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During a regular session of the Sangguniang Panlungsod of Dalisay City, Councilor X publicly accuses the city mayor of embezzlement, basing her statements on a confidential memo circulated among members for deliberations on a new public works project. The mayor files a civil libel suit in the Regional Trial Court. Councilor X moves to dismiss, invoking the inviolability of speech and debate in the course of legislative proceedings.
(a) Identify the controlling doctrine governing statements made in the legislative process and describe its scope.
(b) Distinguish legislative privilege from ordinary defamation law and from any other related immunities or protections.
(c) Apply the doctrine to the facts: should the libel suit be dismissed on account of legislative privilege? Explain any limits, exceptions, or boundaries that would affect your conclusion.