Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz Law Offices (ACCRALaw)

Senior Partner Antitrust & Trade Regulation | Bankruptcy, Insolvency and Corporate Rehabilitation | Litigation | Securities and Capital Markets

Mr. Lim specializes in both corporate law and litigation. He spearheaded the teams which handled some of the largest capital market-related transactions in the Philippines, which include the equity offerings of Alliance Select Foods International, Inc., Ayala Corporation, Ayala Land, Inc., BDO Unibank, Inc., Bloomberry Resorts Corporation, Century Group Properties, Inc., Lucio Tan Group of Companies, Melco Crown (Philippines) Resorts Corporation, and Travellers International Hotel Group. He also headed the team that handled the bond offerings of the Filinvest Group, First Metro Investments Corporation and BDO Unibank, Inc., as well as the listing of the first-ever Exchange Traded Fund listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange.

With his experience, his clients rely on him for corporate and strategic advice. Mr. Lim has been involved in several high-profile cases in the Philippines, such as:

Poverty Eradication and Alleviation Certificates (PEACe) Bonds; Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT)’s foreign ownership issue; Philippine Dealing Exchange (PDEx) cases before the Supreme Court; Sanofi cases on the Dengvaxia; Rappler cases; Survey Sampling International cases.

Mr. Lim served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) from 2004 to 2010. During his stint at the PSE, he also held key positions in various institutions such as the Securities Clearing Corporation of the Philippines, the Capital Market Development Center, Inc., the Philippine Stock Exchange Foundation, Inc., the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corporation, and the Securities Investors Protection Fund. Currently, he is a member of the Board of Directors of public companies such as the Enegy Development Corporation, The Insular Life Assurance Company, Ltd. and Producers Savings Bank Corporation.

Mr. Lim also served as the Co-Chairperson of the Rules on e-Commerce and Notaries Public sub-committees of the Supreme Court. He is also a member of the sub-committees on Commercial Courts, Evidence, and DNA Evidence. In such capacity, he was involved in the drafting of the following rules:

Interim Rules Procedure on Corporate Rehabilitation (2000); Interim Rules on Intra-Corporate Controversies (2001); Rules on Corporate Rehabilitation (2008), Rules on Electronic Evidence (2001); Rules on Notarial Practice (2013); Rules on DNA Evidence (2013); and, Financial Rehabilitation Rules of Procedure (2013)

Mr. Lim is currently a law professor of the Ateneo Law School and the San Beda College Graduate School of Law, where he teaches courses in Securities Regulation, International Business Transactions, Arbitration, Evidence, and Partnership. He is also a professional lecturer of the Philippine Judicial Academy (PHILJA), and the current Vice-Chair of its Commercial Law Department.

Mr. Lim has authored several books/articles that were published in both local and international publications, such as:

“The Philippine Competition Act: Salient Points and Emerging Issues” (co-author), published by Rex Publication House in 2016; “Toward a Forward Looking Insolvency Law System”, published by the Journal of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines in 2013; “Informal Workouts, Restructuring and the Future of Asian Insolvency Reform”, published by the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), 294-297 (2003); “The Philippines Establishes New Rehabilitation Rules, Designates Insolvency Law Court,” published by the Journal of American Bankruptcy Institute in 2001; and “Benchbook for Commercial Law Judges, Procedures for Corporate Rehabilitation”, published by the Journal of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines in 2000.

He also co-authored the Philippine chapters of:

“Towards Robust Yet Balanced Competition in the Philippines” published by the Asian-Mena Counsel in 2017; “Cross-Border Insolvency, A Commentary on the UNCILTRAL Model Law” published by Globe Law and Business Ltd. in 2017; “New Competition Law In Effect In The Philippines” published by the Asia Business Law Journal in 2016; and “Levelling the Playing Field in the Philippines” published by the Asian-Mena Counsel in 2016; “Getting the Deal Through: Restructuring and Insolvency Philippines (2011-2015 editions)” published by Law Business Research Ltd.

In 2018, his expertise in the fields of dispute resolution and corporate law have been recognized by several award-giving bodies. He was recognized as one of the Leading Lawyers in the fields of Capital Markets and Dispute Resolution & Litigation by the Asia Law Profiles, a ranked lawyer in Banking & Finance and Dispute Resolution by Chambers Asia-Pacific and Chambers & Partners, a leading individual in the field of Corporate & Finance by Chambers Global and Chambers & Partners, and a Leading Lawyer in the field of Corporate and M&A by The Legal 500 Asia Pacific.

Mr. Lim was recognized as a “Leading Lawyer,” and was recommended for the practice areas of Capital Markets and Tax in the Asia Pacific Legal 500 for 2020.

He is also the recipient of numerous awards and accolades during his professional career, including:

Deal Maker of the Year by Thomson Reuters Asian Legal Business Philippine Law Awards in 2017; Commended External Counsel of the Year by In-House Community Counsels in 2016 and 2017; Punong Gabay Award by the Philippine Council of Deans and Educators; Professorial Chair in Commercial Law by the Supreme Court of the Philippines, Philippine Judicial Academy and the Metrobank Foundation, Inc.; Advocacy Management and Shareholder Rights Advocacy Awards by BizNewsAsia; and Certificate of Commendation by the Supreme Court of the Philippines;

Mr. Lim was awarded by Benchmark Litigation Asia-Pacific as the Philippines’ Lawyer of the Year for 2019. In the same year, he was also recognized by Asialaw Profiles as an Elite Practitioner in the practice areas of capital markets and dispute resolution.

English Pilipino

Mr. Lim is also the incumbent president of the Shareholders’ Association of the Philippines. He is a member of the Board of Governors, and is the Vice-President of the Management Association of the Philippines. He is also a trustee of the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines, CIBI Foundation, Inc., and the Judicial Reform Initiative, Inc.. and a Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Directors.

He has been chosen also to lead the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) as its President for 2020.

Mr. Lim is a member of the American Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association, the International Insolvency Institute (III), and the Advisory Committee for the Asian Principles of Business Restructuring Project of the III and Asian Business Law Institute.

He is also a member of the New York State Bar.

Mr. Lim was admitted to the Philippine Bar in 1981 is a member of the Cagayan Chapter of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.

Master of LawsUniversity of Pennsylvania, USA, 1987Bachelor of LawsAteneo de Manila University, 1981Second HonorsBachelor of PhilosophyUniversity of Santo Tomas, 1975magna cum laudeBachelor of Arts University of Santo Tomas, 1975cum laude