SM Prime Holdings, Inc. (SM Prime) welcomes former Senior Associate Justice Hon. Estela M. Perlas-Bernabe as its newest Independent Director, further reinforcing the Company’s commitment to strong corporate governance, prudent risk oversight and long-term stakeholder value creation.
Photo Caption: The Board of Directors of SM Prime approved the election of Justice Estela M. Perlas-Bernabe as its newest Independent Director.
In its special meeting on August 15, the Board of Directors of SM Prime approved the election of Justice Perlas-Bernabe as Independent Director. She succeeds former Independent Director Atty. Darlene Marie B. Berberabe, who stepped down from the Board following her appointment as the Solicitor General of the Philippines.
With an unparalleled judicial career spanning over 2 decades, Justice Perlas-Bernabe served in all levels of the Philippine court system, maintaining a zero-case backlog upon every promotion until her retirement from the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has since institutionalized the Senior Associate Justice Estela Perlas-Bernabe Exemplary Career Jurist Award, a first in Philippine history, to honor justices who match her record of efficiency and integrity.
Her breadth of experience—with the highest levels of the judiciary and private legal practice—is expected to contribute meaningfully to SM Prime’s Board deliberations, particularly in areas of governance, compliance and stakeholder risk management.
A Magna Cum Laude graduate of St. Paul College of Manila in Banking and Finance, Justice Perlas-Bernabe earned her law degree from the Ateneo de Manila University School of Law as Class Salutatorian, and successfully passing the Bar in 1977. Her career includes distinguished service in the judiciary, corporate legal practice, and academia as a former professor at Ateneo Law School.
Her election to the Board underscores SM Prime’s adherence to governance best practices, its inclusion in the FTSE4Good Index Series, and its ongoing drive to maintain a diverse, high-caliber Board aligned with the company’s sustainability and growth agenda.
