UP grad leads 5,594 bar passers
A total of 5,594 passed the 2025 bar examinations, representing 48.98 percent of 11,425 takers, the Supreme Court announced on Wednesday.
Jhenroniel Rhey Timola Sanchez, a law graduate from the University of the Philippines (UP), topped the bar with a score of 92.70 percent. Sanchez finished his undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from UP Los Baños in 2017.
Supreme Court Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier said the 2025 bar exam ranks third with the highest number of passers. The highest was the 2020-2021 bar exam with 72.28-percent passing rate, followed by the 2016 bar exam with 59.06 percent.
Among those who passed was 59-year-old Eduardo Rivera Regio, who finally succeeded on his 11th attempt.
Lazaro-Javier, who chaired the 2025 bar exam, said five of the 11,425 examinees were disqualified because they were unable to comply with the requirements.
She further noted that there were 6,667 female examinees, 4,758 male examinees, 41 pregnant examinees, and 206 senior citizen examinees. In addition, there were 139 examinees with medical conditions and 241 examinees with disabilities.
The examination was conducted in 14 testing centers nationwide on Sept. 7, Sept. 10, and Sept. 14, 2025.
Top performers
Aside from Sanchez, five others in the Top 20 were from UP; four from the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Manila and one from UST Legazpi (Aquinas); and two from Ateneo de Manila University (Admu).
Admu, Ateneo de Davao University, and West Visayas State University (WVSU) were the top-performing schools in their respective categories.
Admu led with 96.52 percent passing rate among schools with more than 100 examinees, followed by UP (94.63 percent) and UST Manila (87.16 percent).
Ateneo de Davao led law schools with 51 to 100 examinees with a 100-percent passing rate, followed by Polytechnic University of the Philippines (89.89 percent) and Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (83.56 percent).
WVSU in Iloilo with a 100-percent passing rate was the top-performing among law schools with 11 to 50 examinees, followed by San Beda University (97.78 percent) and University of Makati (95.65 percent).
The Supreme Court said the school ratings were grouped based on number of bar candidates and by number of first-time bar takers.
‘Testament to dedication’
UST Law dean Nilo Divina said the current feat of UST “is a testament to the dedication of our students, the tireless commitment of our faculty, and the unwavering support of the Dominican Fathers, led by Father Rector, Reverend Father Richard Ang, O.P., families and mentors who walked this journey with them.”
He said the UST Faculty of Civil Law’s guiding formula has always been “to study as if everything depends on study, and pray as if everything depends on prayer.”
UST graduate Johann Raphael Gata, who ranked seventh, said reality has not yet fully sunk in.
“I offer this victory to my family, my loved ones, and everyone who supported and prayed for me. My motivation was really to help my family and, of course, to contribute to the mission of serving the people,” Gata said.
University of the East law graduate Ronald Vincent Gonzales, who ranked 20th, said the results exceeded his expectations.
“My only goal was just to pass. But with the help of the Lord, He gave me so much more,” Gonzales said.
Public service
He said his plan has always been to go into public service, specifically with the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO).
“We see so many injustices today. Many are deprived of the right to obtain proper justice. As a PAO lawyer, I want to help the underprivileged and the poor. Since I started law school, my heart has always been for them,” Gonzales said.
The oathtaking and signing of the Roll of Attorneys is scheduled for Feb. 6 at the Philippine Arena.
