Vice President Sara Duterte will surely face the Senate impeachment court this time around.

While she escaped the trial in 2025 after the Supreme Court (SC) declared the complaint against her as unconstitutional, Duterte was impeached again by the House of Representatives last May.

She became the first Filipino public official to have been impeached twice by the legislative’s lower chamber due to her alleged threats to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his family, misuse of confidential funds, and unexplained wealth.

Although she filed a petition again with the SC to stop her 2026 impeachment, the High Court did not issue a temporary restraining order.

In June, the pre-trial conference at the Senate was held for five days, and culminated on June 25. This cleared the way for the trial scheduled on Monday, July 6.

Similar to 2025, Duterte will be defended by a group of lawyers who are mostly from the Fortun, Narvasa and Salazar (FNS) law firm. Her team is led by litigator Sheila Sison.

Here’s the complete list of the Vice President’s defense team.

Philip Sigfrid Fortun

Philip Sigfrid Fortun is a founding partner of Fortun Narvasa and Salazar — the firm that handled Duterte’s petition opposing the impeachment trial. He was admitted to the Bar in 1984.

He studied at the University of the Philippines (UP) from high school up to law school. He earned his law degree from the state university in 1983 and passed the Bar a year later. Before establishing his firm in 1993, Fortun worked as an associate for a big law firm in the country for nearly a decade.

His law experience covers criminal and civil litigation, arbitration, and even impeachment. Fortun is also affiliated with uniformed personnel — he is a trained volunteer fire fighter of the Bureau of Fire Protection and shares a bond with the Philippine Military Academy Sandigan Class of 1982.

Fortun’s firm handled major cases, including the Ampatuan case, but they later withdrew due to “potential conflict.” The firm once served as counsels for the Ampatuans who were charged with the killing of the Maguindanao Massacre victims.

In the middle of the Ampatuan case, Fortun filed an indirect contempt case against Filipino journalists for reporting about his disbarment case. The High Court cleared the journalists from the case in 2013, but fined the lawyer who supposedly distributed the copy of the disbarment case to the media.

Fortun also counseled Mighty Corporation, the cigarette company whose owner former president Rodrigo Duterte had ordered arrested in 2017 for allegedly using fake tax stamps.

Gregorio Narvasa II

Like Fortun, Gregorio Narvasa II is the firm’s founding partner. Narvasa earned his business management degree from the Ateneo de Manila University, then ranked 8th in the UP law class of 1985. He passed the Bar in 1986.

Gregorio Narvasa is the son of the late chief justice Andres Narvasa, who represented former president Joseph Estrada in his impeachment in 2000.

Before his law career, Narvasa played basketball for Ateneo. He was a member of Ateneo’s basketball varsity team and clinched the Most Valuable Player award during the National Collegiate Athletic Association 1975-1976 season. He was also a member of the country’s national basketball team that represented the Philippines in games within the ASEAN region.

Narvasa is still engaged with basketball. He served as Philippine Basketball League commissioner from 1992 to 1994, and then as Metroball Basketball Association commissioner from 2000 to 2001.

Duterte’s lawyer served as a trustee of the Ateneo Sports Hall of Fame, Inc. in 2004, and became its president from 2011 to the present.

Sheila Sison (lead counsel)

Sheila Sison is a partner at Fortun Narvasa & Salazar law firm. She earned her communication arts degree from UP Los Baños (UPLB) and her law degree from San Sebastian College Recoletos, where she graduated class valedictorian. The Vice President, like Sison, is also a product of San Sebastian’s law school.

Sison was admitted to the Bar in 2014. A product of Quezon City Science High School, Sison later entered UPLB where she headed some organizations like the UP Sigma Alpha Nu Sorority. She was also a debater and writer — she was part of her university paper’s editorial board during her undergraduate years.

In law school, she was a full academic scholar and was a consistent dean’s lister. She was also a recipient of the academic Excellence Medal of Honor by the Recoletos Educational Apostolate of the Philippines, according to her law firm profile. Sison specializes in criminal litigation and has handled Sandiganbayan cases.

According to FNS, Sison “currently holds the record of having been chosen as the Firm’s Lawyer of the Year for five consecutive years from 2015 to 2019 – a historical feat that shows her dedication to excellence.”

Kristine Ferrer

Kristine Ferrer, who’s also a certified public accountant, is a partner at the FNS law firm. With 15 years of experience, she’s handled cases on corporate law, taxation, and litigation.

She started her career at Sycip Gorres Velayo & Co. When she joined her current firm, she was named the head of tax. Ferrer has handled cases before the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Court of Tax Appeals.

According to her profile, she led the team that handled the tax compromise settlement case amounting to P25 billion between Mighty Corporation and the BIR.

She is an alumna of the Ateneo de Davao University’s College of Law. At the said university, she taught taxation law, special proceedings, and accounting.

Carlo Joaquin Narvasa

Carlo Joaquin Narvasa is a senior associate at the law firm. He was admitted to the Bar in 2016. 

He earned his Juris Doctor degree from Ateneo Law School and is a graduate of AB English Literature from Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU). 

Before joining Fortun Narvasa & Salazar, he was a junior associate at Paredes Garcia & Golez Law Office.

