César Fernando Cabrera Bengzon (May 29, 1896 – September 3, 1992) was the

Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines The chief justice of the Philippines ( fil, Punong Mahistrado ng Pilipinas) presides over the Supreme Court of the Philippines and is the highest judicial officer of the government of the Philippines. As of April 5, 2021, the position is curr ...

from April 28, 1961 until May 29, 1966. In November 1966, a few months after his retirement, he became the first Filipino to be appointed to the

International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...

Judicial career

Bengzon earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from

Ateneo de Manila , mottoeng = Light in the Lord , type = Private, research, non-profit, coeducational basic and higher education institution , established = December 10, 1859 , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic (Jesuits) , academic_affi ...

in 1915. He graduated his Bachelor of Laws from the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

in 1919, and placed second in the Bar Examinations that same year. Starting out as a law clerk, he was promoted to Solicitor General in 1932 and Undersecretary of Justice under

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

(later

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

Justice)

Frank Murphy William Francis Murphy (April 13, 1890July 19, 1949) was an American politician, lawyer and jurist from Michigan. He was a Democrat who was named to the Supreme Court of the United States in 1940 after a political career that included serving ...

in 1933. He was later appointed in 1936 to the Court of Appeals, and became an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court in 1945. He left the Supreme Court in 1948 to become Secretary of Justice under

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Elpidio Quirino Elpidio Rivera Quirino (born Elpidio Quirino y Rivera; ; November 16, 1890 – February 29, 1956) was a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the sixth president of the Philippines from 1948 to 1953. A lawyer by profession, Quirino enter ...

, but was reinstated a few months later.

References

Cesar Fernando Bengzon Baptismal Certificate
* Cruz, Isagani A. (2000). ''Res Gestae: A Brief History of the Supreme Court''. Rex Book Store, Manila {{DEFAULTSORT:Bengzon, Cesar 1896 births 1992 deaths Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the Philippines Ateneo de Manila University alumni Chief justices of the Supreme Court of the Philippines 20th-century Filipino lawyers International Court of Justice judges Justices of the Court of Appeals of the Philippines People from Tarlac Quirino administration cabinet members Secretaries of Justice of the Philippines Solicitors General of the Philippines University of the Philippines alumni University of the Philippines College of Law alumni Filipino judges of United Nations courts and tribunals