ILOILO CITY — A major expansion of Iloilo City’s justice infrastructure is taking a significant step forward, with a 7,000-square-meter government property in Barangay San Pedro, Molo district being prepared for a proposed consolidated Hall of Justice and prosecution complex.
The proposed development would bring key judicial and prosecutorial offices together on one government site, potentially making it easier for litigants, lawyers and other clients to access different components of the justice system.
The Iloilo City Council held a special session on August 20, 2026, to consider measures authorizing Mayor Raisa Treñas to formalize agreements with the Supreme Court of the Philippines and the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the planned development.
4,000 square meters for the Supreme Court
Under the proposal, 4,000 square meters of the property would be allocated to the Supreme Court for the construction of a new Hall of Justice.
The city council considered authorizing Treñas to sign a Memorandum of Agreement with the Supreme Court, represented by Court Administrator Ma. Theresa Dolores Gomez-Estoesta. The proposal also calls for a deed of donation transferring the designated portion of the property to the Supreme Court.
The planned facility is significant because Iloilo’s existing Chief Justice Ramon Q. Avanceña Hall of Justice has faced infrastructure concerns following strong earthquakes in the Visayas and Mindanao.
In October 2025, the Iloilo Provincial Government reported that court operations at the existing Hall of Justice had been suspended while its structural integrity was being assessed. The province subsequently offered an 8-hectare property in Barangay Guinobatan, New Lucena as a possible alternative site for a new Hall of Justice. Some justice-sector offices were temporarily relocated to other government facilities.
That earlier proposal provides important context for the latest development: the Molo site represents a separate, more centrally located city-government proposal focused on consolidating judicial and prosecution facilities within Iloilo City.
DOJ to get another 3,000 square meters
The remaining 3,000 square meters of the proposed 7,000-square-meter site would be allocated to the Department of Justice.
According to the proposal, the area would accommodate a prosecution complex for the Regional, Provincial and City Prosecutors’ Offices.
The city council also considered authorizing the mayor to enter into an agreement with the DOJ, represented by Justice Secretary Frederick A. Vida, followed by a deed of donation and acceptance.
If completed, the project would therefore combine two major components of the justice system: the courts under the Supreme Court and prosecution offices under the DOJ.
Why the project matters
The idea of consolidating justice-sector institutions is not entirely new.
The Philippine Development Plan has described a Justice Hub as an infrastructure concept designed to bring together courts, prosecutors, public attorneys, police and jail facilities in a single location, with the goal of improving coordination and access to justice.
Western Visayas’ regional development planning has likewise identified justice hubs as a way to improve interaction and coordination among agencies involved in the justice system.
The proposed Iloilo project, however, should be described accurately as a planned judicial and prosecution complex at this stage. The August 25 report concerns proposed allocations, authorizations, agreements and deeds of donation; it does not indicate that construction has already begun.
Iloilo’s existing Hall of Justice
The current Chief Justice Ramon Q. Avanceña Hall of Justice is located along Bonifacio Drive in Iloilo City and houses multiple Regional Trial Court branches.
Supreme Court records, for example, list RTC Branches 31, 34 and 38 at the existing Hall of Justice. The Public Attorney’s Office’s Region VI office is also listed at the building.
The building is named after Ramon Q. Avanceña, a native of Molo, Iloilo, who served as Chief Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court from 1925 to 1941.
That connection gives the proposed Molo development an added historical dimension: the district where Avanceña was born could potentially become home to a major new judicial complex bearing his name.
What happens next?
For now, the key issue is formalization and implementation.
The Iloilo City government still needs to complete the necessary agreements and property-transfer arrangements with the Supreme Court and DOJ before the proposed development can proceed to the next stages.
If those steps are completed, the 7,000-square-meter site in Barangay San Pedro could become a major new center for judicial and prosecutorial services in Iloilo City.
The bigger question now is not simply whether Iloilo will get a new Hall of Justice—but how quickly the proposed site can move from government property and legal agreements to an actual functioning justice complex.
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