Plagiarism in the Context of the Philippine Judicial and Legal System
Name: Celedonio S. Manubag Jr.
Subject: Legal Research
Year & Section: EH309

What is Plagiarism? Will it affect the contents of a certain information when it comes to originality and reliability? What will happen if plagiarism is applied in the Philippine Judicial and Legal System?
Plagiarism is an act of using someone’s work, words, thoughts, or ideas without asking for permission or without giving proper credit to the original author. Plagiarism greatly affects the reliability of the content of the information, In situations where an individual plagiarized, the contents are subjected to changes, as he claims it to be his own, depriving the original author which it can affect its reliability. .
The Department of Justice (DOJ) stated under its Advisory Opinion No. 02, Series of 2012 in addressing the meaning of plagiarism in the context of Philippine law and cases that "Plagiarism is a concept more understood in academic circles as an offense against academic integrity anathema to the strict standards of originality of scholarly works which members of the academic community subscribe to” Secretary of Justice Leila de Lima, likewise, stated that it is important to know what plagiarism is and to clarify the misconception that there is no crime of plagiarism under our laws.

The Supreme Court described plagiarism as “ the deliberate and knowing presentation of another’s original ideas or creative expression as one’s own”. Thus, if committed under such circumstances can amount to an infringement on the rights of the original author and a criminal violation of the Intellectual Property Code, the E-Commerce Act or the Cybercrime Prevention Act.
Plagiarism, is indeed, a crime under the Philippine Judicial and Legal System. In the case of U.S. Bloggers versus Sotto , where Sotto used the works of said bloggers in the preparation of his Reproductive Health Bill ,without their permission and consent nor gave them the proper attribution. Sotto denies the allegation but his Chief of Staff admitted that some parts of such bill were really copied. Again for using the speech of President Kennedy although this was translated in the Filipino dialect, the daughter charged him for the unauthorized, and unpermitted use of the same, as a copyright infringement under the Intellectual Property Code. A complaint has been filed in both instances against Sotto.
To avoid being charged with plagiarism, it is best to formulate our own based on the readings of various manuscripts but we should avoid the habit of copying other’s works, much more, present it as our own. In the event that there is a need to cite and or use the works of others, it is best to cite the source and attribute the original author .