Nigeria’s Funke Adeoye Wins IBA Young Lawyer Award

Stories by Steve Aya

Funke Adeoye, the Founder and Executive Director of the Hope Behind Bars Africa, a nonprofit helping indigent inmates get access to justice and advocating justice sector reforms, has been awarded the Outstanding Young Lawyer Award by the International Bar Association (IBA). She received the award on Thursday at the IBA’s Annual Conference held in Toronto, Canada.

The award recognises young Lawyers aged 35 and below around the world with exceptional records of professional contributions to the rule of law, service to humanity and ethical excellence.

Adeoye founded the organisation, aged just 26. Profiling the organisation back in 2023, FIJ reported that within its first five years, it had rescued 416 unjustly detained innocent inmates from various prisons through the provision of legal pro bono services.