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OUR FOUNDER
The Firm, Akinjide & Co. was founded in 1956 by Late Chief Richard Akinjide, SAN, FCI Arb, CON.
Our Founder - (1931-2020)
Late Chief Richard Akinjide
CON, SAN, FCI Arb., UK FCE
Chief Richard Akinjide obtained a Bachelor of Law Degree from the University of London in 1955 and was called to the Inner Temple in 1956 as a Barrister and Member of the Bar of England & Wales. Chief Akinjide practiced as an active member of the English Bar until his demise. He was a Barrister and Solicitor of the Nigerian Bar and also practiced in the Gambia as a member of the Gambian Bar.
Chief Richard Akinjide led the Nigerian Bar as the President of the Nigerian Bar Association for an unprecedented three (3) consecutive years from 1970 to 1973. He was called to the Inner Bar in Nigeria and took Silk as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria on 28 January, 1978. Until his demise, being the most Senior Advocate of Nigeria, he was the Chairman, Committee of Senior Advocates of Nigeria.
He was a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK). He was an active member of the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN), USA.
‘Chief’, as he was fondly called, was a Member of the Nigerian Federal Parliament (1959-1966) and the Federal Minister of Education (1965-1966). As a Member of the 1977 Constituent Assembly, he participated in the drafting of the 1979 Nigerian Constitution. He was the pioneer Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council of the University of Jos (1976-79). Chief Richard Akinjide was the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice of Nigeria (1979-1983) and Member of the International Law Commission of the United Nations, Geneva (1981 – 1986).
Cases he handled are reported in various Law Reports in Nigeria, England, The Gambia and in International Law Reports. He was a seasoned Arbitrator.
Chief Richard Akinjide is the author of the 2nd Edition of “Africa and The Development of International Law” published by Martinus Nijhoff at The Hague, The Netherlands (1988).
In-house publications of Akinjide & Co. Series which started with “Advocacy, Ethics and The Bar” have now reached 55 (fifty-five) titles on wide ranging legal and public policy matters with global circulation.
He represented Nigeria as the Co-Agent and a Counsel in the case Cameroon v Nigeria (the “Bakassi Case”) at The World Court, The Hague involving International Boundary Disputes from Lake Chad to The Atlantic Ocean.
He was a member of the team of International Jurists that drafted the Law of The Sea Convention otherwise known as “The Constitution of The Sea” which is the biggest Convention ever sponsored by the United Nations (UN). Chief Richard Akinjide signed that Convention and The Final Act on behalf of Nigeria at Montego-Bay, Jamaica.
Late Chief Richard Akinjide established trusts in the Universities of Ibadan, Jos and Cambridge (England) and the Nigerian Law School for Annual Prizes in Law. Chief was a Visiting Lecturer for the LL.M Programme in the Alternative Dispute Resolution, International Commercial Arbitration, University of Ibadan. He was awarded Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) in 2002; a Distinguished Fellow of the Nigerian Law School, honoured as a Fellow of the Babcock University Circle of Eminence (FCE) in 2007 and awarded Doctor of Laws (D. Laws, Honorary) in December 2010 by Lead City University.
Landmark Case
Awolowo v. Shagari (1979)
Chief will best be remembered for his brilliance in winning the landmark case which immortalised him: Awolowo v. Shagari (1979) NSCC 87 on the vexed constitution and election petition issue of 122/3 (twelve two-thirds) of 19 States; a case, that made Alhaji Shehu Shagari, of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria at the inception of the 2nd Republic. Chief Akinjide won at first instance before the Presidential Election Tribunal, and subsequently on appeal before both the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Nigeria!
Akinjide & Co. continues the legacy and philosophy of the late Sage; “To Be The Best, And Excel Others!”.
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