Atty. Christine V. Pangilinan-Canlapan (now more popularly known as “AD Tin”), graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree, Major in Political Science, from the University of the Philippines-Manila, pursued Law and graduated from Arellano University School of Law. She also obtained a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the Ateneo Graduate School of Business. She has also earned her Career Executive Service Officer rank as CESO IV just recently. 

Before her appointment as Director III of the IPOPHL-BLA, AD Tin held various posts in the public and private sectors. AD Tin spent her formative years as a lawyer at VERA Law, Hechanova Bugay & Vilchez, Cabero Luna Canlapan Law Office and JDF Law. She also served as the IP Lawyer of Security Bank Corporation. Despite her career in the private sector, she focused on and specialized in IP matters. She was also a part-time professorial lecturer at the Manuel Luis Quezon University and the De La Salle University. Her first stint in the government was as a Legal Researcher at the Court of Appeals while still in law school. Prior to joining IPOPHL, she worked at the Energy Regulatory Commission as Attorney IV.

With more than 15 years of law experience specializing in Intellectual Property, AD Tin presently serves as Director III of the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines Bureau of Legal Affairs (IPOPHL-BLA). She is also a member of the Philippine Delegation and Focal Point for the Philippines to the ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation (AWGIPC) and handles ASEAN-related matters.

As Director III of the IPOPHL-BLA, AD Tin is a strong proponent of the advancement of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) at the IPOPHL. She is the Supervising Director of the Alternate Dispute Resolution Services (ADRS) of the IPOPHL-BLA, tasked to oversee all projects, programs and activities related thereto. She is also the designated focal person for ADR both for the Department of Justice – Office for Alternate Dispute Resolution (DOJ-OADR) and the World Intellectual Property Organization – Arbitration and Mediation Center (WIPO-AMC). Coming from both the private and public sectors, AD Tin saw the benefits of ADR in resolving any kind of conflict, including IP disputes. Thus, she passionately advocates the paradigm shift from IP litigation to IP dispute resolution.

In addition to these functions, AD Tin has also been a speaker and/or panelist at several seminars involving Intellectual Property Law and ADR such as: Online Webinar on Regional Workshop on IP Mediation: The Philippine Experience held by the World Intellectual Property Organization as well as Intellectual Property Mediation: A Snapshot of IPOPHL Rules and Regulations; Online Mediation and WIPO Mediation Option: Challenges and Opportunities; and Webinar on Alternative Dispute Resolution for Mobile Applications organized by the IPOPHL, to name a few. She was also a speaker and panelist on IP and Mediation at the 2021 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Workshop on The Potential for Use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in the Field of IPR.

Due to her prominent role in these local and international agencies, AD Tin is also a sought-after speaker and panelist at seminars, workshops and roundtable discussions involving Intellectual Property (IP) Law and ADR.

Atty. Irene De Torres Alogoc is the inaugural Executive Director V of the Office for Alternative Dispute Resolution (OADR), an attached agency of the Department of Justice of the Philippines. She is a lawyer by profession and a certified Bread and Pastry Chef.

Atty. Alogoc pursued her training in Strategic Conflict Management for Professionals (Modules I and II) at the Singapore Mediation Centre and in Comprehensive Course on International Arbitration under the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators – New York Branch and the Columbia Law School. She is also a Trained Arbitrator and File Counsel of the Philippine Dispute Resolution Center, Inc.

Atty. Alogoc represents the Philippines as one of the delegates to the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Working Groups II and III. She also currently serves as a Member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Government Internal Auditors, Inc. (AGIA).

As Executive Director V of the OADR, Atty. Alogoc led the agency’s conduct of several trainings in line with the implementation of the Katarungang Pambarangay (KP) training activities under the Justice Sector Convergence Program (JSCP) of the Justice Sector Coordinating Council. These training programs took place in as many as eight different cities/localities with a reach of more than 4,000 total participants. Under Atty. Alogoc’s leadership, the OADR partnered with the Local Government Academy (LGA) and conducted two (2) Trainings on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Mechanisms under the KP Law held on June 23-25 and November 24-26, 2021. She was also instrumental in the OADR’s issuance of the following:

  • OADR Advisory No. 2021-1: Guidelines for the Design, Establishment, Implementation, Management, and Monitoring of Alternative Dispute Resolution Programs in the Executive Branch; and
  • OADR Advisory on Fees for Ad Hoc Mediation.

