Corporations, foundations, and other entities – even while working for the benefit of the indigent and underprivileged people – are not exempt from the payment of legal fees whenever they file cases in courts.

The Supreme Court (SC) – in a resolution written by Justice Lucas P. Bersamin – has clarified that only indigent persons whose gross income and those of the immediate members of their families do not exceed an amount double the monthly minimum wage of an employee and who do not own real property valued at over P300,000 are exempt from the payment of legal fees under the “free access” clause of the Constitution.

The clarification was issued on the query of Roger Prioreschi, administrator of the Good Shepherd Foundation, Inc., who wanted the SC to exempt the foundation from the payment of legal fees in a letter to Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno.

According to Prioreschi, his foundation in Antipolo City has been “reaching out to the poorest among the poor, to the newly born and abandoned babies, to children who never saw the smile of their mother....”

“In other words, we have been working hard for the very Filipino people that the government and society cannot reach to, or have rejected or abandoned them,” he told the SC.

He also said that several trial courts have rejected his plea for exemption and even Court Administrator Jose Perez had pointed out that the exemption is only for indigent persons.

The SC said: “To answer the query of Mr. Prioreschi, the courts cannot grant to foundations like the Good Shepherd Foundation, Inc. the same exemption from payment of legal fees granted to indigent litigants even if the foundations are working for indigent and underprivileged people.”