The Philippines is an archipelago in Southeastern Asia, with a relatively young and educated population of about 118 million people, more than half of whom are under 35 years old. The CIA World Factbook describes its economy as a “diversified, growing East Asian economy; [a] major semiconductor, ship-building, and electronics exporter; [has] significant remittances; and is a “major geothermal energy user”.

Owing to Spanish and American influences from their years of occupation of the islands, the Philippine legal system is a mix of civil law and common law traditions, with civil law the dominant strain in property, personal rights and family law, succession, and criminal law, while common law is prevalent in its constitution, corporate and financial laws, public administration and regulation, jurisprudence, evidence and judicial procedure. It has common law writs like replevin and habeas corpus, and principles like res judicata and case law, while existing side by side with Roman law and even canon law precepts.

As an investment destination, the Philippines has key ingredients – an English- speaking work force (ranked 14th in the world by size), abundant natural resources like timber, petroleum, nickel, natural gas, cobalt, silver, gold, salt, and copper, and a strategic location in the heart of sea lanes from Asia to the Americas, Japan, Australia and the Pacific on the eastern side, and to the South China Sea, the Indian Ocean, China and the rest of South and Southeast Asia on the western side. As a rapidly modernizing country, the Philippines offers foreign investors many opportunities especially in infrastructure, mineral and other natural resources, communications, energy, agriculture, electronics, transportation, business process outsourcing, land utilization and use conversion, and government projects such as public-private partnerships and privatization.

The firm has established and proven knowledge of and experience with the Philippines’ multi-faceted culture and vibrant if rambunctious politics, its dualist legal system, challenging governance infrastructure, business permitting and authorizations, and complex stakeholder engagement. At the same time, its lawyers are well-versed with the demands of foreign investors in corporate governance and business ethics including anti-corrupt practices and money laundering, investment protection and guarantees, and foreign currency repatriation, among other doing business essentials.

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