These issuances mark the OADR’s contributions in line with its mandates of promoting, developing, and expanding the use of ADR in the private and public sectors, and in providing assistance to the government for the monitoring, study, and evaluation of the use of ADR by the public and private sectors.

Bringing further credence to Atty. Alogoc’s valuable role as the Executive Director V OADR, the agency was honored as a catalyst of excellence in the Capacity Development (CapDev) Accelerator Awards of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and LGA. The OADR also won the “CapDev Game Changer Award” in recognition of its outstanding performance and exceptional contribution in driving capacity development in local government units and as a key partner in local governance.

Prior to her appointment to her present position, Atty. Alogoc amassed over ten (10) years of extensive experience in law practice and has held key positions in all three branches of the Philippine government, namely: Acting Director IV of the Internal Audit Service of the Department of Agriculture, Court Attorney V at the Judicial and Bar Council, and Director II at the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal.

Atty. Alogoc is also a law professor, delivering lectures in Mandatory Continuing Legal Education covering topics in ADR. She is a trained government manager and Career Executive Service Officer I and the author of the book entitled “Philippine Alternative Dispute Resolution,” which highlights the different ADR mechanisms and practices in the country.

Atty. Editha R. Hechanova leads the HECHANOVA Group’s Intellectual Property (IP) Law practice. The HECHANOVA Group is made up of Hechanova & Co., Inc., an intellectual property consulting firm handling trademark and patent prosecution, copyright and domain name registrations, product registration, management, valuation, searches, and other non-contentious aspect of intellectual property, where she is President/CEO. The contentious IP practice is handled by the other member firm, Hechanova Bugay Vilchez & Andaya-Racadio, which specializes in enforcement, litigation, alternative dispute resolution, licensing  corporate, immigration law and taxation. 

Atty. Hechanova graduated from the University of the East with a business degree, Major in Accounting, magna cum laude. She obtained her law degree from the Ateneo de Manila University, and a Certificate in Strategic Business Economics from the University of Asia and the Pacific. She is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Relative to the field of IP Law, Atty. Hechanova is a Certified Patent Valuation Analyst (CPVA) by the Business Development Academy based in New Jersey, USA. She passed the Patent Agent Qualifying Examination (PAQE) in 2008 conducted by the IPOPHL, and is currently the president of the Association of PAQE Professionals, Inc. consisting of PAQE passers. She is an alumna of the South East Asia Patent Drafting Course (SEAD) conducted by the Federation des Conseils en Propriete Intellectuelle (FICPI), an international organization of patent and IP practitioners. She is currently the Vice-President of the IP Collegium, an organization of IP experts mainly in the ASEAN region, India and Brazil, sponsored by the Japan Institute for Promoting Invention and Innovation (JIPII).

She has been cited as Leading Lawyer in the field of Intellectual Property Law in the Philippines by the AsiaLaw Magazine, from 2002 to 2021, and Who’s Who Legal Trademarks 2012 to 2021, IP Expert by AsiaIP publication, and an MIP IP Star. She has been cited by the Asia Business Law Journal as one of the Top 100 Lawyers in the Philippines from 2018-2021. The  Hechanova Group won two Philippine Law Firm Awards in 2021 for:  Intellectual Property Enforcement and Intellectual Property Protection from the Asia Business Law Journal. Hechanova & Co., Inc. has been a top patent filer and trademark filer from 2010 to 2020 according to the IPOPHL. The Hechanova Group has been recognized as the  Philippines Patent Firm of the Year for the years  2020 & 2021,  Asia IP Awards.  In 2019, it was awarded the Philippines Copyright Firm of the Year, and in 2017, the Philippines Trademark Firm of the Year. 

