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Codification of laws is a common practice in thePhilippines. Many general areas ofsubstantive law, such ascriminal law,civil law andlabor law are governed bycodes of law.
Codification is predominant in countries that adhere to the legal system ofcivil law.Spain, a civil law country, introduced the practice of codification in the Philippines, which it hadcolonized beginning in the late 16th century. Among the codes that Spain enforced in the Philippines were theSpanish Civil Code and the Penal Code.
The practice of codification was retained during the period ofAmerican colonial period, even though the United States was acommon law jurisdiction. At the time, many common law principles found their way into the legal system by way oflegislation and by judicial pronouncements. Judicialprecedents of thePhilippine Supreme Court were accepted asbinding, a practice more attuned to common law jurisdictions. Eventually, the Philippine legal system emerged in such a way that while the practice of codification remained popular, the courts were not barred from invoking principles developed under the common law,[1] or from employing methods ofstatutory construction in order to arrive at an interpretation of the codal provisions that would be binding in itself in Philippine law.[1][a]
Beginning in the American period, there was an effort to revise the Spanish codes that had remained in force even after the end of Spanish rule. A newRevised Penal Code was enacted in 1930, while a newCivil Code took effect in 1950.
Since the formation of local legislative bodies in the Philippines, Philippine legal codes have been enacted by thelegislature, in the exercise of its powers of legislation. Since 1946, the laws passed by the Congress, including legal codes, have been titledRepublic Acts.[b]
While Philippine legal codes are, strictly speaking, also Republic Acts, they may be differentiated in that the former represents a more comprehensive effort in embodying all aspects of a general area of law into just one legislative act. In contrast, Republic Acts are generally less expansive and more specific in scope. Thus, while theCivil Code seeks to govern all aspects ofprivate law in the Philippines, a Republic Act such as Republic Act No. 9048 would concern itself with a more limited field, as in that case, the correction of entries in thecivil registry.
Still, the amendment of Philippine legal codes is accomplished through the passage of Republic Acts. Republic Acts have also been utilized to enact legislation on areas where the legal codes have proven insufficient. For example, while the possession of narcotics had been penalized under the 1930sRevised Penal Code, the wider attention drawn to illegal drugs in the 1960s and the 1970s led to new legislation increasing the penalties for possession andtrafficking of narcotics. Instead of enacting amendments to the Revised Penal Code, Congress chose instead to enact a special law, the Dangerous Drugs Act of 1972.
| Laws | Common name | Date enacted | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Executive Order No. 292 | Administrative Code of 1987 | 25 Jul 1987 | TheAdministrative Code "incorporates in a unified document the major structural, functional and procedural principles and rules of governance." Its primary function is to prescribe the standards, guidelines and practices within theexecutive branch of government. It is theAdministrative Code which establishes the variousCabinet departments and offices falling within the executive branch of government, and under the direct control and supervision of thePresident. The Code also prescribes the administrative procedure undertaken in proceedings before the offices under the executive department. Originally coming into effect in 1917, the code was revised and amended repeatedly, with the present code being enacted in 1987. |
| Presidential Decree No. 603 | Child and Youth Welfare Code | 10 Dec 1974 | |
| Republic Act No. 386 | Civil Code | 18 Jun 1949 | The Civil Code governsprivate law in the Philippines, includingobligations andcontracts,succession,torts anddamages,property. It was enacted in 1950. Book I of the Civil Code, which governedmarriage andfamily law, was supplanted by the Family Code in 1987.[2] |
| Republic Act No. 6657 | Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Code | 10 Jun 1988 | |
| Presidential Decree No. 961 | Coconut Industry Code | 11 Jun 1978 | |
| Spanish Code of Commerce, Extended by Royal Decree | Code of Commerce | 10 Dec 1888 | |
