, but my neighbor, Karen, wants me to stop. Yesterday, Karen told me that she would report me to several music […]
Responsibilities of a pet owner
Dear PAO, I have a neighbor who has a son who is a person with disability (PWD). This kid walked in front of my house the other day and got bitten by my fur-baby (dog), which was leashed to my front gate. Honestly, the child should have avoided my leashed dog because it was clearly […]
When a conjugal property is mortgaged behind your back
Dear PAO, My mother pawned our land title for P60,000 back in 2018. She did this without the consent of my father or us, their children. The property is conjugal, so both spouses should have agreed to the mortgage. We only discovered the transaction about four years ago. I offered to pay the balance, but […]
Remedies to a case dismissed by the Department of Justice
Dear PAO, My case got dismissed because of that new ruling of the Department of Justice (DOJ). They used “prima facie proof with reasonable certainty of conviction.” Before, probable cause was enough. Now it is not. Is it possible to join a class action suit against the DOJ because I think what they are doing […]
Mandatory Continuing Legal Education | The Manila Times
Dear PAO, My lawyer canceled our meeting because he needed to attend a lecture which he labeled as “MCLE.” I am just curious: what is this MCLE and why did it take up my lawyer’s time? Svit Dear Svit, MCLE is an acronym which stands for “Mandatory Continuing Legal Education.” Get the latest news delivered […]
Issuance of warrant of arrest is not an element to consider whether surrender is voluntary
Dear PAO, I was accused of a certain crime, and I surrendered to the police after learning that a warrant of arrest had already been issued by the court. I would like to invoke voluntary surrender as a mitigating circumstance, but the private complainant told me that the same will be disregarded, considering that a […]
Tricked by a scammer? The new law gives you a remedy
Dear PAO, Good day po. My mom lost P1.3 million from her bank account. A caller pretended to be from the bank. The caller gave her an OTP, not the other way. She just repeated it. She never gave her own OTP. She is 62 and not tech-savvy. The bank said they are not at […]
Purpose of adverse claim | The Manila Times
Dear PAO, I would like to buy the land of Jose but upon scrutiny of his title, I discovered that there was an annotated adverse claim on it. Jose persuaded me to proceed with the sale and not to worry about the adverse claim because it will expire after the lapse of thirty days. I […]
In very young children, can ‘repeated touching’ constitute consummated rape even without full penetration?
Dear PAO, My daughter is only 8 years old. She told me that a neighbor pinned her down and kept “trying” to insert his penis, but she said it “wouldn’t go in” because it was painful, and she was crying. The medico-legal said there was no clear sign of deep penetration. The investigator mentioned a […]