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Bar topnotcher Jhenroniel Rhey Sanchez.

Francis Orcio

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1767781128786viber_image_2026-01-07_16-58-12-120.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Bar topnotcher Jhenroniel Rhey Sanchez. Photo courtesy of Sanchez" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Bar topnotcher Jhenroniel Rhey Sanchez. <em>Photo courtesy of Sanchez</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA -- Jhenroniel Rhey Sanchez never imagined his name would sit at the very top of the 2025 Bar Examination list. </p><p>At 31, the University of the Philippines Diliman graduate, who is also a first-time bar taker, emerged as the topnotcher of the September 2025 bar examinations with a rating of 92.70 percent, an outcome that even he describes as shocking. </p><p>The Supreme Court announced the results on Wednesday, January 7, with Sanchez leading the more than 5,000 successful passers nationwide. </p><p>For Sanchez, however, the moment was not defined by expectation, confidence, or certainty -- but by disbelief. </p><p>“I&#x27;m honestly surprised, because I wasn&#x27;t really intending of course na mag-top sa bar. So this all comes a bit as a shock,” Sanchez said. </p><p>Unlike many bar hopefuls who anxiously refresh web pages while waiting for results, Sanchez chose the opposite. He deliberately disconnected from the internet, cutting himself off from the anticipation altogether. </p><p>“Personally, inabangan ko iyong results by cutting myself off from my internet connection essentially,” he said. </p><div><a class="fr-green" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/1/7/ue-grad-leads-5-594-bar-passers-for-2025-1405"><strong>UP Law grad leads 5,594 Bar passers for 2025</strong></a></div><p>“But may tumawag sa akin na friend ko when I was going home. And then, in-inform niya sa akin iyong results,” he added. </p><p>Even passing the bar was never a certainty in his mind. Once the exams were over, Sanchez says he stopped thinking about them entirely, believing the outcome was already beyond his control. </p><p>When confirmation came that he not only passed but topped the bar, his reaction remained subdued, defined more by disbelief than triumph. </p><p>“Honestly, surprised lang talaga ako because as I&#x27;ve mentioned, all I wanted was to pass the bar. Iyon lang naman. Which is essentially the goal of every taker of the bar. Everything else just kind of shocks me ngayon to be honest,” he said. </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>AN &#x27;AVERAGE&#x27; STUDENT </strong></div><p>Sanchez’s journey, as he shared, did not begin with distinction. In law school, he said he was never a standout, describing himself as an average student who did what was required, no more and no less. </p><p>“Mostly, average student lang naman ako. In our block, there are some really good students. I just intended to keep to the middle of the pack, essentially. I wouldn’t say na notable talaga ako,” he said. He graduated from UP Law without academic awards and without the kind of recognition often associated with future topnotchers. </p><p>Even he admits there was little reason, based on his law school record alone, to expect a historic bar performance. </p><p>More tellingly, Sanchez failed a subject during law school called &quot;Civil Procedure.&quot; The setback delayed his graduation by a year. </p><p>“I probably just wasn&#x27;t good enough doon sa eyes ng professor ko noon, which is fair, since I struggled naman talaga with civil procedure noon,” he admitted. </p><div><a class="fr-green" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/1/7/full-list-2025-bar-examination-passers-1520"><strong>FULL LIST: 5,594 passers of the 2025 Bar Examinations</strong></a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>WORKING HIS WAY THROUGH LAW SCHOOL </strong></div><p>Before going to law school, Sanchez earned a degree in Electrical Engineering from UP Los Baños and became a licensed electrical engineer. Yet he eventually found himself more drawn to reading, ethics, and legal reasoning than calculations and formulas. </p><p>&quot;The stereotypical answer would be kasi mahilig akong magbasa, which is accurate in a sense. We took engineering ethics during undergrad and that had been, rather, more interesting din para sa akin compared to sa aking mga classes involving calculations. I realized na may reasonable chance naman of pursuing a law degree,&quot; he xplained. </p><p>His decision to enter law school came with a firm personal rule: that he would pay for it himself. </p><p>“I wanted to be the one to be paying my own tuition because, ako nag-decide na mag-enter sa law school e. So, naturally, I would have the responsibility for paying for it,” he explained. </p><p>Enrolled in UP Law’s evening program, Sanchez worked during the day, first in various roles and later as a paralegal, before commuting to Diliman for evening classes. Sleep was often limited to five or six hours. </p><p>“It&#x27;s the stereotypical evening student schedule of work in the morning, study in the evening, maybe catch five hours of sleep, and do that for a few years,” he shared. </p><p>Despite the exhaustion and financial pressure, Sanchez approached challenges methodically, addressing problems one at a time. </p><p>“I tend to view it as deal with the current problem before dealing with another problem. Or as I would have phrased it is to deal with this dumpster fire before the other dumpster fire,” he said. </p><div><strong> </strong><a class="fr-green" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/celebrities/2026/1/7/nico-antonio-luke-jickain-among-passers-of-2025-bar-exam-1618"><strong>Nico Antonio, Luke Jickain among passers of 2025 Bar Exam</strong></a></div><div><strong><br id="isPasted"/>A WIN SHARED</strong></div><p>When asked for advice for future bar examinees, Sanchez was hesitant. He rejected clichés and motivational platitudes, emphasizing instead the collective nature of success. </p><p>“A lot of the time, personal hard work is not really enough. You&#x27;re never really going through these things alone. So, if you need help, ask for some help,” he said. </p><p>He stressed the importance of seeking help, whether through mentors, reviewers, or peers, and acknowledged that his achievement was built on shared knowledge and guidance. </p><p>“It does not demean anyone if you would ever need to ask for help from your compatriots. So it&#x27;s never really an individual achievement is I suppose what I&#x27;m trying to get at,” he said. </p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/X1-yzQB5aUg?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Jhenroniel Rhey Sanchez never imagined his name would sit at the very top of the 2025 Bar Examination list.</p>

Jhenroniel Rhey Sanchez never imagined his name would sit at the very top of the 2025 Bar Examination list.

Working by day, studying by night: UP Law grad tops the 2025 Bar exam

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Working by day, studying by night: UP Law grad tops the 2025 Bar exam

Francis Orcio,

ABS-CBN News

Published Jan 07, 2026 06:25 PM PHT

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Updated Jan 07, 2026 07:46 PM PHT

Read More:

UP Law

Bar Exam

Topnotcher

Jhenroniel Rhey Sanchez

2025 Bar

Supreme Court

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