MANILA - A breath short of confirming his acceptance of his automatic nomination for the position of Chief Justice, Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio intimated on Wednesday he is inclined to joining the race.

“There appears to be no legal impediment... There is no reason to decline,” Carpio said in an interview on the sidelines of his lecture on the West Philippine Sea in Makati City.

The search for the next top magistrate comes in light of the scheduled retirement of Chief Justice Teresita Leonardo-De Castro on Oct. 8.

The deadline for applications and nominations with corresponding acceptance, as well as submission of all documentary requirements is set on Oct. 15.

Carpio had previously declined his nomination for the top justice post, which was declared vacant following the ouster of Maria Lourdes Sereno as chief magistrate through a quo warranto petition in May.

In declining the nomination, Carpio explained that he did not want to "benefit" from a decision he had voted against.

• Carpio officially declines chief justice nomination
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Sereno was removed from power for her failure to fully disclose the required statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth when she applied for the chief justice post in 2012.

She was succeeded by De Castro, whose 41-day term as chief magistrate is the shortest in Philippine history.

Carpio, 68, has served as acting chief justice twice, following the ousters of Sereno in May and her predecessor, the late Renato Corona, in 2012.

He is the most senior sitting magistrate of the Supreme Court and is now on his 17th year in the high tribunal. He has applied for and was shortlisted for the Chief Justice post twice before: in 2010 and in 2012.

Carpio and the four most senior justices of the high court- Associate Justices Diosdado Peralta, Lucas Bersamin, Mariano Del Castillo, and Estela Perlas-Bernabe- have been automatically nominated by the Judicial and Bar Council, consistent with tradition, but will have to submit a letter of conforme/acceptance and comply with all requirements.

After the JBC shall have screened compliance with all documentary requirements, qualified applicants shall undergo a public interview which will be streamed live by the Supreme Court.

The council will thereafter deliberate on the qualifications of each applicant and vote on a shortlist of names to be submitted to President Rodrigo Duterte, who has to appoint his second Chief Justice appointee 90 days from the day of vacancy (Oct. 8).

Peralta and Bersamin were shortlisted, along with De Castro, during the search for Sereno’s replacement.

Bernabe, then 6th most senior, declined the nomination made by retired Sandiganbayan magistrate Raoul Victorino, who nominated all sitting SC justices.