PAO or corporate law for Bar 2019 10th placer Bebelan Madera

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines –  Bebelan Madera, the 2019 Bar examination 10th placer from the University of St La Salle (USLS) in this city, said she took law because her parents wanted a lawyer in the family and partly “out of boredom.” 

Madera, 32, said she already had a job in Manila but her parents needed her in Bacolod, so she went home. Her homecoming paved her way to law school.

Madera said that during her first year in law school, she felt so “disheartened” that she contemplated giving up. She also felt she could earn more money since she was already a certified public accountant. She also has a Master’s in Business Administration.

“But I realized that money is not important, but my family is. So I did not give up and surpassed that idea. Eventually, I learned to love the law,” she said. 

Her love for law grew after she became part of the school’s moot court team, said Madera.

In 2019, Madera graduated from law school as valedictorian.  

Madera said she couldn’t describe the feeling when she learned that she was in the top 10 of the Bar exam. “I was in the house. And I’m not interested to know. It was my father who browsed the internet as my mom was also eager to know.” 

She said she cried after learning about the results.

“My parents couldn’t talk to me because I was just crying. It was very overwhelming. I’m surprised and thankful to the Lord,” said Madera, the first lawyer in her clan.

Madera said she had no firm plans yet. “I might go to Public Attorney’s Office for experience, or corporate law because of my background,” she added.

Madera joins the illustrious roster of USLS graduates who are Bar topnotchers. Her schoolmate Mark John Simondo topped the 2017 Bar Exams with a grade of 91.05%. (Bar 2019: Provincial schools again emerge on top)

The passing rate for the 2019 Bar Exams is 27.36%, as the Court en banc lowered the passing grade to 74% to have “younger and technologically adept lawyers” cope with the “new normal,” Bar Chair Senior Associate Justice Estela Perlas Bernabe said. – Rappler.com