New SEC chief to focus on reforms to protect investors

MANILA, Philippines - As she takes over the reins of the country’s corporate watchdog, former ACCRA lawyer Teresita Herbosa’s priority will be to revitalize the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) enforcement efforts, make it a paperless organization in five years, and bring other changes to bolster investor protection.

In her first meeting with reporters covering the beat late Friday, Herbosa has vowed to improve the effectiveness of the agency’s process for registration, record keeping and investigations into errant companies.

 Herbosa, President Aquino’s choice to head the SEC, said the agency would be relentless in its drive to weed out those who cheat investors and “break the law” in line with her commitment to investor protection, transparency and accountability.

The newly-installed SEC chief said her goal is also to pursue computerization as vigorously as possible to help bring the country well into the digital age. “The regulator should be fully online, able to update records and convert to digital form so communications and sharing of records and documents can easily be facilitated. We want to create a paperless environment… This is part of our five-year plan,” she said.

“The objective is to make government more transparent and accessible to the public. It’s all about improving public service,” Herbosa said.

She said the SEC should have its own surveillance system to go after unscrupulous entities and individuals. “We want the public to know that we will be doing our job… Operations that are not used for legitimate business should be deleted from corporate registry,” Herbosa said.

Herbosa also underscored the importance of attending training programs to upgrade skills and keep up with the trends. “The regulator should be ahead of everyone else in terms of new products that would be coming. We want to modernize everything,” she said.

A graduate from the University of the Philippines both cum laude in Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws degrees, Herbosa said she would also recommend changes in the securities law that would further safeguard the interest of the investing public and increase the integrity of the system.

Prior to her appointment, Herbosa was a senior and the first female co-managing partner of the ACCRA (Angara Abello Concepcion REgala & Cruz Law Office where her skills and exerptise as litigator were fully enhanced. She was with the firm’s prestigious Litigation Department, which she headed from 1993 to 2003, and has been consistently recognized worldwide as the best in the country.

During her tenure, she has handled litigation cases, whether civil, criminal or administrative, before Philippine Courts. Her areas of specialization include telecommunications, family law, land and air transportation, contract law, government contacts, public bidding and award, constitutional law, and environmental law.

Herbosa has handled various cases before international and domestic arbitral tribunals and has orally argued before the Supreme Court several times. She was directly involved in cases where the Supreme Court laid down significant rulings, including those on the revival of a judgment, the exercise of discretion in the acceptance or refusal of bids, the computation of the redemption period, the obligations of an independent contractor, the meaning of devaluation, the scope of the pre-trial stage in a criminal proceeding, the right to vote sequestered shares of stock, the nature of a unilateral promise to sell, and the liability of a joint tortfeasor. She has been cited by worldwide legal publications as one of the top litigation lawyers of the Philippines.

As a private citizen, Herbosa 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, and IOTA TAU Internatonal Sorority and Women in Arbitration, International Chamber of Commerce-International Court of Arbitration.