BIZ BUZZ: Veteran IP lawyer appointed new IPOPHL head
A new head for the government’s intellectual property rights office has been officially announced, marking the latest leadership shakeup in the state institution leading the fight against piracy and counterfeiting.
The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) said that Brigitte da Costa-Villaluz was appointed the new director general, ending what could have been a continuation of former chief Rowel Barba’s 5-year stint, which concluded last December 2024.
One industry source said that Barba, who had expressed willingness to continue leading the IPOPHL, was thumbed down by President Marcos due to being an appointee of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
As we all know, there’s now bad blood between the Marcoses and the Dutertes, leading to a political meltdown between two parties that had ironically pushed for “unity” during their election campaign.
Despite being an outsider, Da Costa-Villaluz still seems like a competent replacement to Barba given her three decades of private practice expertise in IP law.
The IPOPHL said she has also worked on complex cases involving trademarks, patents, copyrights and commercial law.
She is also the founder of BDCV Law and was previously a partner at Poblador Bautista & Reyes Law Offices where she built a distinguished career handling IP litigation, enforcement and corporate governance, according to the IPOPHL.
Still, only time will tell if the alumnus of the University of the Philippines will bring the same kind of leadership that Barba brought to the IPOPHL that made the government agency flourish.
