The man behind #HatolNiRoman imparts his insights on going viral on TikTok, the challenges faced by the Philippine legal system, and how to be better citizens
Attorney Tony Roman III is not a fan of those who break the law, but he is a fan of breaking society’s unnecessary systemic barriers—especially those that, at best, cause gross misinformation and, at worst, allow divisive ideologies to thrive. Take the chance to absorb a few of the quintessential perspectives we could muster from our sit-down chat with the mild-mannered attorney; as well as the hows and whys behind his ongoing pursuit of providing poignant, practical, and imperative legal advice to anyone and everyone who needs it.
Roots of service
While familial reputation certainly does not exist as a necessity in order to be of help to others, the lineage of the gentlemanly Attorney Tony Roman III can be traced to an entire clan of esteemed public servants. Both his father, the late Antonino Roman Jr., as well as his mother, Herminia Roman, served as the Representatives of the First District of Bataan in the Philippine House of Representatives for almost two decades; an office that the attorney’s sister, Representative Geraldine Roman, now holds on the back of a historic win in the 2016 general elections.
Despite such a decorated pedigree in local politics, Attorney Tony Roman III initially set the sails of his life towards the United States, where he was able to secure a license to practice law from the New York bar. In this decision, Attorney Roman was able to provide an ideal life of comfort and security for him and his family. In a sudden epiphany, this would all change when Attorney Roman decided to take his career back to the Philippines, moving back to the country alone in 2019.
It is no secret that most Filipinos have an innate yearning for a better life abroad. For most, this yearning will wistfully devolve into a far-away pipe dream when distance and reality just cannot permit its occurrence. There are also those like Attorney Roman, who have the means and the know-how to conceive a life abroad into existence. In any case, I find no doubt that either of these two sets of Filipinos would leave no hesitation in asking the attorney the question: “What made you let go of the ideal Filipino dream?” Luckily enough, Attorney Roman—with a penchant for preparation brought by the neurotic nature of his profession—had a good story to tell in bringing clarity to this nationwide curiosity.
A man for others
Thinking about this question, Attorney Roman recalled two immortal adages. The first being the principle instilled to him by his alma mater, the one that goes along the lines of “being a man for others.” The attorney explained that this noble motto has guided the attorney in much of his life; alluding that the sentiment of the adage seems to be the prime motivator in his decision to return to the Philippines and lend a helping hand to his countrymen as both the chief legal advisor of Representative Geraldine Roman and as a provider of free legal advice, adding:
“I’m sort of like, I’m running the last quarter of my marathon and, where do I run it? Where is the finish line? It occurred to me to go where help is needed. I’m not saying [that] I’m a superhero, I’m not saying [that] I’m a messiah, I’m just saying that if I think I can contribute, then why not do it?”
Attorney Tony Roman III III on returning to the Philippines
The other adage that the attorney states he now clings onto dearly, is the beloved local expression: “sana all.” Interestingly enough, the attorney found the ditzy saying to have a deeper meaning behind the humor, explaining that the phrase, in some ways, is a form of a longing call for equality; delineating the unfortunate truth that not everyone is able to have the same fortunes as others. In this regard, the attorney expressed that he too wishes that everyone could have what they needed.
It seems that the attorney has found the right way to live up to the philosophical connotations of “sana all.” Since setting up shop for free legal consultation, Attorney Roman shared with us that his office has been taking roughly 100-200 calls a day, assisting on legal issues sometimes as serious as murders and other grave crimes, to tamer civil disputes concerning marriage contracts and loan payments. Even with the relentless demand, the attorney found this new grind to have brought him a larger, more fulfilling purpose in comparison to the work he was used to doing comfortably in New York. However, despite this moment of realization, the attorney also realized the limitations of his phone, and more importantly his body. This led the attorney to search for more efficient means to disseminate his much-sought after advice.
At this point in time, the prominence of TikTok was rising to a fever pitch; becoming a go-to app for both millennials and young-at-heart generations alike. Seeing this, the attorney took a risk that most tenured professionals would not dare to do: put decades-worth of hard-earned expertise and knowledge into an extremely-accessible medium. And thus, the Tiktok username @tonyromaniii was born.
