Amid unresolved en banc vacancies, the Samahan ng Mga Mag-Aaral ng Pamantasang Ateneo de Davao (SAMAHAN) Student Court has officially proclaimed its judicial officers for the Academic Year 2025-2026.
In response to this, Chief Justice Ivan Tizon linked the vacancies to the “lack of awareness of the student body of the Court and its functions,” calling for the combined efforts of SAMAHAN and its departments to act on the issue at hand.
“It should be the entirety of the SAMAHAN and all of its offices and branches that should spearhead a campaign about the Court and its function. And most importantly, to scout for prospective Justice candidates.”
Serving as the Supreme Constitutional Court of the SAMAHAN, it governs the judicial branch in providing fair interpretation of the SAMAHAN Constitution and arbitrating legal cases that involve student rights and the student government officials’ conduct and policies.
Under Article VI Sections 2-4 of the amended 2023 SAMAHAN Constitution, cluster representatives nominate associate justice candidates; those who pass the constitutional exam receive appointments, then select their chief justice from among themselves.
The SSC appointments began in the second semester of AY 2024-2025 and will conclude in the second semester of AY 2025-2026, in accordance with the constitutional provisions on its re-establishment.
Following its revival in 2024, the first Oath-taking and Investiture ceremony formally inducted Chief Justice Ivan Tizon, Accountancy (ACC) Cluster Associate Justice Johannah Fuentesfina, School of Nursing (SON) Associate Justice Le-Ann Larombe, and Natural Sciences and Mathematics (NSM) Cluster Associate Justice Monique Ambray into their respective judicial posts.
As of writing, there are no associate justices for the clusters Business and Management, Computer Studies, Humanities and Letters, School of Education, School of Engineering and Architecture, and Social Sciences.
NSM Associate Justice Ambray retained the office and representation of their former cluster after they recently shifted to AB Sociology in the Social Sciences cluster “in the spirit of continuity in judicial leadership and the Court’s constitutional mandates.”
ACC Associate Justice Fuentesfina stepped into the position of the ACC voting representative in November 2025 following the graduation of former Justice Adriel Lubuguin in June 2025.
Former Business and Management Cluster Associate Justice Precious Jardenil has been relieved of her post after she completed her remaining coursework early in the academic year.
Two candidates who have passed the 2026 Constitutional Examinations are currently waiting for the Student Assembly to confirm their respective appointments as associate justices of the Social Sciences and the School of Engineering and Architecture clusters, respectively.
Court’s moral commitment
SAMAHAN Moderator Dr. Lunar Fayloga urged the current justices to prioritize the student body’s collective well-being in their decisions and rulings, and to encourage the active practice of Ignatian discernment.
“Dili mo magpa-pressure kay isa lang gyud inyohang point: that what you will decide on collegially, or what you will discuss and debate on will be for the good of the Ateneo studentry and community,” he underscored.
Chief Justice Ivan Tizon affirmed the judiciary branch’s principal duty of monitoring the legislative and executive practices in accordance with laws and constitutional provisions of SAMAHAN.
“It serves as a coil to insulate the powers of the legislative and executive branches in order to make sure that these branches will not overreach their legal authority.”
Tizon further emphasized that the functions of the judiciary branch mirror the student body’s call for student judicial leaders with legal competence and moral character.
“This important role of the judiciary is reflected in the understood university principle in government that those who take on the mantle of leadership in the judiciary must be of proven competence, probity, integrity, and independence… as a judicial institution within the SAMAHAN, we are no less required to possess the aforementioned qualifications.”
The Student Court’s special investiture session took place on April 8, 2026, at 2/F Miguel Pro Learning Commons – Multipurpose Room, CCFC Building.