The Sandiganbayan will order former Sen. Jinggoy Estrada’s side to explain why he skipped Monday’s hearing on his bid to forego submission of a pre-trial brief. A show-cause order is set to be issued by the antigraft court’s Fifth Division directing Estrada’s lawyers to explain why they should not be sanctioned for their failure to appear during the scheduled hearing. ADVERTISEMENTEven as Monday’s hearing did not push through, the court will still keep the Jan. 30 date for the pre-trial of Estrada’s plunder case. Not requiredEstrada’s lawyers said a pre-trial brief was not required under the Rules of Court. While acknowledging that filing a pre-trial brief was not mandatory, they said it would be beneficial in speeding up proceedings.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer October 10, 2016 16:41 UTC