| Republic Act No. 6713 | Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees | 20 Feb 1989 | An act establishing a code of conduct and ethical standards for public officials and employees, to uphold the time-honored principle of public office being a public trust, granting incentives and rewards for exemplary service, enumerating prohibited acts and transactions and providing penalties for violations thereof and for other purposes. |
| Republic Act No. 9520 | Cooperative Code | 17 Feb 2009 | |
| Republic Act No. 11232 | Revised Corporation Code of the Philippines | 20 Feb 2019 | TheRevised Corporation Code provides for the rules and regulations in the establishment and operation ofstock andnon-stockcorporations in the Philippines. It superseded theBatas Pambansa Blg. 68. |
| Executive Order No. 209 | Family Code | 6 Jul 1987 | Superseded Book I of the Civil Code, which governedmarriage andfamily law. |
| Republic Act No. 9514 | The Revised Fire Code of the Philippines of 2008 | 19 Dec 2008 | |
| Republic Act No. 8550 | The Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998 | 25 Feb 1998 | |
| Republic Act No. 8491 | Flag and Heraldic Code | 12 Feb 1998 | |
| Republic Act No. 10607 | Insurance Code | 15 Aug 2013 | |
| Republic Act No. 8293 | Intellectual Property Code | 6 Jun 1997 | TheIntellectual Property Code governs the protection ofintellectual property in the Philippines. Initially, the legal protection of intellectual property was contained in a few provisions in theCivil Code. A growing concern for intellectual property protection led to the passage of more comprehensive special laws until the final codification of intellectual property law through the Code, enacted in 1997. |
| Presidential Decree No. 442 | Labor Code | 1 May 1974 | The Labor Code, enacted in 1974, governsemployment practices andlabor relations in the Philippines. |
| Republic Act No. 4136 | Land Transportation and Traffic Code | 20 Jun 1964 | |
| Republic Act No. 7160 | Local Government Code | 10 Oct 1991 | TheLocal Government Code, enacted in 1991, establishes the system and powers of thelocal government in the Philippines:provinces,cities,municipalities andbarangays. TheLocal Government Code empowers local governments to enact tax measures, including real property taxes, and assures the local governments a share in the national internal revenue through theInternal Revenue Allotment. |
| Republic Act No. 9296 | Meat Inspection Code | 12 May 2004 | |
| Presidential Decree No. 1083 | Muslim Code of Personal Laws | 4 Feb 1977 | |
| Presidential Decree No. 1096 | National Building Code | 19 Feb 1977 | |
| Executive Order No. 51 | National Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes and Supplements | 20 Oct 1986 | |
| Batas Pambansa Blg. 881 | Omnibus Election Code | 3 Dec 1985 | |
| Executive Order No. 226 | Omnibus Investment Code of 1987 | 16 Jul 1987 | |
| Presidential Decree No. 1152 | Philippine Environment Code | 6 Jun 1977 | |
| Republic Act No. 9829 | Pre-Need Code of the Philippines | 27 Jul 2009 | |
| Presidential Decree No. 705 | Revised Forestry Code | 18 May 1975 | |
| Act No. 3815 | Revised Penal Code | 8 Dec 1930 | The Revised Penal Code contains the generalpenal laws of the Philippines and is one of the major sources ofcriminal laws in the Philippines. It was enacted in 1930 and has undergone several amendments. |
| Presidential Decree No. 856 | Sanitation Code | 23 Dec 1975 | |
| Republic Act No. 8799 | Securities Regulation Code | 19 Jul 2000 | The regulation ofsecurities and practices in thestock market governed by the 2000Securities Regulation Code |
| Presidential Decree No. 1445 | State Auditing Code | 11 Jun 1978 | |
| Republic Act No. 8424 | Tax Code/National Internal Revenue Code | 11 Dec 1997 | TheNational Internal Revenue Code is the law establishing the system of nationaltaxation in the Philippines. The most recent extensive revision of the Code occurred in 1997, although the Code was amended in 2005 to expand the coverage and rates ofvalue-added tax. The taxes imposed by the Code include a graduatedincome tax on allincome earned by natural and juridical persons within the Philippines, acapital gains tax,excise tax on certain products, aDonor's Tax, anestate tax, and avalue-added tax on the sale of most goods and services in the Philippines. Real property taxes are considered aslocal, rather than national taxes, and are covered instead under theLocal Government Code.Tariffs andduties are covered under theTariff and Customs Code. |
| Republic Act No. 1937 | Tariff and Customs Code | 22 Jun 1957 | |
| Presidential Decree No. 1067 | Water Code | 31 Dec 1976 |