Shari’ah special Bar exams set for May

The Supreme Court announced yesterday that the next Shari’ah Special Bar Examinations (SC) will be held in May or June 2025, according to Associate Justice Antonio T. Kho Jr., chairperson of the 2025 SSBE.

Justice Kho stated that the exams will continue to be conducted digitally at designated local testing centers across the country, in line with the Supreme Court’s Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations 2022-2027 (SPJI) on technological adaptivity.

He said the SC is considering establishing an international testing center in the Middle East for the first time to accommodate Filipino Muslims abroad. In the recent SSBE, six examinees from Saudi Arabia took the exam, with 50 percent passing.

In preparation for the 2025 SSBE, the Philippine Judicial Academy, in partnership with the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos, will hold the 2024 Shari’ah Training Seminar (STS) from 16 September to 13 December 2024, at selected sites nationwide. Filipino Muslims abroad can participate in the STS online.

The STS, fully funded by the Court, is offered at no cost to Filipino Muslims in the Philippines and abroad. Justice Kho encouraged those interested in the 2025 SSBE to register online.