Estelito Mendoza

Estelito "Titong" Patdu Mendoza (January 5, 1930 – March 26, 2025) was a Filipino lawyer who served as Solicitor General of the Philippines from 1972 to 1986. As Solicitor General, he successfully defended the validity of the 1973 Constitution of the Philippines in the Ratification Cases. He was the Chairman of the United Nations General Assembly Legal Committee in 1976. He also served as Minister of Justice from 1984 to 1986, Member of the Batasang Pambansa from 1978 to 1980 and 1984 to 1986, and provincial governor of Pampanga from 1980 to 1984 and from 1985 to 1986. He was also the founding partner of Estelito P. Mendoza and Associates. Later, he received a Bachelor of Laws degree cum laude from the University of the Philippines College of Law in 1952 and a Master of Laws degree from Harvard Law School in 1954. He was a member of Upsilon Sigma Phi fraternity, as well as the Phi Kappa Phi and Pi Gamma Mu honor societies.

As member of the Batasang Pambansa, Mendoza sponsored vital pieces of legislation such as BP 20 which organized regional assemblies in Regions 9 and 12, BP 52 which called for local elections in 1980 and BP 68, the Corporation Code of 1980.

Notable cases and private practice Known as "the lawyer of last resort," Mendoza gained the reputation of defending high-profile controversial and unpopular clients. He served as chief counsel for Joseph Estrada during his impeachment trial which culminated in the Second EDSA Revolution. He also served as counsel of Ferdinand Marcos, his wife Imelda, and cronies Lucio Tan, Roberto Ongpin, and Danding Cojuangco in various cases for sequestered wealth. Furthermore, in the ruling allowing President Arroyo to appoint Renato Corona as Chief Justice, the Supreme Court used Mendoza's arguments in holding that the appointment was not covered by the prohibition on midnight appointments. In the anti-graft court Sandiganbayan, Mendoza got Senator Bong Revilla acquitted of plunder who was implicated in the same pork barrel scam. In the labor dispute involving Philippine Airlines (PAL) and the retrenchment of 5,000 of its employees, Mendoza represented PAL before the Supreme Court, winning the case for PAL. Mendoza also won as lawyer of the municipalities in League of Cities of the Philippines v. COMELEC involving the constitutionality of 16 cityhood bills. He also got Jaime Dichaves's plunder case dismissed by the anti-graft court Sandiganbayan. Dichaves was co-accused in former president Joseph Estrada's plunder case stemming from the 2001 Jose Velarde scandal.

In corporate practice, Estelito Mendoza was Non-Executive Director of Petron Corporation since January 8, 2009. He was also a member of the Board of Directors of San Miguel Corporation and Philippine National Bank (PNB). He previously served as a Director of Meralco. He was engaged in the practice of law for more than 60 years, and operated his own firm, Estelito P. Mendoza and Associates.

Personal life and death Mendoza was married to Rosa Fernan Adams and had five children.

Mendoza died on March 26, 2025, at the age of 95.

Awards On June 28, 2010, Mendoza received a Presidential Medal of Merit as Special Counsel on Marine and Ocean Concerns and was also awarded by the University of the Philippines Alumni Association its 1975 "Professional Award in Law" and in 2013 its "Lifetime Distinguished Achievement Award".

He was consistently listed as a "Leading Individual in Dispute Resolution" among lawyers in the Philippines in the following directories/journals: "The Asia Legal 500", "Chambers of Asia", and "Which Lawyer?" yearbooks for several years.