She is the Asia Pacific sub-committee chairperson of the Trademark Office Practice Committee (TOPC) of the International Trademark Association (INTA) for 2022-2023.  She has also completed the Oxford Cyber Security for Business Leaders program in December 2021.

In the field of ADR, she has attended the following training and courses, and has handled several mediation cases involving intellectual property, commercial, labor and property issues:

  • WIPO Advanced Workshop on Domain Name Dispute Resolution

Update on Precedent and Practice, Geneva, October 29 and 30, 2013

  • Mediation Workshop conducted by Intellectual Property Office and the WIPO, December, 2010 for the accreditation as IPOPHL mediator. Accredited mediator at the IPOPHL up to present.
  • Arbitration Workshop and Examination conducted by Intellectual Property Office and the WIPO, December 2010, January, 2011 for the accreditation as IPOPHL arbitrator. Accredited arbitrator up to present.
  • Completed the Advance Mediation Course, International Trademark Association (INTA), May, 2011. Member of INTA’s Panel of Neutrals, 2011.
  • Completed the Basic Mediation Course, International Trademark Association (INTA), May, 2010.  Member of INTA’s Panel of Neutrals, 2010.
  • Court of Appeals Mediation Project of the Philippine Judicial Academy (for training mediators for Court of Appeals (2005);  Accredited Mediator by the Supreme Court Philippine Judicial Academy for Appeals Court Mediation from July 1, 2006 to the present, and actively participated in the pilot test for online mediation started in 2020 up to the present;
  • Mediation Workshop:  Program of Instruction for Lawyers on Program on Negotiation, Harvard Law School, Cambridge, MA, USA, October 24 – 28, 2005.
  • WIPO workshop for Mediators in Intellectual Property Disputes, WIPO Headquarters, Geneva, Switzerland, June 24 and 25, 2004.

She has also been invited as lecturer/resource person on mediation in the following events:

  • ASEAN-USPTO Workshop on Utilizing ADR in IP Disputes, August 7-9, 2019, Holiday Inn suite Makati, organized by USPTO Global Intellectual Property Academy and the ASEAN Secretariat;
  • PCAARRD Prosecution Workshop Overview of the Patent Prosecution Process and Review of Relevant Rules and Regulations (Including ADR Act) August 28-30, 2019, DPITC, PCAARRD/DOST, Laguna;
  • IPOPHL Seminar on Alternative Dispute Resolution, April 21, 2020, IPOPHL Multi-Purpose Hall;
  • IPOPHL/IP Academy MCLE on IP and Mediation 2021, on the topic Facilitation Mediation: Techniques in Conducting a Private Caucus and Management of Parties, and the Art of Mediation in IP Disputes, March 25, 2021;
  • Department of Justice -Office for Alternative Dispute Resolution (OADR), Comprehensive Course on Mediation for National Government Agencies May 10-12, 14, and 17-20, 2021, via online video conferencing;
  • OADR, Training Course on ADR Mechanisms under the Katarungang Pambarangay Law for the Local Government of Davao City on 17-19 August 2021;
  • OADR, Training Course on ADR Mechanism under the Katarungang Pambarangay Law for the Local Government of Bacolod City, September  7-9, 2021;
  • OADR, Training Course on ADR Mechanism under the Katarungang Pambarangay Law for the Local Government of Cebu City, October 6-8, 2021;
  • OADR, Human Settlements Adjudication Commission (HSAC) Online Certification Course on Mediation on Oct. 22, 2021 on Communication in Mediation, and Mediation Ethics; and

Confirmed Invitation,  OADR, Training Course on ADR Mechanism under the Katarungang Pambarangay Law for the Local Government of Naga City, March 21-23, 2022.

Atty. Maria Gladys C. Vilchez is one of the founding partners of Hechanova Bugay Vilchez & Andaya-Racadio Law Offices (HBVAR), a Firm primarily engaged in the practice of Intellectual Property (IP) Law, Corporation Law, Real Property Law and Taxation. She has been affiliated with HBVAR since January 2006.

