MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court on Friday joined the law community in mourning the death of Ateneo Law School (ALS) Dean Jose Maria “Joey” Hofileña. Hofileña was also a member of the Commercial Law Department of the Philippine Judicial Academy (PHILJA), as well as the High Court’s Sub-Committee for the Review of the New Code of Judicial Conduct for the Philippine Judiciary. The High Court also said that he was a “distinguished figure in the Philippine legal community and was widely respected for his legal acumen and dedication to education”. “Beyond his academic and professional achievements, Dean Hofileña was a valued member of the PHILJA and left a lasting impact on colleagues, students, and the legal community at large,” the High Court said. “We extend our heartfelt condolences to Dean Hofileña’s family, loved ones, and the legal community during this time of grief,” they added. Meanwhile, his alma mater, the Ateneo de Manila University, also joined in mourning a “true blue Atenean.” “It is with deep sadness that we inform the University community of the passing of Atty Jose Maria “Joey” G Hofileña, Dean of the Ateneo Law School on Feb. 26, 2026,” the university said in a memo on Friday. “Joey was a true-blue Atenean, completing his elementary education in 1975 and secondary education in 1979. He graduated with honors in 1983 with an AB in Interdisciplinary Studies. In 1987, earned his Bachelor of Laws degree from Ateneo Law School, distinguishing himself as Class Valedictorian and recipient of the Evelio Javier Leadership Award. He ranked 10th in the 1987 Bar Examinations. He obtained his Master of Laws (LLM) from Harvard Law School in 1990,” the Ateneo said. The university urged its community to keep Hofileña and his family in their prayers. Hofileña served the Ateneo Law School for 13 years, serving as its dean for the past eight years. Under his watch, the law school achieved high passing rates in the bar examinations. Most recently, the law school got a 98.11 percent passing rate among first-time takers and a 96.52 percent passing rate among all ALS takers. “This announcement is, as always, a moment of great joy—and no small measure of relief—for our ALS bar passers, considering all that they had given and endured to achieve this milestone in their quest. We are deeply happy for, and immensely proud of, each one of them. Not any prouder, however, of each one of you who had helped so very generously in countless ways to enable them to reach this point. Indeed, success in the bar exams bears eloquent witness to the value and durable strength of our Ateneo Law community—one we trust will continue to flourish well into the future, because of and for each one of us,” Hofileña said in a memo to the Ateneo Law community last Jan. 7, 2026. “We are not unmindful, of course, that the announcement of the results comes at a time marked by widespread corruption and serious challenges to the rule of law, both domestically and abroad. It is our fervent hope that each of our ALS bar passers will enter the legal profession as principled lawyers animated by zeal, courage and Ignatian fervor—committed to upholding the primacy of the law as an instrument for the protection of individual rights, the promotion of the common good, the pursuit of justice, and the demand for accountability. And just as we came to one another’s aid in our collective effort toward success in the 2025 Bar Examinations, may we continue to stand by one another as one Ateneo Law community, drawing strength from our shared mission as Ateneo lawyers,” he added.