About the Firm
Gatmaytan Yap Patacsil Gutierrez & Protacio (C&G Law) is a full-service law firm of over 40 lawyers in the Philippines specializing in corporate and commercial transactions, litigation and arbitration, taxation, as well as labor and employment. C&G Law was established in February 2007 by Alfredo Benjamin S. Caguioa, Jaime Renato B. Gatmaytan, Ben Dominic R. Yap, Norma Margarita B. Patacsil, Anthony Mark A. Gutierrez, and Jesus Paolo U. Protacio, each of whom brought with him significant experience and expertise in a broad range of practice areas and in diverse fields of law. Cesar E. Santamaria, Jr., Mary Thel T. Mundin, Jess Raymund M. Lopez, Albert Vincent Y. Yu Chang, Kristine Ninotschka L. Evangelista and Vladi Miguel S. Lazaro have since become partners of the firm.
C&G Law was formerly known as Caguioa & Gatmaytan. The change of name was brought about by Mr. Caguioa’s withdrawal from the firm in January 2013 following his appointment as Chief Presidential Legal Counsel and subsequently as Secretary of the Department of Justice by Philippine President Benigno C. Aquino III. In January 2016, Mr. Caguioa was appointed as an Associate Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court.
C&G Law is a member firm of the Rajah & Tann Asia, Southeast Asia’s largest legal network.
Ben Dominic R. Yap is the managing partner of C&G Law.
C&G Law’s corporate and commercial practice is significant and diverse. It has advised and acted for local conglomerates, financial institutions, multinational companies, government agencies and other entities in banking, lending and other financial and security arrangements, capital market transactions, competition law matters, corporate and commercial transactions, data privacy, foreign and local investments and acquisitions, energy and mining matters, infrastructure projects (including public-private partnerships), land and real estate transactions, trade regulation, as well as in other contractual and commercial concerns.
C&G Law has a strong litigation practice before Philippine courts and quasi-judicial bodies of all levels and venues in administrative, civil, commercial, criminal and tax disputes. The firm also has substantial experience in international and domestic arbitration dealing with commercial and construction disputes. C&G Law provides sound and practical counsel to its clients with the aim of avoiding or minimizing, and managing the risks of, litigation and of ensuring the quick, effective, and successful resolution of disputes consistent with the client’s interest.
C&G Law’s tax practice is formidable. The firm has acted as counsel in various cases, appeals, protests, and claims for refund in various forums and courts involving different kinds of taxes, fees and charges imposed by Philippine tax and regulatory authorities. It also advises on various tax issues, including proposed tax legislation, and secures opinions or rulings from the tax authorities on behalf of its clients.
C&G Law also renders advice on labor and employment laws. The firm also has experience in labor disputes and related proceedings, and has represented clients from various sectors before the National Labor Relations Commission, the Department of Labor and Employment, and the various courts.
The firm continuously expands its lawyer base and actively recruits from the Philippines’ leading law schools. The firm’s lawyers are ably assisted by its paralegal and non-legal staff, who provide paralegal, secretarial, messengerial and other support services. The firm has a foreign consultant, Ms. Tomoko Okazaki, who has been a legal practitioner in Japan.
As a testament to the firm’s solid legal practice and emerging quality professional reputation, C&G Law and/or its partners have been recognized in various fields by a number of prestigious international publications, such as AsiaLaw, Asian Legal Business, Chambers & Partners, the Global Arbitration Review, the International Financial Law Review, Legal500 and Who’s Who Legal.
At the Asian Legal Business Philippine Law Awards for 2017, C&G Law was named “Transactional Boutique Law Firm of the Year”, and also won awards for “M&A Deal of the Year” and “Philippine Deal of the Year”. It was named “Construction and Real Estate Law Firm of the Year” in the 2016 edition of this event. In both years, the firm was also a finalist for several other awards, including “Arbitration Law Firm of the Year”; “Banking and Financial Services Law Firm of the Year”; “Debt Market Deal of the Year”; “Labor and Employment Law Firm of the Year”; “Litigation Law Firm of the Year”; “Philippine Deal Firm of the Year” and “Philippine Law Firm of the Year”; “Project Finance Deal of the Year”; “Tax and Trusts Law Firm of the Year”; and “Technology, Media and Telecommunications Law Firm of the Year”.
The firm was also a finalist for the “Philippines’ Law Firm of the Year” in the 2015 and 2016 Chambers Asia-Pacific Awards.