PUBLICATIONS
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Wage Distortion: What Happens When the Minimum Wage Increase Narrows the Salary Gap?
When a wage order increases the minimum wage, employers naturally focus first on the employees who are directly covered by the new rate. But the effect of the increase does not necessarily stop there. An increase in the minimum wage can also affect employees who were already earning more than the statutory minimum. Where those…
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Can the BIR Audit Everything in 2026?
A tax audit can be unsettling for any business. Once a revenue officer starts asking for books, invoices, contracts, bank records, and other documents, it can feel as though the entire business is suddenly open to examination. But the BIR’s authority to examine a taxpayer is not unlimited. The BIR’s current audit framework, under Revenue…
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Did EPIRA Get It Wrong When It Prohibited NAPOCOR from Engaging in the Generating Business?
Perhaps the better question is what happens when the State itself becomes a player in a market that was deliberately opened to competition. There is a legitimate argument for government intervention where generation shortages threaten energy security. But bringing NAPOCOR back into generation does not simply add another competitor to the market – a government-owned…
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The Vice President and Grave Threats: When Does a Threat Become a Crime?
On 4 September 2026, the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 98 issued a warrant of arrest against Vice President Sara Duterte over three (3) counts of grave threats. The charges arose from statements she made during an online press conference in November 2024, where the Vice President said that she had spoken to someone…