Simplifying the law
Along with Attorney Roman’s other daily activities as the right-hand man of his sister, the launch of his TikTok account reflects a larger quest that many would not dare try and solve alone. The attorney divulged a diagnosis he wishes to bring a remedy for; that Filipinos suffer from the notion that the law is only accessible to the highly educated, and relied upon only by those who have the coin for it. While some may view such a mission to be a bit too idealistic or vague to solve, the attorney’s intentions are deeply rooted not only from his DNA of public service, but also from the philosophies planted deep into his mentality from his training in law school: that the law is intended to serve all of its constituents, especially those subject to poverty. With over 1.5 million likes and 478,000 followers garnered from the attorney’s TikTok account alone, it seems that people have taken to his easily-understood tidbits of lecture in droves.
Attorney Roman stressed that this vanquishing of misaligned perceptions is part of an onward march of essential steps in spearheading a society where the rule of law is more respected, rather than feared or forgotten. However, in order for these proverbial boots to sally forth, he believes that change must first be planted in the minds of the youth. The one tidbit of advice he wishes his viewers would never forget? Attorney Roman reiterates that:
“Everything has to be documented. When you write to people, you’re not writing to them. You’re writing to the judge. You want to be the most reasonable person on paper when [it is] read, so that you win the judge to your side, in the event this goes to court.”
Attorney Tony Roman III’s #1 legal advice to everyone
Amazingly enough, Attorney Roman’s uploads would not only provide clarity to the minds of regular Filipinos, but also the office of his congresswoman sister as well. With his sister’s constituents within reach by a simple message or comment, it seems that the attorney has also utilized his online pursuits as a means of providing much-needed points-of-view in order to better support the advocacies championed by his sister in congress. The attorney gladly shared with us that because he was able to meet the problems that the average Filipinos faced on a daily basis, he was able to siphon these problems into opportunities for his sister to draft and pass bills that aim to lessen, solve, and perhaps prevent them from even occurring altogether. One of these bills is his sister’s recent efforts to amend anti-usury laws for micro-loans, which if passed, will prevent citizens from being victimized by unnecessarily high interest rates for loans.
No utopias
When asked about his vision for the country, Attorney Roman reiterated that he did not want to merely ponder on a form of imaginary utopia. Just like the home he once settled in the United States, great societies endured years of strengthening and development before becoming the bastions of humanity that they are today. He knows that it will also take a history’s worth of time and effort for substantial change in Filipino society to be realized. With a plain but profound truth etched into his mind, he proceeded to answer the question by explaining that his eyes are more focused on how to get the wheels of change spinning, rather than the destination itself.
Breaking barriers between classes and generations is no easy feat. What’s even more daunting is that someone has to do it, otherwise we might just all be left behind even further by the rest of the world—as if we were not so far away already. Attorney Tony Roman III seems to be a fantastic lawyer with all of the credentials and expertise under his belt, but that is not what makes him special. There are scores of lawyers with the same pedigree as Attorney Roman, but what makes him so unabashedly different is his unshaken commitment to his principles–a trait not everyone is able to acquire.
“You see, you will never truly understand other people’s problems for one reason: because they are other people’s problems. So, you have to put yourself in their shoes to fully understand what the problem is, knowing that somehow they may not be describing it accurately and fully. To do that you need empathy. So the question, I think especially in the Philippines is that: do we do that?”
Attorney Tony Roman III on helping with empathy
Find Attorney Tony Roman III over at his official Facebook, Instagram, and Tiktok pages for the latest uploads and updates.
Photography FLOYD JHOCSON of Studio100
Text JERONNE DE VILLA
Creative Direction ZION SANTOS & MARC PAGDILAO
Styling STEPH APARICI, assisted by JENNAH CORPUZ
Grooming ARJAY ZURITA
Shoot Coordination LOUIS ESGUERRA
