Overview
Raul is the Chairman of the Executive Committee and Head of the Corporate Practice Group of the Firm. He was the Managing Partner from the Firm’s inception in January 2006 to December 2015. He has over 35 years of experience in corporate organization, foreign investment and special registration, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructuring, capital markets and securities, taxation, real estate transactions, and estate and financial planning. He leads the Firm’s projects in the fields of banking and finance, real estate, media, agriculture, manufacturing, gaming, BPOs, estate planning and private wealth management. His work ranges from acting as counsel to the project proponents, to the project contractors, and to that of the project lenders, such as the commercial banks, lending institutions and the private equity and venture firms, multi-generational families, and conglomerates.
Representative Work
- Advised and structured the acquisition by a US-based Chemical company founded in 1802 of a leading agricultural sciences company in the Philippines
- Advised the sale of a multi-media company and production company to a Philippine media conglomerate
- Advised the project proponents, structured the project finance, and negotiated with project lenders for a renewable energy project in Central Luzon undertaken by two Japanese publicly listed companies and their Filipino partners
- Advised and negotiated the settlement of loan commitments and the acquisition by a Japanese publicly listed company of a Labuan holding company that operates 13 hotels under a popular brand, which is considered as one of the largest limited-service hotel chains in the Philippines
- Advised a production company in the review and negotiation of its various agreements with local and global media companies and brands
- Advised and implemented a multi-million dollar share sale transaction involving a corporation engaged in creative process outsourcing
- Advised and structured the setup, expansion, and corporate structuring of business franchise in the Philippines; advised on business registration, regulatory compliance, tax structuring, and intellectual property protection; Drafted and implemented franchise agreements; provided strategic advisory as a member of the Board of Directors, offering insights on corporate governance, operational growth, and brand development
- Advised on and assisted in the merger transaction of two (2) business processing outsourcing companies, including securing a Certificate of Non-Coverage from Compulsory Notification from the Philippine Competition Commission
- Advised in the sale of a Multi-Billion-Peso Philippine distributor of kitchen equipment by a Japanese listed company
- Advised multi-generational families in structuring their assets for tax-efficient intergenerational transfers
- Advised high-net-worth families on estate planning strategies, including drafting family constitutions and wills
Other Professional Background
Raul started his law career in 1989 as an associate of PECABAR Law, followed by a brief stint with the Tax Division of SGV & Co. Prior to founding the Firm, he was a Senior Name Partner at De Borja Medialdea Bello Guevarra & Gerodias (BMBGG) Law.
Raul is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Ateneo De Manila Law Alumni Association, Inc.
Educational Attainment
University of Pennsylvania U.S.A,1998
Master of Laws
Ateneo de Manila University, 1988
Bachelor of Laws
Ateneo de Manila University, 1984
Bachelor of Science in Management
Admitted to the Philippine Bar in 1989
