Philippines Lawyers-Attorneys

Law Firm Overview

De Borja Lamorena and Duano Philippines Lawyers, Attorneys, and Solicitors offer comprehensive legal services in Manila, Philippines. Having more than 40 years combined experience in active law practice in the Philippines, the firm had its beginnings in 1990 when Attorney Frederick M. de Borja opened his private law practice. Shortly thereafter, he was joined by Attorney Crispiniano R. Lamorena, a classmate at the Ateneo de Manila University School of Law, who brought in his expertise in Banking, Housing and Land Use Law.

Ever sensitive to the needs of their clients, the partners saw the potential of opening a practice in the US mainland to meet the legal needs of Filipino immigrants as they pertain to Philippine law. This has since expanded to an international list of clients in the United Kingdom, Canada, Spain, Russia, Denmark, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, France, Germany, Italy, China, the rest of Asia, among others.

The firm presently maintains offices in San Diego, California and plans are underway to soon open additional offices in the U.S. East Coast.

Year this Office was Established: 1990

Languages: Pilipino, English, Spanish, Chinese

Areas of Law

Additional Areas of Law: Annulment Philippines
Adoption Philippines
Business Registration in the Philippines

Areas of Law Description

— Philippine Annulment/Philippine Divorce
The partners of the firm engaged in litigation practice have been trying annulment cases since this was allowed in 1988 and have seen the law and the practice evolve to now include issues on:
• custody (local and under the Hague Convention)
• spousal support, even if the non-supportive spouse is already a resident of another country
• division of property
• determination of the presumptive legitimes of the children under very complicated marital property regimes
• recognition of a foreign divorce
• application of principles of private international law in cases involving dissolution of marriages


— Adoption
The Family Law department has been in the forefront of pioneering litigation involving complicated issues on Adoption Law, such as the efforts to convince foreign jurisdictions to recognize the bona fides of local adoptions for purposes of applying for a dependent’s visa for the subject child under the auspices of the Hague Convention, seeking exceptions to such requirements as residency of the adopters, relation, prior criminal record of both the adopter (foreigner or Filipino) and the natural parents (on the issue of whether or not consent would be necessary).

— Business & Corporate Law
The firm’s corporate department handles all types of applications before the Securities and Exchange Commission and other related administrative bodies such as the Department of Trade and Industry and the Board of Investments. It has been involved in special corporate projects involving:
• mergers and acquisitions
• cross-border transactions
• investments
• securities
• initial public offerings
It has executed due diligence exercises for companies for a variety of corporate purposes, usually in tandem with well-known foreign law firms and investment bankers.

— Child Custody & Support
The firm has a wide range of experience in international child custody and support. It has had the fortune of having been engaged in cases involving the selective application of the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspect of International Child Abduction in multi state and multi nationality situations, involving either the Philippines as the country of destination or a Filipino national as the abductor or the child involved. These cases have presented complicated conflicts of laws issues which remain to be gray areas in Philippine Family Law, especially considering the abiding refusal of the Philippines to accede to the Hague Convention.


— Immigration Law
The services offered by the firm, in coordination with its adjunct offices in the U.S. and in close association with board certified immigration lawyers, pertains to the issuance of all types of U.S. visas to Philippine nationals, including:
• spouse visas (K-3 Visa)
• working visas (H-1-B Visa)
• fiancé visas (K-3 Visa)
• proceedings on deportation
• change of status
• petitions
and other issues and areas of practice involving U.S. immigration law.

— Intellectual Property Law
The firm has a reputable and service quality-oriented Intellectual Property Practice Group adept in all facets of this multi-disciplinary field of specialization, inclusive of the following:
• Trademark Registration and Maintenance
• Handling of Cases and Administrative Proceedings before the Philippine Intellectual Property Office and other government agencies
• Patent Registration of Inventions
• Utility Models, and Industrial Designs
• Infringement
• Unfair Competition
• Enforcement Remedies
• Anti-Dumping
• imposition of Tariffs
• General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and other Regional and International Trade agreements and treaties
• Copyright Registration
• Genetic Engineering
• Biotechnology
• Bioethics
• Plant Variety Registration and Protection
• Registration and Protection of Domain Names inclusive of implementation of Privacy and Security Protocols
• E-commerce Fraud Detection
• Regulatory and Tax Neutrality Issues, including Third Party Processing (TPP) and Merchant Solutions Performance and Fraud Monitoring through established online institutional gateways
• Computer Forensics
• Protection of Commercial and Trade Secrets
• Implementation of Security Protocols
• Food and Drug Laws Licensing and Regulations
• Program Implementation of Legislation and Regulations on Anti-Piracy and Counterfeiting
• Licensing, Franchising and Technology Transfer
• Protection, Enforcement, and Security Issues on Information Technology and Telecommunications
• Product and Service Standardization (Bureau of Product Standards, Department of Trade and Industry; ISO)
• Systems Audit and Monitoring (Internal, Co-external, Industry-wide)
• Local, International, and Industry Based Alternative Dispute Resolution and Enforcement of Arbitral Awards

— Labor & Employment Law
Given its founding partner’s specialization in Labor and Employment Law, the firm is particularly proud of its involvement and expertise in almost every facet thereof, from Labor Standards issues such as compensation and benefits restructuring in mergers and acquisitions to all aspects of Labor Relations from organization, training, and hiring of labor components to avert labor disputes, certification elections, intra- and inter union disputes, collective bargaining negotiations, formulation, and CBA administration, grievance machinery procedures, strikes and lockouts, and employee relations.

— Litigation
The firm’s litigation practice covers all courts, trial and appellate, and quasi-judicial agencies in highly specialized areas such as: securities, energy regulations, construction, enforcement of intellectual property rights, housing, land use and zoning, municipal and local taxation, national internal revenue litigation, insurance (life and non-life), telecommunications, international trade regulations, shipping/maritime, aviation law, asset recovery, labor relations, employment disputes and litigation involving all types of commercial transactions.

Partners

	Mr. Frederick M De Borja Attorney Admiralty and Maritime, Adoption, Appellate Practice, Business Law, Child Support and Custody		Ms. Susan P De Borja Partner Extradition, Family Law, Green Cards, Immigration, Naturalization and Citizenship
	Mr. Voltaire T Duano Attorney Administrative Law, Business Law, Civil Litigation, Criminal Law, Employment		Mr. Emmanuel S Galvez Attorney Copyright, Corporate Law, Education Law, Intellectual Property, International Investments
	Mr. Crispiniano R Lamorena Attorney Banking Law, Civil Litigation, Criminal Law, Land Use and Zoning, Litigation

More Information on De Borja Lamorena and Duano Law Offices

Manila, Philippines Annulment Attorneys
Philippines Adoption Law Firm in Manila
Child Custody & Support Lawyers, Manila, Philippines
Litigation Law Firm in Manila, Philippines
Manila, Philippines Business & Investment Law Firm
Intellectual Property, Trademarks, Patents, & Copyright Attorneys, Manila, Philippines
Manila, Philippines Immigration Lawyers
De Borja Lamorena and Duano Law Offices Blog