Profile: Brod Justice Reynato S. Puno

Brod Justice Reynato "Rey" S. Puno is Senior Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines. He has been with the Supreme Court since June 1993 and has written several landmark decisions one of which (G.R. No.146738, April 3, 2001) recognized Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as the legitimate President of the Philippines. This decision is acknowledged "as the most important and far-reaching decision of the first 100 years of the Philippine Supreme Court, affecting, as it does, our country and the Filipino people, for the next hundred years or more." (Supreme Court Centennial Year Celebrations)

Brod Justice Rey completed both his B.S. in Jurisprudence and LLB from the University of the Philippines in 1962. His graduate studies include: Master of Comparative Laws, Southern Methodist University, Texas (1967); Master of Laws, U.C. Berkeley (1968); and completed all academic requirements for Doctor of Juridical Science, University of Illinois (1969). He received an Honorary Doctor of Humanities Degree from the Philippine Wesleyan University (1994).

During his student days at U.P., he was: Editor-in-Chief, The Philippine Collegian: Chairman of the Editorial Board, The Law Register, Recent Documents Editor, The Philippine Law Journal; and Assistant Editor-in-Chief, 1962 Philippinensian. He received several scholarships in pursuing his post-graduate studies in the U.S. and several American Jurisprudence Prizes for Excellence.

Brod Justice Rey was chosen one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) awardees in 1977, one of the Distinguished Citizens of the Philippines in 1980, and Outstanding Jurist during the "Araw ng Maynila Award" in 1987. He was chosen Outstanding Alumnus of the U.P. College of Law both in 1996 and 1997. He has received other awards and distinctions, too numerous to mention, including Outstanding Alumnus of the Alpha Phi Beta Alumni Association, in 1975.

Brod Justice Rey's distinguished career covers a wide range of experience in the academe, in law practice, and in the government. He was Lecturer at the UP Law Center Institute of Juridical Administration and Law Professor with F.E.U. (1969-1973). He started as Assistant Attorney with the Law Office of Gerry Roxas and Abe Sarmiento (1962), then later became a Partner with the Puno Law Office (1969-71). In government service, he spent collectively over ten years with the Office of the Solicitor General (1971-82). He was Acting City Judge, Quezon City Branch II (1972-74) and was appointed Associate Justice of the Court of Appeals (1980; 1986). In 1984, he became Deputy Minister of Justice and on several occasions was Acting Secretary of Justice. He has been Associate Justice of the Supreme Court since 1993 and now chairs its Third Division. Brod Justice Rey has written numerous legal articles and extensively published in law journals. He has led and represented the Philippines in various international legal fora, conferences and congresses.

Brod Justice Rey is a Lay Preacher of the United Methodist Church. His other civic affiliations include the Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons, the Knights of Rizal, the Integrated Bar of the Philippines and the UP Law Alumni. He is one of the incorporators of the Alpha Phi Beta Alumni Association, Inc.

Born on May 17, 1940, Brod Justice Rey is married to the former Luzviminda T. Delgado who is Clerk of Court of the Supreme Court. They are blessed with three children and one grandchild.