Atty. Danilo Lardizabal Concepcion

Atty. Danilo Lardizabal Concepcion
21st UP President

Atty. Danilo Lardizabal Concepcion has roots in Bayambang on his mother's side. He is the son of Natalia Maniago Lardizabal, a high school teacher, who once resided in Estacion.

He was born on February 7, 1958. As a young boy, he used to spend his summer vacations in Bayambang. 

Often referred to by his nickname DaniCon, he served as the 21st president of the University of the Philippines. Prior to his appointment as UP president, he was the dean and a professor of law at the UP College of Law and the Executive Director of the UP Bonifacio Global City Campus. He is husband to celebrity lawyer Gaby Concepcion (Ma. Gabriela Roldan-Concepcion).

Concepcion has always been an achiever. He graduated valedictorian from the Bancal Elementary School in Meycauayan, Bulacan in 1970. In 1974, he graduated as the high school valedictorian of the Basic Education Unit of De La Salle Araneta University in Malabon, where he also received the Most Outstanding Campus Journalist, Gerry Roxas Leadership Gold Medal, and Gold Eagle Award for Community Development.

He then took up B.5. agricultural engineering in the same university and graduated summa cum laude in 1979.

Concepcion was also president of the Kabataang Barangay Federation in Metro Manila from 1976 to 1978.
 

He received his Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the Philippines College of Law at Diliman in 1983, graduating cum laude, and is a member of the Upsilon Sigma Phi. He passed the bar examination on the same year.

He finished his Master of Laws in Queen Mary University of London in 1986 as a Chevening Scholar of the United Kingdom government.

He attended a Summer Course in International Law of the Sea at the University of Oxford in 1986 and a Finance for Senior Executives course in Asian Institute of Management in 2000.

Concepcion started as faculty of Siena College in 1985. He served as Bar reviewer in Corporation and Civil Law at the UP Law Center Bar Review School and bar reviewer in Civil Law at the San Sebastian College School of Law and Adamson University College of Law. After serving as President of De La Salle Araneta University, he returned in 2002 to become Associate Dean of the University of the Philippines College of Law, Head of the UP Law Center and Director of the Institute of Judicial Administration until May 2006. He was appointed as Vice-President for Legal Affairs of the University of the Philippines in February 2011 and was elected as the 14th Dean of the College of Law on June 3, 2011.

Concepcion served as member of the Sangguniang Bayan of Valenzuela and President of the Kabataang Barangay Federation of Metro Manila from 1976 to 1978. He was elected as the Youth Sector representative in the Interim Batasang Pambansa from 1978 to 1984. He also served as member of the Philippine delegation to the Asia Pacific Parliamentarian's Union (APPU) Conference held in Republic of Nauru in 1979, Vice chairman of the Philippine Youth delegation to the People's Republic of China in 1979, and member of the Philippine delegation to the Inter-Parliamentary Union Spring Conference in Lagos, Nigeria in 1982. He served as Chief of Staff of the Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Office of the President in 1996 as well as associate commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission from 1996 until his resignation in 2000 to serve as President of De La Salle Araneta University.

He served as corporate receiver of Daikin-Alen Air Corditioning, Inc., Rehabilation receiver of Ariel Meat Products; Epixtar, Inc.; Capital Wireless, Inc.; Reynolds (Phil.) Inc. and as Securities and Exchange Commission commissioner-in-charge of the rehabilitation of the Victorias Milling Corporation.

He is presently serving as a member of the editorial board of the IBP Law Journal, arbitrator in the Ad Hoc Arbitration cases with the Philippine Dispute Resolution Center, Inc., Liquidator of several companies National Steel Corporation; Bacnotan Steel Industries, Inc.; EYCO Group of Companies; Rubberworld (Philippines), Inc.; East Asia Capital; Winsource Solutions, Inc.; Advent Capital Corporations; PET Plans, Inc. Corporate Counsel of Gordon Dario Reyes Hocson & Viado Law Office and of Tan & Concepcion Law Firm.

In 2016, the UP Board of Regents elected Concepcion for the role as president. His term ended in February 2023. During his term, among the university's significant achievements are the institutionalization of sixty new degree programs across the UP system and the development of data science and artificial intelligence programs.

Concepcion is a co-editor of the books, “In the Grand Manner: Looking Back, Thinking Forward: 100 Years of U.P. Law” (2013) and “Bar Coded: Topical Survey of Bar Questions” (2011), and editor of “Family Laws” (2011).

He also has articles published in various journals.

Among the courses he has taught are Succession, Corporation Law, Persons and Family Relations, Problems in Commercial Law, Special Proceedings, and Supervised Legal Research.

He used to host a radio talk show over DZMM titled, “Abogado ng Bayan: Usapang de Campanilla.”