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THE Supreme Court has suspended a lawyer for not
paying her apartment rent. According to the High Court, lawyer Eva
Paita-Moya fell short of the standards expected of her as a guardian
of law and justice by skipping rent payments.
The High Court’s Third
Division, in a nine-page ruling penned by Associate Justice Minita
Chico-Nazario, found Moya guilty of gross misconduct and barred her
from practicing her profession for a month.
In the original complaint for
disbarment filed by Wilson Cham, Moya had unpaid rent amounting to
P71,007.88. In October 2000, the complaint added, Moya secretly
vacated the premises bringing along with her the apartment’s keys.
The lawyer denied the
allegations, claiming that she left the apartment upon Cham’s
demand to give way for repairs.
The Commission on Bar
Discipline of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) on
September 8, 2006, found Moya guilty of violating the Code of
Professional Responsibility and recommended a three-month suspension
from the practice of law. However, on December 15, 2006, the IBP
Board of Governors issued a resolution dismissing the complaint
against the lawyer for lack of merit.
The High Court reversed the
resolution of the IBP Board of Governors stating that the lawyer,
according to the records of the case, is guilty of willful failure
to pay just debt.
“Any gross misconduct of
a lawyer in his professional capacity is a ground for suspension or
disbarment because good moral character is an essential requirement
to practice law,” the High Court stressed.
--William B. Depasupil
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