─ About

I came to law through medicine.

Rodmel Bautista, nurse-attorney (RN, LL.B., LL.M.) of Roba Law Office PH, with his education and credentials

As a registered nurse, I spent my early career close to patient care — close enough to see exactly where clinical decisions and legal consequences meet. That vantage point shaped everything that followed.

A law degree, admission to the Philippine Bar, and a Master of Laws focused on the questions that sit between the clinic and the courtroom: informed consent, the standard of care, medical records, and patient rights. Today I run Roba Law, a boutique practice devoted entirely to healthcare.

How I work

My work spans the situations healthcare organizations actually face — responding to patient complaints and demand letters, advising on exposure after an adverse event, drafting and negotiating facility, HMO, and vendor contracts, building data-privacy and medical-records frameworks, and representing employers in labor and seafarer disputes. I work by the type of problem in front of you, not from a template.

Because the practice is a boutique, you deal with one attorney from first call to resolution. The same person who reads the clinical chart reads the contract and argues the case.

Experience

A track record built across the institutions that define Philippine healthcare — in-house, in government, and in private practice.

  • Healthcare arm of the country's oldest conglomerate

In-house legal counsel — medical malpractice defense, labor matters, contracts, and data protection.

  • A 500-bed premier government referral hospital for infectious and tropical diseases

Legal consultant on malpractice, employment, and procurement matters.

  • Lead government agency for formulating health policies, standards, and regulations

Contributed to the technical working group that drafted the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers (2024).

  • The gold standard institution of private healthcare in the Philippines

Legal and Compliance Head — CBA negotiations, DOH audit representation, clinical-trial agreements, and data-privacy compliance.

  • A leading full-service Makati law firm with a distinguished maritime, shipping, and seafarer labor practice

Seafarer disability litigation for manning agencies, principals, and protection-and-indemnity clubs before the NLRC and NCMB.

Teaching & scholarship

Alongside the practice, I serve as retainer counsel to the national professional group for bone and joint doctors in the Philippines and teach Bioethics at UERM Medical Center. Engaging with clinicians, students, and doctrine keeps the practice honest about how care actually happens — and gives clients counsel that is both practical and principled.