Olisa Agbakoba
Olisa Agbakoba | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 29, 1953 Jos, Nigeria |
| Nationality | Nigerian |
| Citizenship | Nigerian |
| Alma mater | University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Nigerian Law School |
| Occupation(s) | Maritime lawyer and former president of Nigerian Bar Association. |
| Spouse | Lilian Agbakoba |
| Children | 5 |
| Parents |
|
| Honours | 1990: Roger Baldwin Medal for Civil Liberties 1993: Human Rights Award of the German Association of Judges 1996: Aachen Peace Award. |
| Website | https://oal.law |
Olisa Agbakoba // ⓘ is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (equivalent of King's Counsel) and a Senior Life Bencher of the Body of Benchers. He served as President of the Civil Liberties Organisation (1987-1995) and President of the Nigerian Bar Association (2006-2008) and was conferred a National Honour, The Order of the Niger (OON), on 18 December 2001. He is the founding partner of Olisa Agbakoba Legal (OAL), where he serves as the Head of the Arbitration and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) practice group. He is widely regarded as one of Nigeria's leading authority on Constitutional Law, Maritime Law, Human Rights Law, Development Law, Space Law, Arbitration, Environmental Justice and Legal Policy.
Education
Olisa Agbakoba was born on 29 May 1953 to Chief Justice Godfrey Ubaka Agbakoba and Mrs Phina Agbakoba in Jos. He attended Government Primary School, Jos from 1959 to 1960, Hillcrest School, Jos; 1961, Government Primary School Jos, 1962 - 1963; Zixton Public School Ozubulu in 1964 and Christ the King College, Onitsha between 1966 and 1967.
Olisa Agbakoba also attended College of Immaculate Conception in Enugu from 1970 to 1972, Government College in Ughelli in 1972, University of Nigeria, Nsukka from 1973 to 1977, Nigerian Law School in Lagos in 1978 and London School of Economics & Political Science from 1979 to 1980. He holds a doctorate degree in Law from the University of Nigeria (28th January, 2012).
Professional Career
Fresh out of school, he served as research fellow at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs' (NIIA). Dr. Agbakoba left NIIA after a year and succeeded at his father’s law firm in 1980 and renamed it, Olisa Agbakoba and Associates, also later renamed Olisa Agbakoba Legal (OAL). The law firm is a full service law firm specialising in aviation law, ADR, commercial law, dispute resolution/litigation, government/public sector, debt recovery, environmental justice, intellectual property, sports, entertainment & technology law, international trade & investment law, maritime law and space law. Dr. Olisa Agbakoba SAN is currently the Senior Partner at OAL.
Achievements
Olisa Agbakoba, is the former president of the Nigerian Bar Association[1] from 2006 to 2008 and a founding partner of Olisa Agbakoba and Associates, a leading maritime specialist law firm in Lagos.[2] He is also the founder of Nigeria's foremost human rights organization, the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO).[3] He became known through his work in human rights and democracy movement in Nigeria. He was also the founder of United Action for Democracy[4] and the Zambian pan-African human rights organization AfroNet. He was a defender for the Civil Rights activist, Ken Saro-Wiwa[5] who was executed and was arrested several times because of his pro – democratic activities.[6]
In 1990, Dr. Agbakoba was honoured with the Roger Baldwin Medal for Civil Liberties. In 1993, he received the Human Rights Award from the German Association of Judges and was also named one of the "15 Great Legal Practitioners of Distinction in Nigeria." He was also a recipient of Vanguard's "40 Outstanding Young Nigerians" Award.
In 1996, he was further recognised with the Aachen Peace Award and received the International Human Rights Award by the American Bar Association Section of Litigation, in recognition of extraordinary contributions to human rights, the rule of law, and access to justice.
He was conferred with the National Honour of Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) by President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2001. That same year, he received the African Maritime Business Award for exemplary performance in maritime law and administration.
In 2004, he was honoured with the Humanitarian Service Award in recognition of his contribution to humanity and Rotary ideals. In 2006, he received both a Merit Award and the Distinguished Trailblazers Award from the NBA Women Forum, the Dr. Kwame Nkrumah African Leadership Award, and was named FRA Williams Legal Practitioner of the Year.
In December 2006, he was honoured with a Merit Award by the Human Rights Defenders Organisation of Nigeria (HURDON). He also received the Maroko Evictees Committee MANAA Award for his selfless service to humanity, including advocacy for displaced persons.
In 2007, he received the Distinguished Leadership Award for inclusion in The International Directory of Distinguished Leadership, recognising his outstanding contributions to society, and was recognised with an Award of Excellence by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Nigeria. In 2008, Dr. Agbakoba received a Merit Award from the Nigerian Bar Association for his outstanding service as NBA President.
He was recognised with an Award of Excellence by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Nigeria again in 2020. He received the Lifetime Achievement Award from OMIS Maritime & Offshore Award in 2022.
On the 26th of August 2024, Dr. Agbakoba was honoured with the Bar Presidential Award by the President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau, OON, SAN.
Honours
In 1990, he was honoured with Roger Baldwin Medal for Civil Liberties. Also in 1993, he was honoured with the Human Rights Award of the German Association of Judges and in 1996 he was given the Aachen Peace Award.[7]
Other awards and honours include the receipt of the 15 Great Legal Practitioners of Distinction in Nigeria (1993),[8] Vanguard's 40 Outstanding Young Nigerians Award (1993),[9] Fellow and award recipient, Institute of Administrative Management of Nigeria, co-director,[10] British Council Conference on Managing Human Rights, Abuja, Nigeria,[9] the International Human Rights Award of the American Bar Association, in recognition of extraordinary contributions to the causes of Human Rights, the Rule of Law and Promotion of Access to Justice (1996), Dr. Kwame Nkrumah African Leadership awards in 2006 and FRA Williams Legal Practitioner of the year 2006 amongst others.[7]
Publications
- Legacy in Activism, Law and Leadership [11]
Personal life
Olisa Agbakoba is married to Lilian Agbakoba, who is also a lawyer by profession, has three daughters and six grandchildren and lives in Lagos.[12]
References
- ^ "Crisis as Lawyers Dump NBA, Form Parallel Association – THISDAYLIVE". www.thisdaylive.com. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
- ^ "Firm Overview: Olisa Agbakoba & Associates". Retrieved 31 March 2017.
- ^ Kenneth B. Noble (29 June 1989). "Lagos Journal: In Nigeria, to Rot in Jail Is a Hazard of the Innocent". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
- ^ Ann M. Simmons (27 July 1998). "Activists Urge Reform of Nigerian Prison System". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
- ^ "Ken Saro-Wiwa | Nigerian author and activist | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
- ^ "The NI Interview". New Internationalist. 5 April 1996.
- ^ a b "Olisa Agbakoba". Archived from the original on 5 March 2012. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
- ^ Chioma, Unini (30 May 2019). "TheNigeriaLawyer Celebrates Dr. Olisa Agbakoba (SAN) AT 66". TheNigeriaLawyer. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
- ^ a b "Agbakoba chairs NBA Board of Trustees". Latest Nigeria News, Nigerian Newspapers, Politics. 3 September 2019. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
- ^ "THE INTERVIEW SERIES WITH OLISA AGBAKOBA". The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News. 28 December 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
- ^ "Olisa Agbakoba: Legacy in Activism, Law and Leadership – THISDAYLIVE". www.thisdaylive.com. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
- ^ "DR. OLISA AGBAKOBA SAN – BusinessDay Conferences & Events". Retrieved 2 February 2021.