In the field of IP Law, Atty. Vilchez’s work includes the handling of cases regarding oppositions to trademark applications and cancellation of IP registrations, the prosecution of infringement and unfair competition cases, as well as the provision of IP counseling services.

On top of her role as partner at HBVAR, Atty. Vilchez currently holds the following positions:

  • Trustee of the Institute for Studies on Intellectual Property, Inc. (ISIP) since 2009.
  • Professor of Intellectual Property Law at the Far Eastern University (FEU) Institute of Law since 2016.
  • Member of the Board of Trustees of the Intellectual Property Alumni Association (IPAA) where she also served as former President.
  • Member of the IP Collegium, an organization of IP experts from the private sector in the APIC region, organized by the Japan Institute for Promoting Invention and Innovation (JIPII).

Part of Atty. Vilchez’s advocacy is IP education and promotion. As a Trustee of ISIP, she organizes, manages and conducts IP seminar and trainings for industry, university and government agencies, including trainings and workshop of IP policy formulation and setting up of technology licensing offices in universities, IP inventory and valuation, and contract drafting. Her functions as Trustee also include research and study for university-industry-government collaboration, including survey and study of already existing industry clusters and collaborative arrangements, for purposes of setting up workable multi-stakeholder linkages, arrangement and infrastructure, and for institutional policy proposals.

Previously, Atty. Vilchez served as University Legal Counsel for the University of the Philippines System from 1999 until 2001. She was also an IP Consultant of the Technology Application and Promotion Institute (TAPI) from 2016 to June 2021 under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), and a Corporate and Intellectual Property Consultant for the Corporatization of State Universities and Colleges project of the Commission on Higher Education from 2004 to 2006.

Notably, prior to her affiliation with the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) as an Accredited Mediator, Atty. Vilchez served as Division Chief of the Intellectual Property Violations Division of the IPOPHL Bureau of Legal Affairs from 2001 to 2004.

In 2011, Atty. Vilchez became an Accredited Arbitrator of the Philippine Dispute Resolution Center, Inc. (IPO-PDRCI). She has also been an Accredited Neutral of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Arbitration and Mediation Center since 2015.

Atty. Vilchez has conducted several studies in support of national IPR policy formulation, including:

  • Exploring Patent Pooling as A Tool for National Development (Philippines) under the International Development Research Centre (Canada) and Arellano Law Foundation [2009] – co-authored with Josephine R. Santiago and Antonio Aldrin R. Mendoza;
  • A Study on the Philippine Readiness for Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP): Focus on Intellectual Property, under USAID, Trade Assistance for Development (TRADE) [2016]; and

Assessment of the Exploitation of Intellectual Property Rights by Pharmaceutical and Generic Drug Companies in the Philippines, under the USAID, Trade Assistance for Development (TRADE) and the Makati Business Club [2017] – co-authored with Ryan Joseph Dizon.

Ms. Vilmi Sanchez Quipit graduated valedictorian both in elementary and high school. She later obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology, graduating cum laude, at Silliman University, and was conferred the Outstanding Senior Woman award.  After college, she was chosen as the Finalist in the nationwide search for the Philippines’ Young Ambassador of Goodwill. She also acquired post-graduate studies in Biblical Leadership, with Academic Excellence and Outstanding Student Awards at Word of Life Bible Institute. She further pursued a Masters of Science degree in Industrial Organization Psychology at De La Salle University in Manila.

Ms. Quipit’s academic exposure in Psychology and her love for relating with people propelled her to excel in helping parties resolve their disputes amicably, a unique and challenging career which she embraced as a mediator accredited by the Supreme Court of the Philippines for Court-Annexed Mediation cases.

During its Centennial Anniversary Celebration, the Supreme Court conferred the PEACEMAKER AWARD on Ms. Quipit for being an Outstanding Mediator, owing to her high number of settled court cases.

