THE world of tax can be complicated and intimidating for many, but a renowned expert that continues to guide conglomerates and large companies in navigating the twists and turns is Du-Baladad and Associates, otherwise known as BDB Law.
As it celebrates its 15th founding anniversary today, BDB Law recognizes the progress and influence it has made in the Philippines' tax industry, and looks forward to the endless possibilities of what's ahead.
After countless successful cases throughout its 15 years in practice, BDB Law has firmly established itself as a tax law expert even from the get-go.
By maintaining its total client care approach, BDB Law has not only earned a reputation for excellence but has also cultivated strong client relationships, based on trust, reliability and efficacy.
Benedicta "Dick" Du-Baladad, the founding partner, chairman and chief executive officer of the firm, says BDB Law takes excellent care of its clients from start to end, providing comprehensive legal support through consistent updates on business developments, industry trends and professional recommendations that proactively addresses the specific needs and concerns of each client.
Built on expertise
In an interview with The Manila Times, Du-Baladad states: "We started as already experts in taxation. At the time, we already had recognition that we are experts in that field. There were people who already knew us and would come to us for tax. As we grow the business, we've realized the need for diversification and expansion."
She continues, "There were certain specializations that we initially thought were not [the center of our interests], but there is a need and a gap in the market. Therefore, we have to take it. That's when we had to introduce and offer a variety of services."
BDB Law's core goal is to deliver service beyond expectations. Du-Baladad says the firm has consistently been striving to achieve this goal in each case that it handles.
BDB Law largely attributes its achievements and growth to the hard work of its people, notably its strong core team. The firm consists of seasoned lawyers and passionate staff, many of whom have been with the company for numerous years, including some who have been with the company since its founding.
Du-Baladad recalls how the firm initially had to request meetings and approach potential clients to present its credentials.
"Eventually, we started having our share of the pie in the market alongside big firms," Du-Baladad says.
Now, BDB Law notices a growing number of clients, showing interest in its services.
"That, to us, is a good sign that shows that we have successfully put up a good and strong reputation, which clients now recognize and consider [when choosing legal representation]," Du-Baladad adds.
Aside from serving multinational corporations, listed companies and large taxpayers, BDB Law's expertise is also acknowledged by the government as a consultant in many of its tax reform projects such as the Passive Income and Financial Intermediary Taxation Act.
Unit functions
BDB Law has around 40 members as its core. The firm outsources other functions. Within its core group, specific units are led by partners or the so-called champions.
Each partner in the firm is given a product and industry that they champion, develop or pursue for them to sell and/or improve.
"For example, if there are changes in the environment that would affect that product, then they will have to see and evaluate what it is that we need to do on that product or service," explains Du-Baladad.
BDB Law's practice areas or tax services include tax compliance; court litigation; handling assessments, disputes and tax claims; transfer pricing; tax advisory and tax planning; international tax; tax advocacy; and incentives availment assistance, among others.
Despite the assigned specializations, partners at BDB Law are not confined to working exclusively within their designated units.
Managing partner Fulvio "Fulvs" Dawilan, responsible for technical and administrative functions of the firm, says: "Almost all tax types and industries can be handled by any of the partners, ensuring faster and efficient delivery of services."
Dawilan adds that when it comes to knowledge and experience, all partners are competent enough to successfully manage various types of specialization.
As a founding partner and chief executive officer of the firm, Du-Baladad, together with Dawilan, supports all the partners on technical and client concerns and guides them in decision-making.
Winning together
Dawilan says, "I've been here since the beginning. I've witnessed how we grew in terms of people, clients and industries that we serve. I can say that, as a whole, we have been steadily growing since the start."
BDB Law places a high value on its culture of shared responsibility, where all partners actively support one another in every case and decision; thus, reinforcing the firm's stability and unity.
Jomel Manaig, a partner of BDB Law, agrees with this. He affirms that in his 6 years with the firm, the culture of shared responsibility and competence has always been there.
Manaig is one of the core members of the litigation team. As a partner, Manaig actively engages in the firm's endeavors such as transfer pricing and raising awareness about new international tax developments.
"You can always tap others here. You can reach out to fellow partners and associates for their advice and opinions on various matters, including your own cases. They will not hesitate to help you," Manaig says.
He further elaborates that at the BDB Law office, the doors of partners are always open, both literally and figuratively, in hopes of making everyone comfortable to come in for questions or a quick visit.
"True success in the firm is not achieved by just one person or solely the responsibility of just one person; It is a shared responsibility of everyone in the office," Manaig adds.
