Practice areas

Data privacy, cybersecurity and artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives; special projects; technology media & telecommunications; general corporate services; international business law; banking and financial services

Introduction

Edsel F Tupaz heads data privacy, cybersecurity and artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives at the firm. He also heads special projects. His practice includes data privacy & protection, technology, cybersecurity, AI, fintech frameworks, blockchain-based initiatives, e-commerce, infrastructure, right of way & site acquisition, government procurement, general corporate services, and banking and financial services. Tupaz holds pioneering expertise on digital assets and cryptocurrency.

Dual qualified under the Philippine and New York Bar, Tupaz serves as data protection officer and legal adviser to Fortune 500 and Nasdaq companies, and many of the most impactful technology startups in Asia. He is recognised by Chambers & Partners for AI (Philippines) and by the Legal 500 for technology media & telecommunications (TMT), banking & finance, and projects & energy.

With more than 20 years in legal practice, Tupaz holds more than 10 years of experience in all three branches of government, acting as a public official, consultant, and public interest practitioner. Prior to rejoining the private sector, he was a senior official at the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) where he led right of way acquisition for priority projects under the PHP8-9 trillion (USD160-200 billion) “Build, Build, Build” programme. Prior to the DPWH, he was on the legislative staff of Senator Grace Poe, and a law clerk and lead speechwriter for Chief Justice Hilario G Davide Jr.

Tupaz holds an LLM from Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics (honours programme, cum laude; ranked first in terms of academic standing in economics) and Juris Doctor (St Thomas More Awardee; Second Honours) from the Ateneo de Manila University. Tupaz was the managing technical editor of the Harvard Human Rights Journal at Harvard University.

He has published close to 200 articles, op-eds, thought pieces, law journal articles, books and papers, receiving citations from the Supreme Court. He has taught in several institutions, including New England Law (Boston, Massachusetts), Ateneo de Manila Law School, De La Salle University, and Far Eastern University Institute of Law. He is a board director of the Harvard Law School Alumni Association of the Philippines.

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