After a decade of mediating cases in Philippine courts, conducting trainings, and coaching and mentoring court mediators, Ms. Quipit was appointed as Executive Director for Mediation at the Intellectual Property Office Philippines (IPOPHL) in 2010.  During her stint as Executive Director for Mediation, she successfully established the IPOPHL Mediation Office.

Recognizing her expertise in mediation and conflict resolution, as well as her contribution in the success of mediation in intellectual property cases at IPOPHL, Ms. Quipit later became the first Filipino International Mediator of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) after she participated in the WIPO workshop in Geneva, Switzerland in 2012 upon WIPO’s invitation.

Ms. Quipit was also a consultant for Nathan & Associates, U.S.A., serving as an Expert Intellectual Property Mediator for the Department of Intellectual Property in Vientiane, Laos, financed by the USAID.

Just before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019, Ms. Quipit was chosen as the IPOPHL’s representative for the European Union Intellectual Property Organization (EUIPO) Mediation Conference in Alicante, Spain.

For more than two (2) decades now, she has been mediating cases in the IPOPHL and in the Philippine courts, as she finds deep satisfaction seeing broken relationships restored between the disputing parties upon settling their conflicts, thereby contributing to the speedy disposition of cases and de-clogging of court dockets.

Ms. Quipit’s passion in mediation and conflict resolution has inspired her to continue sharing her knowledge and experience in mediation, so much so that even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, she served as resource speaker in international mediation workshops and trainings for  Katarungang Pambarangay Mediation nationwide, sponsored by the Department of Justice Office for Alternate Dispute Resolution and the Local Government Academy.

She has also been very active in the online mediation proceedings at the IPOPHL, which will also be implemented soon in Court-Annexed Mediation cases.

Ms. Gloria Zosa-Seno hails from Cebu and is the daughter of Retired Court of Appeals Justice Mariano A. Zosa and Filomena Reyes Zosa.

Apart from being a Management Consultant by profession, Ms. Zosa-Seno is also heavily involved in Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), more specifically Mediation, Negotiation, and Conflict Management.

Her entry into the Mediation field started with the JURIS Project of the Philippine Judiciary when Mediation was officially introduced into the court system. The JURIS Project was the jumping board for Court-Annexed Mediation and the subsequent Judicial Dispute Resolution Program. Her engagement with the Judiciary continues to this day, as Course Design Specialist, Trainer and Facilitator for the Judicial Dispute Resolution Program and Lecturer on Mediation for Court-Annexed Mediation with the Philippine Mediation Center and the Philippine Judicial Academy.

Through a project grant from the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) for the Department of Justice, she headed the Mediation Training Team for the Pilot Program on Mediation for Prosecutors in Cebu City.

IPOPHL’s collaboration with the Office of Alternative Dispute Resolution (OADR) has extended Ms. Zosa-Seno’s Mediation training engagements to the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and local government units.

With her strong advocacy for Mediation and Alternate Dispute Resolution, Ms. Zosa-Seno moves fluidly through business and interpersonal conflicts and disputes with an interesting caseload in private mediation. Her work moves her from boardrooms to supply rooms, with issues from pizzas to penthouses. 

Currently, she is a Mediator at the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) and, through IPOPHL, she is also an accredited neutral at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Under the sponsorship of IPOPHL, she recently completed the Advanced Course on Intellectual Property Management with the WIPO Academy where she merited grades in the highest percentile levels.

Ms. Zosa-Seno’s extensive exposure in the field of Mediation and ADR can also be gleaned from her studies under the Supreme Court of the Philippines in collaboration with the National Judicial Institute of Canada, and her mediation training with the University of Western Australia, The Asia Foundation, and the Singapore Mediation Board. She even undertook additional special studies for Intellectual Property Mediation with IPOPHL, WIPO, the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and IPOPHL in partnership with the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) She also serves as a coach, trainer and lecturer for Court-Annexed Mediation and Program Leader for Judicial Dispute Resolution.

