Backed by a High Tribunal ruling on the power of appointment, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has picked Supreme Court Associate Justice Renato Corona as the country's next Chief Justice.

He will be the country’s 23rd Chief Justice.

Presidential Spokesman Ricardo Saludo said Corona will replace Chief Justice Reynato Puno when he retires on May 17.

“Justice Corona is the most senior SC Justice among the four nominees of the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC). His appointment takes effect upon CJ Puno's retirement,” Saludo said.

Once his appointment takes effect next week, Corona is expected to sit as chairman of the High Court’s First Division and ex-officio chairman of both the JBC and the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, a body that will handle any electoral protests involving presidential and vice presidential candidates.

Corona, known as one of the youngest magistrates ever in the SC, was appointed to the highest tribunal on April 9, 2002, as the 150th member of the High Court.

He finished his Bachelor of Arts with honors at the Ateneo de Manila University and his Bachelor of Laws at the Ateneo Law School where he ranked fifth in his class. He placed 25 in the 1974 Bar examinations with a grade of 84.6 percent.

After law school, Corona pursued the Master of Business Administration course at the Ateneo Professional Schools. He finished his Master of Laws degree at the Harvard Law School in 1982, concentrating on foreign investment policies and the regulation of corporations and financial institutions.

Born on October 15, 1948 in Tanauan City, Corona served as special counsel at the Development Bank of the Philippines, senior vice president and general counsel of the Commercial Bank of Manila and senior officer of the Tax and Corporate Counseling Group of the Tax Division of Sycip Gorres and Velayo (SGV & Co.).

In 1992, he was invited to join the administration of then President Fidel V. Ramos as assistant executive secretary for legal affairs, concurrently head of the Malacañang Legal Office. Two years later, he was promoted to Deputy Executive Secretary and later Presidential Legal Counsel and member of the Cabinet.

Prior to becoming an SC Justice, Corona served as President Arroyo’s Chief of Presidential spokesperson and later, as acting Executive Secretary.

Corona is married to the former Cristina Roco with whom he has three children: Carla, Francis, and Cherie.

Supreme Court welcomed Malacañang’s announcement of Corona’s appointment.

Court Administrator and SC Spokesman Jose Midas Marquez said there was nothing wrong with Malacañang announcing President Arroyo’s preference of Corona to be next Chief Justice prior to the retirement of Puno.

“That’s the prerogative of the Palace…provided that the effectivity of the appointment is upon the vacancy of the office and upon the retirement of Chief Justice Puno,” Marquez said in  a press conference.

Marquez said Puno will make known his personal take on Corona as his successor when he delivers his valedictory address during his retirement rites to be held at the SC session hall on Friday.

Marquez also defended Corona against those who questioned his partiality and qualifications as the country’s next chief magistrate.

Some have reservations about Corona because of his past relations with President Arroyo.

Marquez said the JBC would have not included Corona in the shortlist of nominees submitted to Mrs. Arroyo last week if he was not qualified.

Executive Secretary Leandro Mendoza defended the President's selection of Corona as the next Chief Justice, saying her main consideration was his seniority among the nominees.

Mendoza, in a later news conference in the Palace, also said Corona has “all the qualifications” to serve as chief justice, as he dispelled speculations he would be beholden to the appointing authority.

Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Raoul Victorino, a former Court of Appeals justice, also vouched for the “integrity, probity, and independence of mind” of the SC magistrates, including Corona.

Victorino expressed hope the incoming president would recognize the President's choice for the top SC post, saying she has been allowed by the Supreme Court to make such appointment.

But Liberal Party standard-bearer Benigno Aquino III, the frontrunner in the presidential elections, reacted by posing a question: Is it too much to ask President Arroyo not add another problem for the next administration to inherit?

Her appointment of a Chief Justice-in-waiting is at the very least inappropriate, Aquino said.

“Chief Justice Puno’s term has not ended. There is no vacancy to be filled. We call upon her to recognize the new government’s right to appoint the next Chief Justice. There is still time for Mrs. Arroyo to reconsider her decision. We hope she will choose not to add another burden on top of everything else she will be leaving behind. She should instead concentrate on ensuring a smooth transition. We will resolve the problem of the appointment of the Chief Justice with the utmost consideration for the provisions of the Constitution and the interest of the Filipino people,” Aquino added.

But a co-convenor of the Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) said that Aquino should respect the appointment of Corona as the next Chief Justice. (With a report from Jeamma E. Sabate)