Narvasa currently serves as a first-chair litigator in major arbitration and dispute-resolution cases of the firm. He also specializes in corporate, commercial, mining, and natural resources. 

Justin Nicol Gular

Justin Nicol Gular is also a senior associate at the firm. He was admitted to the Bar in 2022.

He earned his Juris Doctor and Psychology degree from the University of San Carlos (USC) in Cebu City. He was also a three-time grand champion of the ANC Square Offs: The Firm Debate.

Gular specializes in corporate and commercial, family and estates, labor, medical malpractice, projects, mining and natural resources, and litigation and dispute resolution.

David Ronell Golla VII

David Ronell Golla VII is a senior associate at the law firm. 

He was awarded second honors when he obtained his juris doctor degree from Far Eastern University Makati. Golla also graduated magna cum laude with a degree in business administration, majoring in legal management, at the New Era University. 

He specializes in corporate, commercial, family and estates, labor, litigation and dispute resolution, and environmental law.

Lindon Miguel Bacquel

Lindon Miguel Bacquel is a senior associate. He was admitted to the Bar in 2022.

He completed his juris doctor and undergraduate degree at ADMU, majoring in legal management and minoring in literature. 

Before joining his current law firm, he served as an intern at the Public Attorney’s Office in Quezon City and the Ateneo Legal Services Center.

Bacquel specializes in litigation and dispute resolution, arbitration, and immigration.

Karol Grace Oroceo

Karol Grace Oroceo is an associate of the FNS law firm. She has a degree in fine arts, major in advertising from the University of San Carlos in Cebu.

She obtained her law degree also from San Carlos in 2020, where she bagged the best thesis award. Oroceo is a native of Butuan City in Agusan del Norte.

Oroceo joined the firm in 2022, and handles cases related to corporate law matters, administrative, criminal, and civil cases. She also has experience in taxation law and special projects.

Clarlaine Radoc

Clarlaine Radoc is an associate at the law firm. She was admitted to the Bar in 2022.

Both her Juris Doctor and undergraduate degrees were from USC in Cebu City. She graduated cum laude with a degree in management accounting.

Radoc specializes in corporate and commercial practice, corporate rehabilitation, litigation and dispute resolution.

Francesca Marie Flores

Like the others, Francesca Marie Flores is also an associate at Fortun Narvasa & Salazar Law. She was admitted to the bar in 2024.

She has a degree in English literature from Ateneo de Manila University, and earned her law degree from USC.

Flores specializes in corporate and commercial practice, corporate rehabilitation, family and estates, labor, litigation and dispute resolution

Miguel Carlos Fernandez

Miguel Carlos Fernandez is an associate at the firm. He was admitted to the Bar in 2025.

He is a graduate of Ateneo Law School, and earned his bachelor’s degree in economics at the University of the Philippines Diliman, cum laude.

Fernandez specializes in cases related to corporate and commercial practice, corporate rehabilitation, labor, litigation, dispute resolution, and taxation.

Michael Wesley Poa (spokesperson)

Michael Wesley Poa served as Department of Education (DepEd) undersecretary, chief of staff, and spokesperson under the Vice President from 2022 to 2024.

He resigned as DepEd undersecretary and spokesperson after then-senator Sonny Angara took over the agency’s helm. 

Before serving in DepEd, Poa served as the chief of staff of the Office of Trustees — Dr. Alejandro R. Roses, Mr. Gregorio T. Yu, and General Alan R. Luga — at the Government Service Insurance System for 12 years, from 2010 to 2022.

He specializes in criminal, civil and commercial cases, taxation and special projects.

He earned his law degree at the University of the Philippines in 2018, graduating 9th in his batch. He was admitted to the Philippine Bar a year later. Poa also has a bachelor’s degree in Creative Arts and Italian Studies from Flinders University in Adelaide, South Australia.

Mark Vinluan

Mark Vinluan was an associate at Fortun Narvasa & Salazar Law from 2013 to 2015. 

He is currently a partner at Vinluan Law Office.

He earned his law degree in 2013 from the Ateneo Law School.

Ralph Bodota

Ralph Bodota was also a lawyer at the Fortun Narvasa & Salazar Office. Apart from being a lawyer, he is also a Certified Public Accountant. He served as an audit team leader at the Commission on Audit (COA) from 2015 to 2021.

Currently, he is managing partner of Bodota & Batungbacal Law Office.

He earned his law degree from Arellano University School of Law.

Bodota specializes in criminal, civil, administrative, and commercial litigation, as well as business and family law.

Roberto Batungbacal

Robert Batungbacal, who was also listed as Duterte’s lawyer in the 2025 petition, was a senior partner at the Fortun, Narvasa, and Salazar law firm. He earned both his management economics and law degrees from Ateneo. He was admitted to the Bar in 2019.

He is currently a partner at Bodota & Batungbacal Law Office.

Prior to becoming a lawyer, Batungbacal was a swimmer in his younger years up to college. He was also a multi-medal University Athletic Association of the Philippines varsity team member. – Rappler.com

Editor’s Note: The profiles of some defense members were also published earlier in this 2025 piece: Who are the lawyers defending Sara Duterte in her impeachment trial?