Atty. Imelda M. Dangoy obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce, Major in Accounting, and her Bachelor of Laws degree from the Ateneo de Davao University. She is also a PRC Licensed Real Estate Broker, a Certified Public Accountant, a holder of a Post-Graduate Diploma on Corruption Studies from the Hong Kong University – School of Professional and Continuing Education (HKU-SPACE), an Insurance Licensing Examination Passer, and a Civil Service Commission Examination Passer for professional and subprofessional levels.

Atty. Dangoy engages in the private practice of law and is also a consultant for business, legal matters, as well as administrative and estate cases. Specifically, she was a legal consultant for the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Legal Service from 2006-2007 and 2009-2010, and she served as the CHED Commission Secretary in 2008. 

She also held the position of Director IV of the Investigation Office of the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission (PAGC) from December 5, 2002 to October 17, 2004. Prior to that, she held the position of Director IV of the Legal Research Division (October 18 to December 5, 2002), Officer-in-Charge of the Legal Research Division (December 2002 to June 2003), Officer-in-Charge of the Investigation Division (July 1, 2002 to October 17, 2002), and Graft Investigation Officer II (April 22, 2002 – October 17, 2002).

At present, in addition to holding the position of Chief Administrative Officer of the Budget Division – Finance Service of the Human Settlements Adjudication Commission, Atty. Dangoy serves as a mediator at the Department of Justice – Office for Alternate Dispute Resolution (DOJ-OADR) and the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL). She is also a Supreme Court Accredited Mediator who handles court-annexed/referred mediation for the Pasig Courts.

Atty. Dangoy’s training in the field of mediation include:

  • Intensive Training Workshop for IPOPHL Mediators provided by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines;
  • Basic Mediation Program: Basic Seminar Workshop on Mediation provided by the Philippine Judicial Academy (PHILJA), Supreme Court of the Philippines (SC);
  • Internship Program provided by the PHILJA, SC; and

Settlement Weeks provided by the PHILJA, SC.

Atty. Dina D. Lucenario graduated cum laude from the University of the Philippines, where she obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism. She then obtained her Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the Philippines College of Law where she earned the coveted Dean’s Medal. She was admitted to the Philippine Bar in 1989.

Atty. Lucenario is currently a Senior Partner at Castillo Laman Tan Pantaleon & San Jose whose practice areas include Corporate Law, Regulatory Law (Food, Drugs and Cosmetics Law), Pharmaceutical Law, Consumer Law, Intellectual Property, and Licensing and Franchising. She is also affiliated with the Intellectual Property Alumni Association as a Trustee and with the Intellectual Property Association of the Philippines as a Member. In addition, she is the Assistant Corporate Secretary and Legal Counsel of the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines, and holds corporate secretarial positions and directorships in various companies.

Among her recognitions and awards are:

  • Leading Practitioner in the Field of Life Sciences in the Philippines – Who’s Who Legal (2018)
  • Leading Lawyer for Intellectual Property – Asia Law Profile (2018)

Atty. Lucenario is a published writer. She is the author of “Taxation in the Philippines: Local Taxation, Tariff and Customs Law, and Transfer and Business Taxation (Notes and Cases). She is also a lecturer and educator. Notably, she is a Senior Professorial Lecturer at the University of the Philippines College of Law and a Lecturer for the University’s Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Program. She is also known for her lecture, “IP Utilization of Innovative Drug Companies,” which she gave during the Intellectual Property Alumni Association (IPAA) Seminar entitled “Technology Protection and IPR in Healthcare” held at the Dusit Thani (Manila).

In the field of Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR), Atty. Lucenario is regarded as one of the “pioneer mediators” when the ADR Office was established at the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL). She fondly recalls undergoing mediation training with her batchmates who were comprised of seasoned mediators with experience in Court-Annexed Mediation and IP practitioners who were new to mediation. As a result of such training, she clearly remembers how a mediator should first explain the process to the parties, which is by saying: “I am not a judge and I am here to help you communicate to reach a solution. I will use the caucus to talk with you privately and confidentially at some time. All communications are confidential. If you reach an agreement, I will assist you in putting them in writing, and which, when signed, would be a legally enforceable contract.”