Growing together
Irwin Nidea Jr., a BDB Law senior partner and an economist-lawyer with over 19 years of experience in tax, has grown with the firm since the beginning. Nidea currently leads the litigation and transfer pricing units of BDB Law.
Nidea has witnessed the company's growth through its expansion in personnel. He has initially led the litigation unit alone. Now, 15 years later, nearly all of the firm's lawyers collaborate in handling litigation.
"It's testament to how the clients trusted us and how many cases that we won. In terms of clients, there are many clients who are still with us from the start until now," says the senior partner.
Nidea takes pride in successfully winning almost all of the firm's assessment and refund cases, which often involves billions of pesos. These milestones contribute to the growth of the litigation unit.
In celebration of the firm's 15th year anniversary, BDB Law is introducing its Global Transfer Pricing Resource Center, headed by Nidea and Manaig. This center offers quality and cost-effective transfer pricing solutions to clients from major industries such as telecommunications and business process outsourcing, among others.
Nidea asserts: "Now, we are not only handling local clients but we will also be catering to international clients. We've already started for several years now. Our clients include China, Germany, many parts of Europe, the United States and Southeast Asia, including Thailand and Vietnam. So, the firm has expanded from just local clients to international clients."
Having been with BDB Law for 12 years, Rodel Unciano, an accountant and lawyer with over 15 years of experience, is also a witness to the firm's substantial progress over the years, especially its growth in workforce. At BDB Law, Unciano specializes in industries such as banking and financial institutions, insurance, manufacturing, and power and energy.
Working with clients
The BDB Law has welcomed Mabel Buted as a valuable addition to the firm in February 2018. Boasting over 13 years of experience in various tax services under her belt, Buted, a partner of BDB Law, spearheads the tax compliance and due diligence units of the firm.
Buted says, "In that unit, our services include the review of the tax compliance of companies. We prepare reports [that shows] if the company complies with the tax laws and regulations, and we also recommend ways on how companies can improve their tax compliance."
The tax compliance unit is responsible for making sure that the companies it works with adhere to the law to avoid hefty penalties and deficiency taxes in case these companies fail to comply.
The unit also ensures that the rights of taxpayers are protected, defending them against assessments of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).
Buted further adds that what sets BDB Law apart from other firms is its practical-based approach that allows the firm to align itself with the client's specific needs.
"It's not just about telling our clients what's written in the books or law but we try to make sure that the law really applies to the business of the client. We make sure to get their feedback on our advice [to assess whether certain actions] are practicable for them to do or not."
Straight shooters
In positioning the brand, BDB Law maintains a straightforward approach in presenting solutions to clients, a strategy that is well-embraced by the industry.
Manaig expounds: "If you're going to look at our work, such as our tax opinions, we have a certain way of presenting it. We have maintained it for several years. It is the kind of branding that the clients [easily associate with] BDB Law even if [it doesn't explicitly state] the name of the firm. That's also part of the reputation that we have cultivated with our private and public sector clients and partners."
Nidea mentions, "In our case, we don't really dally on what the answer is. We refrain from using 'may.' We use terms such as 'should' and 'can' in our answers."
A training ground for budding and up-and-coming tax lawyers
With its strong track record and expertise, BDB Law claims to be the one of the top two most considered law firms by new graduates aspiring to specialize in tax in the country.
Du-Baladad expresses her aspiration for BDB Law to be recognized as an excellent training ground.
BDB Law provides holistic training, much-needed exposure and practical experience to young lawyers through monthly training sessions and discussions, aimed at shaping their skills and knowledge.
The BDB Law chief adds, "We aim to train them [in order] that when they go out, they can proudly represent BDB Law, creating a perception that they are highly skilled. Their value will increase whether they continue with us, join other firms or pursue their own practice."
Education and sustainability champion
When it comes to sustainability, Du-Baladad says the firm strives to implement paperless operations — albeit hard — especially given its nature as a law firm.
Moreover, BDB Law takes pride in being a trendsetter in setting up a foundation, where it donates a certain percentage of its gross revenue to build schools around the country.
The target areas of its Build a School program are those areas where school facilities are lacking. The initiative also prioritizes the hometowns of the firm's partners. This move intends to inspire the communities, especially the children, where the partners have spent their childhood or have seen a large part of their growth.
To further advance education among youth, the firm has partnered with several state universities to offer scholarships. Du-Baladad further adds that the firm is currently refining its livelihood projects and child stunting-related initiatives.
Every case is a challenge
Considering the intricacies of tax laws and the processes in the Philippines, the lawyers agree that each case poses its own set of challenges.
