Adrian S. Cristobal Jr., a lawyer by profession, was appointed Director General of the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IP Philippines ) in February 2005. As Director General, Mr. Cristobal is shifting the IP Philippines ’ strategic thrusts towards a developmental approach to intellectual property. Before accepting the top post at the IP Philippines, Mr. Cristobal was the Undersecretary (Deputy Minister) for Consumer Welfare and Trade Regulation Group (CWTRG) of the Department (Ministry) of Trade and Industry (DTI), and concurrent Undersecretary for Legal Affairs.

Before joining government, Mr. Cristobal was in the private practice of law and active in non-government organizations (NGOs) doing development work. He serves on the boards of several developmental NGOs and is the Chairman of the Institute for Politics and Governance, a non-stock, non-profit organization. Mr. Cristobal is also a member of the faculty of the Ateneo de Manila University School of Government .

Mr. Cristobal obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of California at Berkeley, U.S.A. and a Juris Doctor of Laws degree from the Ateneo de Manila University School of Law where he was Associate Editor of the Ateneo Law Journal.

Mr. Cristobal has published several legal articles. He also writes a regular column in the Business Mirror, a respected business paper in the Philippines , entitled “What’s in a Name?”.