HARDY B. AQUENDE is one of the Firm’s Founding Partners. A CPA-lawyer, tax expert, New York University Law graduate, and New York attorney, Hardy has built a distinguished career in both the public and private sectors, with extensive experience in complex taxation, corporate transactions, and strategic legal advisory.

His areas of specialization include domestic and international taxation, corporate mergers and acquisitions, local and international business transactions, business and estate tax planning, real estate acquisitions, insurance law, corporate governance, regulatory compliance, and general corporate and commercial law. He regularly advises Philippine and multinational clients on sophisticated tax structuring, cross-border investments, corporate reorganizations, acquisitions, and high-value commercial transactions.

Hardy has extensive experience in Philippine legislative and public policy work, having previously served as Chief Legislation Officer in the Philippine Senate while concurrently serving as Acting Executive Director of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, where he was actively involved in the formulation and review of significant tax and economic legislation. Earlier in his career, he served as Legal Assistant to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and Special Prosecutor of the Intensified Run-After Tax Evaders (RATE) Program of the Department of Finance-Bureau of Internal Revenue from 2010 to 2013, further strengthening his expertise in taxation, tax enforcement, and fiscal policy. He likewise began his legal career as an associate of the Corporate & Special Projects and Tax Departments of Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz (ACCRALAW) from 2008 to 2010, where he handled a broad range of corporate, commercial, and tax matters.

Beyond legal practice, Hardy has held leadership positions in both the public and academic sectors. He served as an elected Member of the Board of Regents of Bicol University from 2015 to 2019, contributing to the governance of one of the country’s premier state universities. From 2017 to 2019, he likewise served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Forbes College and Forbes Academy, where he led the institutions’ academic and administrative operations.

Hardy is the Founding Dean of the Bicol University School of Law, where he established and led the University’s first law school. Under his leadership, the School of Law achieved a historic milestone in the 2023 Philippine Bar Examinations, with its pioneer batch of graduates earning the distinction of being the No. 1 Top Performing Law School in the Philippines in its category, a remarkable achievement for a newly established law school. He continues to teach taxation, corporate law, and business law as a Professor of Law.

Hardy obtained his Juris Doctor degree from the University of the Philippines College of Law in 2008, after which he was admitted to the Philippine Bar. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Accountancy, with honors, from De La Salle University in 2003 and subsequently passed the Philippine CPA Licensure Examination.

He holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) from the New York University School of Law, where he graduated in 2012 under NYU’s prestigious International Tax Program as one of its top-performing students. He was awarded a Fulbright Opportunity Grant in connection with his graduate studies. In the same year, he successfully passed the New York Bar Examination and was admitted to the practice of law in the State of New York. In 2014, he completed the Senior Executive Fellows Program at the Harvard Kennedy School, specializing in public administration and executive leadership.

Hardy was recognized as a finalist for Young Lawyer of the Year in the 2020 Asia Legal Business (ALB) Philippine Law Awards. He is a member of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines and the New York State Bar.