Benedicta Du-Baladad named MAP President for 2023
ATTY. BENEDICTA “Dick” DuBaladad, the founding partner and chief executive officer (CEO) of Du-Baladad & Associates (BDB Law), takes on the role of leading the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) for this year with her election as its 75th president and fifth woman president.
Atty. Du-Baladad brings to the table a solid experience in management — an accountant and a lawyer, with a joint degree of Masters of Law and International Tax Program at the Harvard University, USA.
Her experience, expertise, determination, and strong will, all contributed to making BDB Law one of the leading tax and corporate law firms today, leading to its consistent recognition as an outstanding tax law firm by international ranking bodies, including the Chambers and Partners, International Tax Review, Legal 500 and Asia Legal Business.
Atty. Du-Baladad is a multiawarded lawyer. She was named National Leader for Southeast Asia - Corporate Tax in the 2022 edition of Who’s Who Legal (WWL) Thought Leaders and is consistently ranked by Asia Business Law Journal as one of the Philippines’ Top 100 lawyers (2018-2022). A highly regarded name in the field of taxation, she has been recognized for consecutive years as an Elite Tax Practitioner by International Tax Review, a Band 1 Leading Lawyer by Chambers and Partners, and a Tax Dispute Resolution Lawyer by Women in Business Law.
She was the president of Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX) in 2017. She spearheaded the creation of the FINEX Academy as a center of learning and excellence on capital market development in the country. From 2019 to 2022, she served as the co-chair of the Capital Market Development Council (CMDC).
A former official of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Atty. Du-Baladad served in various posts in offices involved in operations, policy formulation and legal. One of her significant contributions in the BIR was the setting up of and designing the organizational structure of the Large Taxpayers Service (LTS).
She moved to the private sector in 2001 and shortly thereafter became the president of the Tax Management Association of the Philippines (TMAP), a premiere organization of tax practitioners in the country. These valuable insights into both the public and the private sectors, and her notable objective thinking are attributes that serve her well in her role as a consultant of the government on various projects, including those on tax reforms, pension reforms and capital market development initiatives.
Currently, Atty. DuBaladad serves as a director of various companies and nongovernment associations, both here and abroad. Included in her directorships are: Asia Pacific Director for WTS Global (Netherlands); Vice-Chair of Bank of Commerce (BankCom); and Trustee of Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD) and Women Business Council of the Philippines.
Atty. Du-Baladad is also a professorial lecturer at the College of Law of University of the Philippines (UP) and University of Santo Tomas (UST). As a subject expert in Taxation, she has written books on the specialized taxation of the banking, insurance and financial intermediation sectors.
In 2015, Atty. Du-Baladad established the BDB Law Foundation identifying education as a top priority. From its inception up to now, the Foundation continues to build and donate school buildings, clinics and other facilities to public schools in far–flung areas nationwide. This is to help provide access to good education and enable conducive learning environment to these areas where resources are scarce. As she always voices out, “Kahit isang bata lang na makapagaral sa bawat pamilya, aangat and buong pamilya nila.” (At least one college graduate for every Filipino home can save a whole family from poverty.)
Gifted with a creative side, Atty. Du-Baladad is also a writer, a painter, a fashion designer and a lover of nature. She is a proud mother of four boys.
Joining Atty. Du-Baladad are a new set of MAP Board of Governors, comprising of Atty. Alexander B. Cabrera, chairman emeritus and ESG leader of PwC Philippines; Donald Patrick Lim, chief operating officer (COO) of DITO CME Holdings, Inc.; Maria Corazon “Corrie” D. Purisima, CFA, CPA, treasurer and head of markets and securities services at HSBC Philippines; Karen V. Batungbacal, senior advisor at IT & Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP); Benjamin “Ben” R. Punongbayan, founder of P&A Grant Thornton; Cielito F. Habito, Ph.D., chair of Brain Trust Inc. (BTI); Chito B. Salazar, Ph.D., president and COO of PHINMA Corp.; and Martha “Marts” M. Sazon, president and CEO of GCash/Mynt (Globe Fintech Innovations, Inc.).
The officers will be inducted during MAP’s 75th inaugural meeting, which will take place today. Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo, the 27th chief justice of the Supreme Court, will serve as the inducting officer and guest speaker for the meeting.