Indeed, as a Communications graduate and former Psychology Major, Atty. Lucenario understands the mediating parties’ sensibilities well and she encourages them to have a continuing dialogue as a means to reach mutually beneficial settlements. She also says that she has always felt that her calling as a lawyer was outside the courtroom and so, she is always keen about and interested in helping parties collaborate and conciliate instead of battling it out in litigious proceedings.

In the course of her career as a mediator, Atty. Lucenario has handled many trademark opposition/invalidation/revocation-related disputes involving various companies, including pharmaceutical and healthcare companies; industrial design infringement cases between car/motorcycle companies; and copyright infringement cases in the publishing business, to name a few. She finds herself fortunate to be a mediator in the IP field as she has access to decision-makers who personally attend mediation sessions, and she is able to help IPOPHL achieve its goal of developing ADR in the IP field in the Philippines.

Atty. Elizabeth R. Pulumbarit was educated at the University of the Philippines (BSHRA and LL.B.) and the Maastricht School of Management, the Netherlands. She also underwent extensive training on intellectual property (IP) law and technology licensing management in the Philippines, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Sweden.

Atty. Pulumbarit is a licensed lawyer and law practitioner of family law, business law, technology transfer management and IP law with her own law office situated at the Central Business District (Salcedo Village), Makati City. She is also a Professorial Lecturer at the College of Law of the University of the Philippines (UP), and a Consultant for the Paralegal Training Program of the UP Law Center. In addition to these roles, Atty. Pulumbarit is an accredited neutral/ mediator of the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) and the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO).

Previous to her position as Director of the Paralegal Training Program at the UP Law Center in UP Diliman (UPD), Quezon City, she worked with the public sector as the University Legal Counsel of the UP System-Technology Transfer and Business Development Office (UP System-TTBDO), and as the University Legal Counsel of the University of the Philippines Manila (UP Manila), both for its Legal Office and Intellectual Property Office. She handled the review of research grants and clinical trial contracts, administrative disciplinary cases, IP registration and commercial technology licensing. She also served as a researcher and editor of the publications of the UP-Institute for Small-Scale Industries (UP-ISSI).

As a testament to Atty. Pulumbarit’s broad expertise, she also has extensive experience in small enterprise promotion and development, having served as Corporate Secretary and Vice President for Legal Services of the Small Business Corporation; Legal Consultant at Reedley International School and other various private and public enterprises such as Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA), National Development Corporation (NDC), and Commission on Higher Education (CHED). She was also appointed as professorial lecturer of the College of Law of Adamson University.

Atty. Maria Imelda B. Quiambao-Tuazon graduated from the University of Sto. Tomas with a Bachelor of Arts degree, Major in Political Science. She then earned her Bachelor of Laws degree from the San Beda College of Law.

At present, she is a Senior Partner at Hipolito Tuazon Cruz and Chipeco Law Offices, where her practice areas include Litigation, Intellectual Property, Family Law, Labor Law, Civil Law and Criminal Law. She is also the Corporate Secretary for Nanox Philippines.  On top of these roles, she is also a mediator with extensive experience, being an Accredited Mediator for Court-Annexed Mediation by the Philippine Mediation Center, and an Accredited Mediator at the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL).

Atty. Quiambao-Tuazon is also an active member of the legal community. She was the former Secretary of the Angeles City Lawyers League, a former Director at the People’s Law Enforcement Bureau, and a founding member of LAWNET. In addition, she held numerous positions at the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (“IBP”), such as former Director and, subsequently, President of the IBP Pampanga Chapter; former Executive Secretary and then Governor of the IBP Central Luzon Region; and former Commissioner of the IBP Commission on Bar Discipline.  