Under the litigation unit, Nidea highlights the firm's recent win, a P7.6-billion case, which he claims is the largest tax assessment case in recorded history of the Court of Tax Appeals.
Nidea shares: "That was challenging because of the amount and the documents involved in fighting that assessment. Of course, [it also comes with] the implication to the company if ever we lose. There are several other billion peso cases but that's our biggest so far."
For the tax compliance unit, Buted says it's always challenging, especially that the unit handles refund cases such as value-added tax (VAT) refunds, creditable withholding tax and excise tax refunds.
Nidea adds that it's difficult in a way that it's time-bound. For instance, VAT refunds are only for 90 days. "So, we have to act fast. We have to secure the cash in 90 days. That's the challenging part," he explains.
Du-Baladad asserts that each case presents a challenge, saying, "One, you're handling a client who's already nervous."
In addition to managing the client, she stresses the need to simultaneously manage the case, external agencies such as the government authorities and other stakeholders all at once. The challenge lies in balancing all these aspects while also effectively handling the risks, relationships and expectations.
Due to BDB Law's client base of large corporations, the firm often deals with large sums of money, which increases the complexity and risks involved in their work. Du-Baladad says, "Once you lose a case, clients will also lose billions of money."
Beyond financial implications, BDB Law considers the broader impact of case outcomes on affected communities. Du-Baladad highlights a particular case involving a client, an electric company, that serves as a provider of electricity to many cooperatives and communities.
"So, there is a greater responsibility beyond the responsibility to the client. This is how we approach every case, regardless of its size," says Du-Baladad.
Aside from cases that affect communities, Nidea also points out another case, handled by BDB Law, that can impact or influence future cases, thereby adding more pressure to the firm. Given the graveness of such responsibility, Du-Baladad stresses the importance of raising and discussing these issues or cases with the entire team.
Manaig also sheds light on the complexity of their work as tax lawyers, explaining: "It's one thing for us to understand our clients' position that we will advocate, but it is another [thing to] effectively relay and present that information to the BIR in a way they they will also understand [the client's side]."
He shares a specific challenging assessment that — in addition to its amount, which is around P4 billion — involves multiple taxable years. Therefore, it means dealing with several groups of revenue officers with their own conclusions on that particular assessment.
Manaig concludes: "That's one of the things we have experienced recently, and it's a good thing that we were able to hurdle it and close the assessment."
Meanwhile, for Unciano, one of the most challenging cases involves multinational companies and its complex issues.
Unciano adds:"For multinational companies, they always consider the rules in the administrative process in their countries, which are entirely different from ours. So, again, it takes a lot of effort to do the explanations."
Dawilan agrees with Unciano's statement, noting that other countries have their own laws and rules, and that foreign companies or clients sometimes expect the firm to follow the same practices.
To address this, it is imperative to reassure these clients that the firm strictly adheres to the local laws and regulations. The approach helps them understand the policies and way of doing things in the Philippines.
BDB Law also advocates for policy improvements, helping the government to identify areas to work on in tax processes and policies.
Dawilan mentions that there has also been progress when it comes to ease of doing business in the country. He says, "I hope that in the coming years, the Philippines does more improvements until such time that we are doing the same as other countries."
Armed for the battle
The BDB Law's experienced lawyers have important messages for those wanting to enter or who have just begun in the tax industry.
For her part, the firm's chief emphasizes that budding and aspiring tax law professionals must come to terms with the fluidity and complexity of taxation. They must love discussions as this is a recurring thing in a field, where one thing can be interpreted in different ways.
Du-Baladad states: "Unlike other fields of law, where rules are static, there are changes in tax every day. Every day, you have to read, you have to monitor and you have to always be on your feet. You have to be calm and alert. That's how rapid the changes are in tax."
Despite all the challenges it entails, Du-Baladad reassures, "There's money in tax."
Buted shares a piece of advice to young professionals: "Be tough. The tax practice, in itself, is quite difficult to understand."
Although the practice serves as a test of character, Buted says one will eventually realize that in helping clients, they can somehow contribute to the economy by guiding companies to comply with government rules.
Nidea says tax can be intimidating because the tax code is very complex. However, he also encourages new graduates to specialize in tax because of the limited law firms that specialize in it; hence the need for more tax lawyers in the country.
Unciano gives a short yet practical advice, "In tax law practice, you have lesser enemies."
Meanwhile, Manaig concludes: "Don't be afraid of tax. Tax is everywhere. It is a part of everyone's daily life. Tax is not a big maze but a very heavy door. It's hard to open but it certainly can be opened."