Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission

MEET THE SEC MANAGEMENT

TERESITA J. HERBOSA

Chairperson

Chair Teresita J. Herbosa took her oath of office as the new SEC Chairperson before His Excellency President Benigno C. Aquino, Jr. on April 29, 2011.

Prior to her appointment, she was a senior and the first female co-managing partner of the Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz Law Office (ACCRA) where her skills and expertise as litigator were fully enhanced. Having been the Head of the ACCRA ’s prestigious Law Department, she was cited as one of the top three litigation lawyers in the Philippines , by the International Financial Law Review in its publication “Guide to the World’s Leading International Business Law Firms 2001 Edition”. More citations of her legal excellence subsequently appeared in the Asia Pacific Legal 500 (The Guide to Asia ’s Commercial Law Firms) 2001-2002 Edition and in the International Who’s Who of Regulatory Communications Lawyers in 2003.

During her tenure as ACCRALaw Litigation Head, she has trained a great number of young associates in pre-trial and trial skills. Her areas of specialization include telecommunications, family law, land and air transportation, contract law, government contracts, public bidding and award, constitutional law, and environmental law. She has also participated in cases before the International Chamber of Commerce (“ICC”) arbitral tribunals.

She is also a professorial lecturer on Remedial Law at the University of the Philippines College of Law and an accredited lecturer for the Mandatory Continuing Legal Education (MCLE). She has given lectures and has spoken in various international and local conferences, some of which are as follows:

1995 - Inter-Pacific Bar Association Conference - Singapore

2004 - United Nations Commission on Human Rights – Manila

2005 - ASEAN Law Association Conference – Manila

Unicef - sponsored lecture series “Trainers’ Course on Child Sensitive Investigation" for the police of the Philippines National Police.

Chairperson Herbosa is also a former Commissioner of the Committee on Bar Discipline of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP).

As a private citizen, she is active in civic works. She is secretary and director of the Rotary Club of Makati, Paseo de Roxas and is a member of Zonta Manila, Women Lawyers’ Circle, IOTA TAU TAU International Sorority and Women in Arbitration, International Chamber of Commerce – International Court of Arbitration.

Chairperson Herbosa graduated both cum laude in two (2) undergraduate degrees – Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws – from the University of the Philippines . She obtained her Master of Comparative Law degree from the University of Michigan Law School in Ann Arbor , Michigan , in 1980.

As the new head of the SEC, Chairperson Herbosa commits to use the experience she gained from private practice to contribute to better public governance, and being a direct descendant of the country’s national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal, she avows to serve the people with honesty and integrity.

Ma. JUANITA ELEGIR-CUETO

Commissioner

Ms. Ma. Juanita Elegir-Cueto was appointed on June 5, 2001

Ms. Cueto, a member of the Philippine Bar, graduated with the Bachelor of Laws degree from the Ateneo de Manila College of Law. She was Associate Editor of the Ateneo Law Journal. Earlier, she graduated with the Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of the Philippines.

She brings to the Commission a stockbroker's background, having been the Chairperson and President of the Yaptinchay Securities Corporation since the year 2000, until her assumption of office. She was also its General Manager, Corporate Secretary and Legal Counsel for eight years.

She was a member of the Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc., and its Committees for Settlement, Demutualization, and the Legislative. She was also a Director and Corporate Secretary of the Securities Clearing Corporation of the Philippines.

Her previous professional experience includes a stint as associate lawyer of the Barcelona, Perlas, Joven and Academia Law Office; Legal Officer III at the Legal Service Office of the Department of Trade and Industry; Legal Staff Officer IV of Representative Vicente Rivera, Jr.; and, Legislative Staff Chief of Representative Edward M. Matti.

RAUL J. PALABRICA
Commissioner

Commissioner Raul J. Palabrica assumed his office on April 18, 2005.

He graduated from the University of the Philippines with the degrees of Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws. In college, he was the editor in chief of his law class yearbook and managing editor of the Philippine Collegian, the university school organ.

Upon passing the bar examinations, he joined the law offices of Siguion Reyna Montecillo & Ongsiako. He later transferred to the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) to head its legal affairs department. He held the positions of director, legal counsel and corporate secretary in various PLDT subsidiaries and affiliate companies.

He was a professorial lecturer for four years at the U.P. College of Law.

After almost 20 years, he retired from PLDT with the rank of First Vice President for Legal and Corporate Affairs, and Assistant Corporate Secretary.

He then moved to the Office of then Vice President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to serve as its Legal Counsel and Chief of Staff for 11 months.

In 2000, he became the General Counsel and Readers' Advocate of the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper where he wrote a regular column on readers' complaints and current national and local issues.

MANUEL B. GAITE
Commissioner

Manuel B. Gaite was appointed by Her Excellency President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on March 16, 2009.

Mr. Gaite finished his degree of Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy (1977) and Bachelor of Laws (1982) at the Ateneo de Manila University. He passed the bar in 1983.

On June 16, 1983, Mr. Gaite joined the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel as a research attorney and rose through the ranks becoming a trial attorney and later a State Corporate Attorney. In February 1986, he was detailed to the Office of the President, where he served in varying capacities and under four presidents starting with President Corazon C. Aquino, Fidel V. Ramos, Joseph Ejercito Estrada, and now President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

Prior to his appointment at the Securities and Exchange Commission, he was the Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs in the Office of the President from January 20, 2003. He was also Executive Director of the Secretary in the Presidential Management Staff.

Mr. Gaite likewise sat in the board of various government corporations - Manila International Airport Authority, Home Guaranty Corporation, Food Terminal, Inc., and Cagayan Economic Zone Authority.

ELADIO M. JALA

Commissioner

Prior to his appointment as SEC Commissioner on November 23, 2009, Commissioner Eladio M. Jala was an educator, private law practitioner, and lawmaker.

After doing his undergraduate studies in Education at the Divine Word College (DWC) in Bohol, he worked as a high school teacher in Loboc, Bohol, and taught at the Bohol School of Arts and Trade as well. He finished his law studies in DWC in 1982, and after passing the Bar, he began a lucrative law practice and was an active member of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, Bohol chapter. He also was a member of the Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG), Brotherhood of Christian Businessmen and Professionals, and the Bohol Island Lions International Club. His stint both as an educator and a law practitioner made him a driving force in human rights advocacy.

In 1992, he won a seat in the Bohol provincial board. For six years as a board member, he sponsored some 180 resolutions and authored some 50 ordinances. When he won a congressional seat in 1998, he was chosen as Chairman of the Committee on Civil Service and Professional Regulation, Senior Vice Chairman of the Higher and Technical Education Committee, and appointed a member of 13 other House Committees.

During his tenure as a representative, he filed several bills, the most notable of which were the granting of civil service eligibility to government employees who had rendered continuous service for more than 10 years; the outlawing of political turncoatism; and adopting community service as an alternative penalty for certain offenses in lieu of imprisonment and fines.

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