20 Asian Legal Business | December 2024 Jose A. Linsangan Senior Partner, Sarmiento Loriega Law Office Philippines Tel: (63) (2) 7 798 8115 Fax: (63) (2) 8 689 7101 Email: jalinsangan@sl-lawoffice.com ALB Litigators of Asia 2024 Jose A. Linsangan has established himself as one of the Philippines’ preeminent dispute resolution lawyers over a distinguished career spanning more than 15 years. As Senior Partner and Head of Litigation, Arbitration and Alternative Dispute Resolution at Sarmiento Loriega Law Office, Linsangan leads a formidable team handling some of the country’s most complex and high-stakes legal battles. A product of the prestigious Ateneo de Manila University, where he obtained both his undergraduate and law degrees with distinction, Linsangan honed his craft at two of the Philippines’ largest and most respected law firms before joining Sarmiento Loriega, namely ACCRA Law and Puno Law. His extensive litigation experience covers commercial, civil, tax, criminal and administrative matters before all levels of courts and government agencies. Linsangan’s expertise has been recognised by legal directories, with The Legal 500 listing him as a lawyer to watch for dispute resolution in 2022. He was also a finalist in the 2023 Asian Legal Business (ALB) Philippine Law Firm Awards for Litigation Lawyer of the Year and Finalist in the 2024 ALB Philippine Law Firm Awards for Dispute Resolution Lawyer of the Year. He recently passed the arbitrator accreditation examinations of the Philippine Dispute Resolution Centre, Inc. (PDRCI), further cementing his credentials in this field. Throughout his career, Linsangan has represented an impressive roster of clients across key industries including real estate, banking, mining, telecommunications, insurance, media, telecommunications, healthcare and energy. He has acted for top conglomerates, industry leaders and high-profile individuals in numerous landmark cases. Some of Linsangan’s most notable recent work includes leading a constitutional challenge by electric cooperatives against the expansion of a private utility’s franchise, raising novel antitrust and competition issues before the Supreme Court. The case has significant implications for the entire power industry. He is also representing a major real estate developer in ongoing expropriation proceedings involving approximately 600 million pesos worth of property. The case raises important questions about the limits of eminent domain and the constitutional right to housing. In another high-profile matter, Linsangan is defending a large real estate corporation against tax assessments totalling over 500 million pesos, securing a favourable ruling from the Court of Tax Appeals that is now pending before the Supreme Court. He is also opposing an unprecedented application by a private distribution utility to operate in franchise areas overlapping with existing electric cooperatives, in a case with far-reaching consequences for the power sector. Linsangan is also involved in international arbitration involving several millions of US dollars. Linsangan also assisted clients in halting a large-scale illegal reclamation project and obtaining a Writ of Kalikasan from the Supreme Court on behalf of indigenous communities against illegal mining operations in protected areas of Palawan, showcasing his expertise in environmental law. Beyond these headline-grabbing cases, Linsangan has built a strong track record across various practice areas. He has successfully prosecuted one of the largest private financial crimes in Philippine banking history and represented a senator in landmark legislation before the Supreme Court. His experience spans complex corporate rehabilitations, intra-corporate disputes, intellectual property matters and high-value family law proceedings. Linsangan has also expanded his practice to include advisory work for multinational companies. He recently led a comprehensive regulatory compliance review for the Philippine office of a global insurance giant, covering areas like data privacy, labour, tax and corporate housekeeping. As a respected voice in the legal community, Linsangan shares his expertise as a professorial lecturer at his alma mater, the Ateneo de Manila University School of Law. He is also a member of the ASEAN Law Association. Colleagues and clients alike praise Linsangan for his sharp legal mind, strategic approach and unwavering commitment to his clients’ interests. His ability to navigate complex, multi-faceted disputes and find innovative solutions has made him a go-to counsel for bet-the-company litigation. While his accomplishments are impressive, Linsangan remains grounded and focused on continual improvement. At just 43 years old, he has already achieved more than many lawyers do in a lifetime. Yet he shows no signs of slowing down, taking on ever more challenging cases and expanding his expertise into new areas like arbitration, cybersecurity and data privacy, artificial intelligence and Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) litigation.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjA0NzE4Mw==