On 02 March 2022, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed Republic Act (“RA”) No. 11647 or “An act promoting foreign investments, thereby amending Republic Act No. 7042, otherwise known as the ‘Foreign Investments Act of 1991’”.   RA No. 11647 aims to attract, promote and welcome productive foreign investments in activities that significantly contribute to sustainable,

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) issued Administrative Order No. 2022-03 (“DAO 2022-03”) which takes effect on 29 April 2022, ensuring a more effective and expeditious implementation of the People’s Small-Scale Mining Act, introducing a more orderly and systematic procedure, and regulating the small-scale mining industry with a view of enhancing its growth

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (“DENR”) issued on 04 March 2022 DENR Administrative Order No. 2022-04 (“DAO 2022-04”), providing for adequate measures to ensure the integration of biodiversity conservation and protection in all stages of both on-shore and off-shore mining operations.   Section 6.1 of DAO 2022-04 enumerates the specific biodiversity measures to

Pursuant to Bureau of Patents Memorandum Circular No. 2022-001, the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) shall now issue Electronic Certificates, known as “Patent eCert”, for Patent, Utility Model, and Industrial Design Applications that were recommended for registration starting 01 March 2022. Applications that have been recommended for registration before 01 March 2022 will

The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued on 15 February 2022 Memorandum Circular No. 4, Series of 2022 (“MC 4-2022”), outlining the procedure for the removal of directors, trustees, and officers elected or appointed despite possessing a disqualification, or whose disqualification arose or is discovered after their election or appointment.   MC 4-2022 enumerates the

Cruz Marcelo & Tenefrancia is recognized as a Gold-Tier Firm in the Philippines by World Trademark Review (WTR) 1000 for 2022.   WTR described the firm as follows in its website, “Hailed as ‘one of the best legal establishments in the Philippines not only for IP matters but also in many other disciplines’, the reputed

On 28 February 2022, President Duterte signed Executive Order No. 164 (“E.O. 164”) which begins the process of including nuclear power in the energy mix of the Philippines. The Executive Order adopts the national position for a Nuclear Energy Program (NEP), taking into account several economic, political, social, and environmental objectives, including, among others, the

The Department of Interior and Local Government issued on 17 February 2022 Memorandum Circular No. 2022-018 which covers all local government units (LGUs) with existing or proposed projects under the Philippine Environmental Impact Statement System (PEISS).  The Memorandum Circular recapitulates the roles and responsibilities of the LGUs relative to the projects covered by the PEISS

The Department of Health (“DOH”) has issued guidelines for media practitioners to ensure ethical and responsible reporting and portrayal of suicide in media and films. In its recently issued Administrative Order No. 2022-0004 (“A.O. No. 2022-0004”), the DOH seeks to reduce the incidence of suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts by ensuring “responsible and ethical reporting

On 02 March 2022, the Supreme Court Public Information Office (“SC-PIO”) announced that the Supreme Court En Banc has approved new procedural rules for the expedition of criminal and civil actions in first level courts entitled Rules on Expedited Procedures in First Level Courts (“Rules on Expedited Procedures”). Some of the reported salient reported features

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed on 14 February 2022 Executive Order (“EO”) No. 162, institutionalizing the acceptance of the Philippine Identification or Philippine Identification System Number as sufficient proof of identity and age in all public and private transactions. Republic Act 11055 or the “Philippine Identification System Act” established a single national identification system referred