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 General Counseling & Retainer


Services for clients who have retainer agreements with the Firm include consultations and contract documentation relating to clients’ operations. Consultations cover pertinent laws, rules and regulations bearing upon the tax, finance, insurance, foreign exchange, labor relations, and employment aspects of the clients’ activities. Documentation covers the preparation and review of agreements and contracts. The Firm likewise does routine notarial services for clients.

 Corporate, Administrative, & Special Projects


The Corporate Group provides an extensive range of legal services to domestic and foreign clients. Our corporate practice include general corporate law, business transactions, securities, insurance, commercial law, banking and finance, taxation, compliance, good governance, energy, real estate, foreign investments, and administrative law.

In particular, the Firm offers counseling on, and documentation of, clients’ rights and responsibilities relative to corporate matters or special transactions, including, but not limited to:

bullet business organizations
& reorganizations		 bullet environmental compliance
bullet acquisitions and mergers bullet domestic and foreign loan documentation and syndications
bullet dissolutions bullet securities offering & underwriting
bullet proxy contests bullet tax strategies
bullet creditor rights bullet estate planning
bullet insolvency/bankuptcy proceedings bullet investments
bullet suspension of payments bullet real estate conveyancing
bullet telecommunications agreements and licensing bullet joint ventures and partnership agreements
bullet intellectual property bullet insurance and surety contracts
bullet franchising and technology transfer agreements bullet infrastructure and project finance
bullet build-operate-transfer projects bullet legislative and liaison
       
The Firm extends legal assistance in matters requiring or involving Governmental licenses and authorizations, registration of documents and transactions with regulatory agencies, liaison work, protests, contests, litigation and other proceedings before administrative and quasi-judicial bodies, such as:
bullet Securities and Exchange Commission bullet Board of Investments
bullet Philippine Stock Exchange bullet Department of Trade and Industry
bullet • Bureau of Internal Revenue bullet Insurance Commission
bullet National Telecommunications Commission bullet Bureau of Immigration
bullet Bureau of Customs bullet Intellectual Property Office
bullet Philippines Overseas Employment Agency bullet Maritime Industry Authority
bullet Court of Tax Appeals bullet Public Estates Authority
bullet • Environmental Management Bureau bullet Civil Aeronautics Board
bullet Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board bullet Philippine Export Zone Authority
bullet Pollution Adjudication Board bullet Economic Intelligence and Investigation Bureau
bullet Land Registration Authority bullet Bureau of Trade Regulation and Consumer Protection
bullet Bangko Central n Pilipinas bullet Bureau of Food and Drugs
       

Directorship and Secretaryship
The Firm’s lawyers also act as directors, consultants, and corporate secretaries for clients. The work entails attendance at board and stockholders’ meetings, counseling during the meetings, preparation and keeping of minutes, resolutions and stock transfer books, issuance of stock certificates and documentation of stock transfer transactions.

Legal Audit
The Corporate Group also provides legal audit services involving the comprehensive review of the clients’ business operations, contracts, forms, policies, and structure.

 
 Litigation


The Litigation Group offers expert advice, advocacy, litigation strategies based on sensitivity to the client’s business goals and awareness of the practical concerns that affect adversarial proceedings. Our advice is geared towards amicable settlement of the conflict and avoidance of suits.

The Litigation Group handles all stages of civil, commercial, and criminal litigation in all courts of justice and administrative bodies performing quasi-judicial functions, and before arbitrators, involving the following areas:

Commercial and Administrative Litigation

bullet corporate disputes, including inter-corporate and intra-corporate disputes bullet construction litigation
bullet insurance and reinsurance disputes bullet insolvency and bankruptcy
bullet banking and finance disputes, including letters of credit issues bullet securities and commodities fraud litigation
bullet maritime litigation and arbitration bullet piracy, infringement and unfair competition cases involving intellectual property
bullet tax matters bullet other commercial transactions
       

Civil Litigation and Special Proceedings
bullet persons and family relations cases bullet will contests and other probate-related matters
bullet property disputes bullet enforcement of foreign judgments
bullet land registration bullet conflict of laws disputes, including Forum Non Conveniens
bullet expropriation of property bullet special proceedings
bullet torts and quasi-delict liability claims bullet debt collection
bullet foreclosures    
       
Criminal and Election Cases
The Firm represents clients in criminal cases. Our lawyers also provide counseling and conduct seminars on election laws, and represent clients before the Commission on Elections, the different canvassing boards and electoral tribunals.
       
 Labor


Labor issues play a major aspect in investment, acquisition, and in the regular operations of a company. We assist in due diligence, the legal aspects of hiring such as the preparation of employment contracts, manuals and programs for employee benefits, compliance, drafting and negotiating collective bargaining agreements, and transition issues including early retirement, dismissal and retrenchment.

The Firm represents clients in litigation directly involving labor and employment laws in proceedings before various agencies, such as:

bullet Group of Labor and Employment
bullet Philippine Overseas Employment Administration
bullet National Labor Relations Commission
bullet Overseas Workers Welfare Administration
bullet National Conciliation and Meditation Board
bullet Bureau of Labor Relations
       

The Labor Group has wide experience in the following areas:
bullet collective bargaining negotiations bullet grievance handling
bullet preventive counseling in personnel management bullet wage and salary standardization, including correction of wage distortion
bullet employment contract drafting and interpretation bullet labor ramification of mergers, divestments, acquisitions and other business reorganizations
bullet voluntary and compulsory arbitration bullet mediation and conciliation
bullet illegal dismissal and money claims    
bullet strikes and unfair labor practice cases