FALSE: Robredo’s missing bar exam results cast doubt on her being a lawyer

At a glance:

• Claim: Vice President Leni Robredo’s bar exam results are “missing.” This casts further doubt on her being a legitimate lawyer.
• Rating: FALSE
• The facts: Robredo is a lawyer. According to the Supreme Court, she was admitted to the bar on May 7, 1997 in Naga City.
• Why we fact checked this: This claim was posted on the “Fact-Checking in the Philippines” Facebook page for verification. The video containing the claim has been viewed 77,504 times as of posting.

Complete details:

Vice President Leni Robredo’s bar exam results are supposedly missing, which casts further doubt on her being a legitimate lawyer.

This claim was made in a video published on YouTube on November 22, 2020, titled “BAR RESULT ni LENI ROBREDO nawawala, di mahanap ni THINKING PINOY sa SUPREME COURT.” (Leni Robredo’s bar results are missing, Thinking Pinoy cannot find it in the Supreme Court.)

The video itself contains the text, “Marami ang duda sa pagka-abogado ni Leni dahil sa mga nakakahilo nitong statements.” (Many doubt Leni’s being a lawyer because of her confusing statements.)

The video has 77,504 views as of posting. It was posted on the Facebook page, “Fact-Checking in the Philippines” for verification.

This claim is false. Robredo is a lawyer. According to the Supreme Court (SC), she was admitted to the bar on May 7, 1997 in Naga City.

Searching for Robredo’s name in the SC’s “Lawyers’ List” yields these details. The SC’s “Lawyers’ List” is based on the list provided to the SC Public Information Office (PIO) by the Office of the Bar Confidant (OBC). The OBC keeps the Bar records and personal records of lawyers.

The SC PIO told Rappler in a text message that the “Lawyers’ List” should be comprehensive except for lawyers who recently passed the bar exams. – Vernise Tantuco/Rappler.com