A total of 628 aspiring Shari’ah counselors-at-law completed the 2025 Shari’ah Special Bar Examinations (SSBE) on Wednesday, marking a historic milestone as the first fully digital and decentralized SSBE in the country. Held over two days, the exams took place across four local testing centers: the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman in Quezon City, Mindanao State University – Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT), Ateneo de Davao University (AdDU), and Ateneo de Zamboanga University (AdZU). MSU-IIT hosted the largest number of examinees with 314, followed by UP Diliman with 155, AdDU with 119, and AdZU with 40. At UP Diliman, 92 examinees were able to type their responses in Arabic using an Arabic keyboard, according to the Supreme Court. Many of those who took the exam at MSU-IIT studied in MSU’s College of Law—in the main campus in Marawi and extensions in four campuses (Iligan, Maguindanao, Tawi-Tawi, and Sulu)—which has integrated Shari’ah in its academic course. Of the 629 candidates who sat for the exam on May 25, only one did not return for the second day on May 28, according to Associate Justice Antonio T. Kho Jr., chairperson of the 2025 SSBE. Among the 628 who completed the exam, 322 were first-time takers, 380 were women (representing 60% of the total), three were senior citizens—the oldest aged 65—and the youngest examinee was just 22 years old. A key innovation in this year’s SSBE was the use of translation software that converted English questions into Arabic and allowed Arabic responses to be translated back into English for checking, with support from human translators. Examinees were also able to type their answers in Arabic, a move seen as enhancing accessibility for those more fluent in the language of Islamic jurisprudence. Justice Kho emphasized that the transformation of the SSBE into an annual, digital, and decentralized examination places it on equal footing with the regular Bar exams, in line with the judiciary’s Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations 2022–2027, which champions inclusivity and access to justice. Justice Japar B. Dimaampao, consultant to the 2025 SSBE, underscored that the examination continues to promote integration of Islamic Law into the Philippine judicial system. He clarified that non-Muslims may take the SSBE. Under Bar Matter No. 5067, applicants must be Filipino citizens, at least 21 years old, and permanently domiciled in the Philippines. While the Supreme Court had initially planned to offer the 2025 SSBE overseas, the proposed Middle East testing center did not push through due to low turnout, with only 22 individuals expressing interest. However, efforts to expand access globally continue. For the 2026 SSBE, under the leadership of Associate Justice Henri Jean Paul B. Inting, the Supreme Court is working to establish a testing center in Saudi Arabia—provided that at least 50 examinees commit to taking the exam there to reflect the Court’s broader mission to globalize access to Islamic legal practice, particularly for Filipino Muslims abroad. (Violeta M. Gloria / MindaNews)
