SyCip Salazar Hernandez & Gatmaitan

Managing Partner: Hector M. de Leon, Jr.

Number of partners: 42

Number of lawyers: 150

Languages: Chinese, English, Filipino, Japanese, Spanish, Korean

Firm Overview: 

SyCip Salazar Hernandez & Gatmaitan was founded in 1945 and is a leading full-service law firm in the Philippines. Its principal office is in Makati City, with branch offices in Cebu City, Davao City and the Subic Bay Freeport Zone. The firm offers a broad and integrated range of legal services, with departments in the following fields: banking, finance and securities; special projects; corporate services; litigation and dispute resolution; employment law and immigration; intellectual property; and tax. With this structure, SyCiplaw has specialists in key practice areas, such as mergers and acquisitions, energy, construction, infrastructure, aviation, anti-trust, natural resources, government contracts, real estate, insurance, arbitration, mediation, technology, media and telecommunications. The firm represents clients from almost every industry and enterprise, and the firm’s client portfolio includes local and global business leaders. The firm also acts for governmental agencies, international organisations, and non-profit institutions. SyCipLaw maintains links with established and leading firms based in Asia, Europe, Canada, the US, Central and South America, Australia, and New Zealand. SyCipLaw was recognised as the “Philippine Law Firm of the Year” at the Chambers Asia Pacific Awards 2020 and Asialaw Awards 2020. In 2020, SyCipLaw is ranked as a top ranked firm by Chambers Global and Chambers Asia-Pacific, Top Tier Firm by IFLR1000 Rankings, Tier 1 by Legal 500, and Outstanding by Asialaw Profiles.

Main Areas of Practice: 

Banking, Finance & Securities:  

SyCipLaw represents clients in a broad range of lending, capital market, and other financing transactions, as well as in financial restructurings. It provides advice on regulatory matters affecting banks and other financial institutions, and has assisted in major bank acquisitions and mergers. The firm has worked on a number of key project financing deals involving power plants, airports, mass transit systems, toll roads, telecommunications facilities, and water and power distribution systems.

Contact: Vicente D Gerochi IV (department head)

Email: [email protected]

Corporate Services: 

The firm provides a full range of services for its clients, including setting up a business presence in the Philippines, advising on compliance and governance matters, acting as corporate secretaries, and assisting the client in managing director and stockholder meetings, share issuances and transfers, and record keeping.

Contact: Imelda A. Manguiat (department head)

Email: [email protected]

Intellectual Property: 

SyCipLaw’s intellectual property (IP) practice is the largest in the country in terms of client base and range of services offered. These include basic rights protection, such as trademark, copyright, licensing, patent, technology transfer, and product registration. The firm assists its clients in navigating the legal issues and concerns that have arisen with developments in science and technology, e-commerce and Internet-based transactions law, and has the experience and capabilities to continue providing them with responsive and creative support. The firm’s IP practice has been cited in leading international surveys as a first choice for IPR counseling and as one of the leading IP firms in the Philippines.

Contact: Vida M Panganiban-Alindogan (department head)

Email: [email protected]

Employment & Immigration:  

SyCipLaw’s Employment and Immigration Department (EID) advises and represents clients in a variety of non-adversarial and adversarial employment law matters, as well as in developing programs and strategies intended to improve labor relations in businesses and to avoid inefficiencies and conflicts within the workplace. The mindset is to minimise or avoid litigation. When unavoidable, EID advises and represents clients in adversarial proceedings before labour agencies, and in litigation and appellate work before the regular courts. The firm also handles labour relations matters, including collective bargaining negotiation.

Contact: Dante T Pamintuan (department head)

Email: [email protected]

Litigation & Dispute Resolution: 

SyCipLaw’s litigation and arbitration practice is integrally linked with its renowned commercial law practice. The firm’s connection and access to its commercial practice enables its litigation and arbitration practitioners to draw on its unparalleled commercial law experience and expertise in the most significant, complex, and high-value cases. The firm’s litigation and arbitration practice is highly ranked and regarded by the most reputable international legal practice research guides. It litigates in all court levels (with a particularly strong appellate and Supreme Court practice) as well as administrative agencies. SyCipLaw has been involved in numerous landmark commercial law cases in the Supreme Court over the past few years. The firm’s extensive arbitration practice includes foreign arbitration, international, commercial and other domestic arbitration, and construction arbitration.

Contact: Ricardo Ma P G Ongkiko (department head)

Email: [email protected]

Special Projects:  

The Special Projects group undertakes the firm’s project and transactional work, which constitute the firm’s traditional focus and largest practice area. This includes M&A, privatisation, power and energy, mining and natural resources, environmental law, infrastructure, construction, real estate and property development, telecommunications, aviation, shipping, and transportation. The firm’s projects include the acquisition of the country’s largest telecommunications company, the privatisation of the national airline, major acquisitions in the cement, mining and petroleum industries, the privatisation and sale of the largest tract of government-owned land in Metro Manila, and the setting-up of Philippine subsidiaries for several of the world’s major life insurance companies. The firm has been involved in practically all the major infrastructure projects in the Philippines, including those relating to power generation, mass railway transit, toll roads and water systems.

Contact: Rocky Alejandro L Reyes (department head)

Email: [email protected]

Tax: 

SyCipLaw’s tax department provides the entire range of tax services, from advising on and structuring the tax aspects of corporate transactions to administrative and judicial litigation in relation to tax refunds and defending clients against assessments for both national taxes and customs duties and local taxes.

Contact: Carina C. Laforteza (department head)

Email: [email protected]