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THE LAW FIRM OF LAGUESMA MAGSALIN CONSULTA AND GASTARDO, PETITIONER, VS. THE COMMISSION ON AUDIT AND/OR REYNALDO A. VILLAR AND JUANITO G. ESPINO, JR. IN THEIR CAPACITIES AS CHAIRMAN AND COMMISSIONER, RESPECTIVELY, RESPONDENTS.

THE LAW FIRM OF LAGUESMA MAGSALIN CONSULTA AND GASTARDO, PETITIONER, VS. THE COMMISSION ON AUDIT AND/OR REYNALDO A. VILLAR AND JUANITO G. ESPINO, JR. IN THEIR CAPACITIES AS CHAIRMAN AND COMMISSIONER, RESPECTIVELY, RESPONDENTS.

G.R. No. 185544 | 2015-01-13

EN BANC
 
D E C I S I O N

LEONEN, J.:

When a government entity engages the legal services of private counsel, it must do so with the necessary authorization required by law; otherwise, its officials bind themselves to be personally liable for compensating private counsel’s services.
 
This is a petition1 for certiorari filed pursuant to Rule XI, Section 1 of the 1997 Revised Rules of Procedure of the Commission on Audit.  The petition seeks to annul the decision2 dated September 27, 2007 and resolution3 dated November 5, 2008 of the Commission on Audit, which disallowed the payment of retainer fees to the law...