She is likewise strongly passionate about teaching the next generation of leaders and lawyers as she has served as a Trainor in the Justice Reforms Initiatives Support Project (JURIS Project) and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). She was also a Professorial Lecturer at Holy Angel University. She continuously helps educate the public on law and jurisprudence through “Legal Points”, a television program that she anchors and hosts. She was also previously an anchor/host for the programs, “Gabay Mo’y Batas” (Metro Clark Network Channel 3) and “Talking Points” (Infomax-Global News Network TV 44 – Pampanga).

Atty. Estrellita Beltran-Abelardo graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce from the Far Eastern University.  She obtained her Bachelor of Laws degree from the Manuel L. Quezon University (MLQU) and has been a member of the Philippine Bar since 1979. She is a Career Executive Service Officer (CESO III) and was the first Director of the Bureau of Legal Affairs of the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL).

Atty. Beltran-Abelardo served the government for more than forty (40) years, having been initially employed with the Philippine Patent Office (now known as the IPOPHL) under the Department of Trade and Industry, where she held various positions from Clerk, Stenographer, Stenographic Reporter, Trademark Examiner, Hearing Officer III, Chief Patent & Trademark Examiner to Attorney V, before she was appointed as Director of the Bureau of Legal Affairs, where she served from 1999 until her retirement from government service in 2010.

In 1997, she was deeply involved in the various facets of the legislative process in Congress and Senate to ensure the passage of the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines.  In line with this, she was also appointed as Head of the Legal Committee which drafted and finalized, after public hearing, the Regulations on Inter Partes Proceedings, which were published on October 5, 1998, and became effective on October 20, 1998, as well as the Rules and Regulations on Administrative Complaints for Violation of Intellectual Property Rights published on December 2, 1998 and which became effective on December 16, 1998.

She was likewise instrumental in increasing awareness about Intellectual Property Law.  She was invited to various seminars and fora including the academe, such as the University of Santo Tomas, De La Salle University, U.P. Law Center, and to different civic organizations such as the Rotary Club, Golti Club, Integrated Bar of the Philippines, National Prosecutors League of the Philippines, in Colloquium for Commercial Court Judges on Intellectual Property Law, as well as other countries like Korea and Thailand, to speak on the Law on Intellectual Property, and Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights. She has also guested on several television talk shows to provide information on Intellectual Property Law such as Saklolo Abogado, a public service television program on Channel 13 (IBC) in one of their episodes in June 2004, Linya Public Affairs Program on Channel 4 (NBN) in their episode entitled Piracy and Pornography in October 2004, and in other radio programs where she discussed and gave insights on the subject of Intellectual Property Laws and their implementation.

Outside office hours, Atty. Beltran-Abelardo is a part-time professor at the MLQU. She has been teaching Intellectual Property and Lease since 1991 and, subsequently, Insurance Law and Commercial Law Review up to the present. She is also a Special Lecturer at San Beda University for Graduate Studies. Additionally, she is a pre-bar lecturer on the subject of Law on Intellectual Property and Commercial Law Review since 1991 up to the present in Bar Review Centers namely, National Bar Review, ChanRobles LawNet, Inc. and Philjust, and a lecturer for Intellectual Property Law for the Mandatory Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) programs held by ChanRobles LawNet, Inc., Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP), Intellectual Property Alumni Association (IPAA) and Institute for Studies on Intellectual Property, Inc. (ISIP).

Since her retirement in 2010, she has remained active in the legal profession and has continued to disseminate information about intellectual property rights. She currently represents clients in Inter PartesCases such as opposition and cancellation cases, and intellectual property rights violation cases such as trademark, patent and copyright infringement as well as unfair competition cases through her own law firm.

When the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Services of the Bureau of Legal Affairs of the IPOPHL started its mediation and dispute resolution services, Atty. Beltran-Abelardo was one of the law practitioners who was invited and trained as mediator due to the broad scope of her understanding and years of experience in the field of IP rights. She attended seminars and lectures for the same and now, she is one of the members of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) List of Neutrals. Since she was admitted as a mediator in the (ADR) of the IPOPHL in 2011, she was able to handle more than 89 cases from 2011 to 2021.  Impressively, out of these 89 cases, 39 were settled amicably by the parties concerned.