Atty. Alvin Talag Claridades is a respected legal luminary, prolific author, and seasoned educator whose distinguished career bridges the fields of law, engineering, environmental planning, public service, and legal education.
A multi-disciplinary expert, he holds licenses as a lawyer, civil engineer (CE), and environmental planner (EnP), a rare combination that has enabled him to contribute significantly to national development, housing policy, and legal scholarship in the Philippines.
He currently serves as the Corporate Secretary of the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA).
From 2007 to 2019, he held key leadership positions in the national government as Director IV for Legal Services and Asset Reform at the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) and from 2019 to 2023 as Director IV for Administrative and Finance Services at its successor agency, the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD).
His more than three decades of service in government were marked by transformative initiatives in urban development, housing and urban asset reform, regulatory compliance, and good governance.
Atty. Claridades began his professional journey as a Project Engineer at the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) from 1988 to 1992. He later served as Municipal Councilor of Obando, Bulacan from 1992 to 1995, where he demonstrated his early commitment to public service and local governance.
His academic journey is equally impressive.
A pioneering law student of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) College of Law, he was part of its first batch in 2001, where he became a founding officer of the PUP Law Students Society (PULSO), the forerunner of the present law student council, and first editor-in-chief of Lex Novus, the college’s official student publication. He also contributed to the inaugural issue of the PUP Law Review.
Atty. Claridades earned his Bachelor of Laws in 2006, passed the Bar in 2007, and became one of the first eight lawyers produced by the then fledgling college.
Since 2010, Atty. Claridades has been a core faculty member of the PUP College of Law, where he has taught Civil Procedure, Land Titles and Deeds, Environmental Law, Statutory Construction, Legal Writing, Legal Forms, Agrarian Reform Law, Transportation Law, Credit Transactions, and Property and Land Law.
His passion for teaching has also brought him to other prominent legal institutions such as the New Era University (NEU), University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P), Universidad de Manila (UDM), and Wesleyan University – Philippines (WU-P).
A highly sought-after bar and board exam reviewer, Atty. Claridades has guided countless students and professionals across the fields of law, engineering, real estate, and urban planning. His writings are a testament to both breadth and depth of expertise.
To date, Atty. Claridades has authored a total of forty (40) books, covering a diverse range of topics including civil law, remedial law, constitutional law, statutory construction, transportation law, credit transactions, property law, agrarian reform, environmental law, housing and real estate, urban planning, local governance, and the National Building Code. These works are widely used as standard references by students, academics, practitioners, and policymakers across the country.
Beyond his professional roles, he is active in civic and professional organizations. He served as President of the Rotary Club of Obando Centro (RCOC) for Rotary Year 2022–2023 and is affiliated with various institutions including the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) – Bulacan Chapter, the Philippine Institute of Civil Engineers (PICE) – Lungsod ng Maynila Chapter, the Philippine Institute of Environmental Planners (PIEP) – NCR Chapter, the Center for Global Best Practices (CGBP), and The Hows of Real Estate (THoRE).
Atty. Claridades is a lifelong learner, public servant, and mentor, dedicated to promoting excellence, ethics, and nation-building across generations of Filipino professionals.