The Bacolod Regional Trial Courts and the Municipal Trial Courts in Cities will be operating with skeleton workforces of 30 percent from May 3 to 14, Bacolod RTC Executive Judge Raymond Joseph Javier said Friday, April 30.
This is being done to combat the spread of COVID -19 at the Bacolod Hall of Justice, he said.
It is also in compliance with a circular issued by Supreme Court Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo Friday, stating that all courts and judicial offices in areas under Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) will be physically open with a workforce of at least 25 percent from May 3 to 14.
Gesmundo, in Administrative Circular 29-2021, said he was leaving the exact workforce figure to the executive justices and executive judges to determine.
Bacolod City and Negros Occidental both remain under MGCQ.
Justices and judges may conduct video conferencing from home provided they will be within their respective judicial territorial region, Gesmundo said.
Judges of the first and second level courts must notify the Office of the Court Administrator, he added.
Meanwhile, Javier said he will lead the Hall of Justice judges and employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19, who qualify under the A3 category (persons with comorbidities), Monday.*