serious offense for which the penalty of death or life imprisonment is imposed shall be by filing a notice of appeal in accordance with paragraph (a) of this Section. In giving due course to the notice of appeal filed by appellant, the trial court has directed that the entire records of the seventeen cases should be forwarded to this Court.xlv[45] It might be observed that this appeal, which has been assigned only one docket number, involves cases, although spawned under different circumstances could be said to somehow be linked to the incident giving rise to the case for illegal recruitment in large scale. The cases have thus been correctly consolidated and heard jointly below. The appeal made directly to this Court of the seventeen cases, each of which incidentally should have been assigned a separate docket number in this Court, is properly taken. Article 38(a) of the Labor Code considers illegal any recruitment activity undertaken by nonlicensees or non-holders of authority. Recruitment is defined by Article 13, paragraph (b), of the same Code as referring x x x to any act of canvassing, enlisting, contracting, transporting, utilizing, hiring or procuring workers, and includes referrals, contract services, promising or advertising for employment, locally or abroad, whether for profit or not; Provided, That any person or entity which, in any manner, offers or promises for a fee employment to two or more persons shall be deemed engaged in recruitment and placement. Illegal recruitment is committed when two elements concur: 1) That the offender has no valid license or authority required by law to enable one to lawfully engage in recruitment and placement of workers; and 2) That the offender undertakes either any activity within the meaning of recruitment and placement defined under Article 13(b), or any prohibited practices enumerated under Article 34.xlvi[46] Any person who commits the prohibited acts enumerated in Article 13(b) of the Labor Code shall be liable under Article 38(a) thereof.xlvii[47] The proviso in Article 13(b) lays down a rule of evidence that where a fee is collected in consideration of a promise or offer of employment to two or more prospective workers, the individual or entity dealing with them shall be deemed to be engaged in the act of recruitment and placement.xlviii[48] The article also provides that recruitment includes the act of referral or the act of passing along or forwarding of an applicant for employment after an initial interview of a selected applicant for employment to a selected employer, placement officer or bureau.xlix[49] The Court agrees with the trial court that appellant, indeed, violated the law against illegal recruitment. The prosecution was able to prove by overwhelming evidence that appellant did represent herself as being in a position to get for the aspiring overseas contract workers good-paying jobs abroad. Appellant was thus able to demand and receive various amounts from the applicants. The latter