Uniform and Decorum

Rationale

Lawyers should be like Caesar’s wife – to be pure and to appear to be so. Like judges, lawyers must not only be clean; they must also appear to be clean. This way, the people’s faith in the justice system remains undisturbed (Fernando Dela Cruz Vs. Judge Jesus G. Bersamira, A.M. No. RTJ-00-1567). Law school is a place where students must learn how to observe proper decorum and etiquette. The students of the University of Northern Philippines College of Law are of no exception. Section 7 of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability provides the formal decorum and appearance required to be observed by lawyers, viz:

SECTION 7. Formal decorum and appearance. – A lawyer shall observe formal decorum before all courts, tribunals, and other government agencies.

A lawyer’s attire shall be consistent with the dignity of the court, tribunal or other government agency, with due respect to the person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression. (A.M. No. 22-09-01-SC. April 11, 2023)

Lawyers are accorded with high respect because of their brilliance, and as students training to be stewards of the law, we must start embracing pertinent provisions provided by the law in order to be “practice-ready” in the foreseeable future.  

With the recent dissemination of UNP Office of the President Memorandum No. 2024-090 on the University Policy on Gender-Neutral Uniform for Students, this is the most opportune moment to harmonize existing laws and university policies to come up with our own internal rules on decorum and appearance.

In the classroom, the student’s attire should be consistent with the dignity of the professor who is an individual bestowed with wealth and intricacies of his or her specialization of the law.

This policy also reiterates existing University Policies (i.e. School Uniform) and Supreme Court Administrative Matters.

Scope

• The policy applies to all College of Law Juris Doctor Students.

Definition Of Terms

Decorum. Decorum means propriety and good taste in conduct or appearance. (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary)

Formal. Formal means following or according with established form, custom, or rule. (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary)

Formal decorum. Formal decorum means appearances and conduct that is propriety and in good taste following established rules or customs. (See above combination of definitions.)

Proper conduct. A lawyer shall not engage in unlawful, dishonest, immoral, or deceitful conduct. (Sec. 1, Canon 2 of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability)

Dignified conduct. A lawyer shall respect the law, the courts, tribunals, and other government agencies, their officials, employees, and processes, and act with courtesy, civility, fairness, and candor towards fellow members of the bar. (Sec. 2, Canon 2 of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability)

Gender-neutral uniform. Gender-neutral uniforms refer to the unisex, neuter, or androgynous clothing that can be worn by students in the University regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression.

Sex. The anatomical classification of people as male, female, or intersex is usually assigned at birth. (Ontario Human Rights Commission)

Gender. It refers to the roles and responsibilities of men and women created in the family, society, and culture. The concept of gender also includes the expectations held about the characteristics, aptitudes, and likely behaviors of both women and men (femininity and masculinity). Gender roles and expectations are learned. They can change over time and vary within and between cultures. It is socially constructed, not biologically predetermined nor it is fixed forever. (UNESCO as cited in CHED Memorandum Order No. 01, Series of 2015)

Gender Identity. It refers to each person’s internal and individual experience of gender. It is a person’s sense of being a woman, a man, both neither, genderqueer or anywhere along the gender spectrum. A person’s gender identity may be the same as or different from their birth-assigned sex. (Ontario Human Rights Commission)

Gender Expression. It refers to how one demonstrates one’s gender (based on traditional gender roles) through acting, behaving, and interacting. It also includes behavior and outward appearance such as dress, hair, make-up, body language, and voice, e.g. feminine, masculine, gender neutral, androgynous. (PCW)

Sexual Orientation. It refers to how a person is physically, spiritually, and emotionally attracted to another individual, e.g. heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, asexual, pansexual. (PCW)

Cross dressing. The act of wearing clothes that are usually worn by a different gender. (Cambridge Dictionary)

Cross-dresser. It refers to a person who sometimes wears clothes usually worn by different genders, usually a man/boy/male, who sometimes wears the clothes, make-up, jewelry, etc., usually worn by women/girls/females. (Cambridge Dictionary)

Uniform and Decorum Policy Guidelines

1. All Juris Doctor Students of the College of Law are allowed to cross-dress. Hence, students may wear the Official College of Law uniforms based on their gender identity and gender expression.
2. The Official College Coat/Blazer shall be worn on Mondays and Wednesdays, and the Law Student Government (LSG) Organizational Shirt will be worn on Tuesdays and Thursdays. However, the Law Professor may still require the students to wear any formal attire during Tuesdays and Thursdays, if he/she finds it more appropriate than the Organizational Shirt. The prescription for a design iteration of the LSG Organizational Shirt is five (5) years.
3. The details of the prescribed uniform/attire are as follows:
4. Students at all times shall be in business attire except on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Subject, however, to the discretion of the Law Professor.
5. For working students, the Official College Coat/Blazer shall be worn over their prescribed office/agency uniforms.
6. The appropriate business attire for male students requires the wearing of long-sleeved ‘barong’ or coat and tie.
7. Skirts of business or casual attire should be knee-length (one inch above the knee may be allowed).
8. Appropriate footwear shall mean closed formal shoes; however, mules, sling-back shoes and peep-toe shoes are allowed (for females).
9. The following are prohibited classroom attire during class hours, appearing before the courts, tribunals, and other government agencies, or when performing official functions:
10. gauzy, transparent or net-like blouses or shirts;
11. sando, sleeveless, strapless or spaghetti-strapped blouses, tank tops (unless worn as undershirts), blouses with over-plunging necklines;
12. collarless t-shirts for men;
13. micro-mini skirts, walking shorts, cycling shorts, leggings, tights, jogging pants, pedal pushers;
14. sandals and step-ins exposing the toes;
15. casual jacket, cropped/tattered/thorn jeans, and loafers without socks (Falcis vs Civil Registrar); and
16. rubber sandals, slippers and ‘bakya.
17. The university identification card (ID) and the College of Law lanyard form part of the official uniform/appropriate business attire. Thus, it must be worn at all times within the campus and during class hours.
18. Dangling earrings and excessive ear and body piercings, flashy bangles, and ostentatious displays of excessive jewelry are not allowed unless driven by cultural beliefs, practices, and special occasions or official celebrations.
19. The wearing of heavy and theatrical make-up is prohibited.
20. The wearing of the LSG Organizational shirt would be gender-appropriate, meaning they will be based on one’s gender identity and expression as long as the bottom end footwear used are decent.
21. When appearing before a court, tribunal, or other government agency, the law student practitioner’s attire should be consistent with the dignity of the court, tribunal, or other government agency. Otherwise stated, students should dress formally and accordingly when attending hearings or conferences. As to what to wear, respect should be given to the student’s sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.
22. When appearing before courts, tribunals, and other government agencies, law student practitioners should observe formal decorum. Students should behave properly and follow procedures/protocols that are being observed. Students should be courteous and respectful to the judge or hearing officer.
23. The same formal decorum and attire accorded to before courts, tribunals, and other government agencies must be likewise observed by the students inside the classrooms.
24. An official uniform for Law Student Practitioners shall also be utilized and paid for by all qualified students for law student practice for both Level 1 and Level 2 Certifications.

Respective class mayors shall monitor the wearing of organizational shirts and uniforms and periodically report to the dean or the LSG adviser for appropriate action or sanction.