SC disbars lawyer for cheating on wife, entering into bigamous marriage, sexually harassing 13 women
Warning: This article contains mention of sexual abuse.
The Supreme Court (SC) has disbarred a lawyer who was found to have committed several immoral acts, such as engaging in an extramarital affair and sexually harassing women by showing them pornographic materials.
In its 24-page ruling published on its website, the SC stated that it has disbarred lawyer Lovejoy Quiambao for grossly immoral conduct, in violation of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability.
The high court found him guilty of four counts of grossly immoral conduct. The first one was openly cheating on his wife with at least three women during his marriage, which he admitted.
He was also found to have entered into a bigamous marriage, or getting married while you are still legally married to someone else, and fathered two illegitimate children.
Quiambao further committed sexual harassment against 13 women by showing them pornographic materials and engaging in sexually charged conversations with them.
According to the ruling, Quiambao's wife Merriam Rojas first learned that he had sexually harassed their house helper, who was an 18-year-old working student at the time, in October 2016.
The victim claimed that Quiambao had cupped her breasts, showed her pornographic photos and videos, offered to teach her sexual intercourse, masturbated in her presence, and offered her P1 million if she touched his private parts.
When his wife confronted him about this, he reasoned that he was "hooked on pornography and could not stop himself from using it," prompting them to seek psychological intervention from a psychiatrist in Cagayan de Oro.
Still, Rojas continued investigating her husband's actions by meeting with his former employees, where she was horrified to·discover that aside from their helper, Quiambao also sexually abused at least 13 other former employees who worked for them as house helpers, secretaries, and storekeepers.
Of these women, two were allegedly minors, aged 16 and 17 years old.
Because of this discovery, Rojas filed a petition for legal separation from Quiambao before the Regional Trial Court of Cabadbaran City, Agusan del Norte, which was then granted in 2018.
As Quiambao's actions were taken to court, he admitted several of Rojas' allegations against him, such as showing their former employees several pornographic photographs and videos and having sexual relations with at least three women during their marriage.
During the hearings, Rojas further added that Quiambao had two illegitimate children with a certain postal office clerk. However, he argued that the clerk was not simply a woman whom he impregnated because, after his marriage to Rojas was allegedly annulled, he subsequently married the clerk in June 2021.
But the SC ruled that without a prior decree dissolving the marriage between Quiambao and Rojas, his marriage to the clerk is bigamous.
Apart from disbarment and suspension from practicing law for six years, Quiambao is also facing a penalty of fine amounting to P400,000.