31 March 2021
Teddy has served as arbitrator (sole or in panel) in domestic and international tribunals, in disputes with a cumulative value of over S$1 Billion. He is the only Filipino Chartered Arbitrator and Accredited Mediator of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, with diplomates in international commercial arbitration and mediation.
Teddy is a Fellow of CIArb, PIArb, Singapore Institute of Arbitrators, Hong Kong Institute of Arbitrators, and Asian Institute of Alternative Dispute Resolution. In the Philippines, he is an accredited arbitrator with the Intellectual PropertyOffice, Construction Industry Arbitration Commission, Philippine Dispute Resolution Center, Philippine InternationalCenter for Conflict Resolution, Wholesale Electricity Spot Market, all dispute resolution disciplines by the Office of Alternative Dispute Resolution.
Multi-hyphenate Teddy has masteral degrees in business management, public management, and sustainability leadership. His LLM is from Harvard Law School, his Juris Doctor from Ateneo de Manila. He is admitted to the Philippine Bar, New York Bar, and the Bar of the United States Supreme Court. Teddy was President, Chair of the Board of Trustees, and now President Emeritus of the PIArb.
Teddy was recently appointed the official representative of the Arbitration discipline in the Advisory Council of the Office of Alternative Dispute Resolution of the Philippine Government.
Questions:
How would you describe yourself in three words?
Curious, Focused, Passionate
How did you first get involved in arbitration work?
Way back in 2005 when I set up my own firm after 7 years with the Manila associate office of Baker & Mckenzie, we ended up representing a respondent in an arbitration and none of my partners wanted to do it, simply because there was no such practice of commercial arbitration then. It was a whole new creature most Filipino lawyers couldn’t figure out if they should take seriously. Piqued my interest, so I signed up as the first Filipino to take the Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration of CIArb. Haven’t looked back since. Many times in professional life you just get lucky to find yourself as one of the pioneers of a discipline before it explodes in popularity.
As an arbitrator, what in your view are the key qualities or traits an arbitration counsel should possess when representing a party?
Through the years, I note that the best advocates all have a strategic perspective of their client’s case that they can readily narrate, superb organizational skills founded on attention to details, and are always civil and professional no matter how much proceedings get heated – whether it be during exchanges of submissions or in person at evidentiary hearings.
What is a typical year for you - how do you divide your time between the different hats you wear and the different countries in which you practise?
A third of my time is now devoted to dispute resolution, primarily acting as a neutral in commercial and construction matters. About half of my professional time goes into my corporate governance practice and directorships (I am the thought leadership chair at my country’s Institute of Corporate Directors) primarily with family business groups, which is also where I get a lot of my mediations. I am also developing a new practice niche in sustainability strategy and reporting, mainly as a result of getting my master’s degree on this new discipline from Cambridge a few years back.
One area I am gradually doing less by choice is commercial litigation. I started out as a private prosecutor for IP cases, but have gradually moved to the commercial side of intellectual property over the years, not just because I find it more interesting, but because I found I tend to burn the candle at both ends if I had stuck to the advocacy side of litigation. I believe one’s life is built and enjoyed not just by what one decides to do, but just as much as what one realizes he or she should avoid because of growing in another direction.
In between all of these I find time to teach at 2 law faculties (including Ateneo Law, where I got my JD). I instruct on corporate governance, intellectual property management & enforcement, and corporation law. If I add anything more, I think my real boss and better half (Mariliza “Bunny” Kalaw, who was admitted to the Philippine Bar just last year) will have my head on a platter.
What is the most memorable arbitration or arbitration-related matter that you were involved in, and why?
The time a few years back when I ended up getting appointed to what was then the largest domestic arbitration in my country. What made it particularly memorable was that proceedings were ongoing in the midst of a lot of media attention and interest. Any war stories, unfortunately, may have to wait until information on the matter finally enters the public domain, assuming it ever does.
What advice do you have for a young fellow practitioner interested in developing a career as an arbitrator?
Take the long view. Learning arbitration is like getting started playing golf. It is a professional practice you can apply for life, unlike (for example) search and seizures of infringing goods. What you invest today will bear fruit in the long run. While more are entering the discipline as against when I started out, cases are also growing. I would rather have a smaller piece of a growing gigantic pie than almost all of a cake that is so tiny it barely exists.
What are the challenges you think arbitration practitioners will face in the upcoming years?
We will definitely see more diversity in appointments internationally, as parties become aware of the pool of qualified neutrals worldwide. That means more options for everyone, not just in international but even large domestic arbitrations. Ease in information technology will also become a foundational skill. Related to this and unfortunately for those who enjoy traveling, however, and mainly because of the drive to control costs, I actually believe we will see a lot less traveling for international arbitrations in the long term.
Who is the person(s) who has had the greatest impact and/or influence on your career?
I have a long list of professional mentors in my respective practices. In arbitration I owe so much to Eduardo Ceniza, the Chair Emeritus of the Philippine Institute of Arbitrators. Needless to state, I hope to model the same guidance he has provided me these past two decades with the up-and-coming practitioners of our profession.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what profession would you be in?
I am actually a frustrated comedian. Frustrated not at the fact that I have never had such a job, but at the reality that on most occasions I don’t find myself to be funny enough to deserve trying.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
I read so much the Love of my life has required that I move my books to my office before our home inevitably fills up. I’m such a sucker at bookstores it takes all of my willpower to avoid heading straight to Kinokuniya on Orchard Road whenever I find myself in Singapore.
What is one talent that not many people know you have?
Almost no one except my better half knows I hug really tight; like being crushed by a mountain bear.
Fill in the blank:
Arbitration is to Dispute Resolution "as salt is to steak."