Patricia Bunye, Cruz Marcelo & Tenefrancia’s senior partner and head of the firm’s mining and natural resources department and the energy practice group, is set to take the helm as the new managing partner on 1 January 2025.
The newly elected head had set embracing technology including AI, as well as business development and talent acquisition, as key areas of focus under her leadership, Bunye told Asia Business Law Journal.
“We must further leverage these to broaden our client base and expand our practice areas. Our other rapidly developing practices, including arbitration, competition, data privacy and taxation, will be among our priorities,” said Bunye.
As one of the founding partners, Bunye, who is also a partner in the intellectual property department, will succeed Joe Nathan Tenefrancia, who has served in the role since 2013 and will now be the firm’s chairman.
Outside of her legal profession, Bunye served as the president of the US-headquartered global business association, Licensing Executives Society International, from 2016 to 2017, and was the first Filipino and Southeast Asian to hold the position.
