David-Chyddy Eleke
An international law firm, McDermott Will & Emery, said to be the largest law firm in the United States of America (USA), has announced the addition of two Nigeria lawyers, Emeka Charles Chinwuba and Nexus Uzoma Sea as partners in the firm.
While Chinwuba will work in its Transactions Practice Group, Uzoma will work in its Litigation Practice Group based in New York.
McDermott Will & Emery, which has over 1,200 lawyers in its employ, partners leaders around the world to fuel missions, knock down barriers and shape markets. Its team works seamlessly across practices and industries to deliver highly effective solutions that propel success.
The two Nigerians are expected to provide strategic counsel in the areas of project finance and complex litigation to some of the most esteemed enterprises around the world, including Fortune 500 multinationals and institutions with Africa-based operations.
“In the spirit of continued innovation and truly comprehensive client service, we’re thrilled to add Emeka and Nexus to our Transactions and Litigation teams.
“As we emerge from the pandemic, clients face increased legal hurdles spanning different areas of law. Having collaborated together for years, Emeka and Nexus are a tried and true team, providing streamlined legal counsel addressing cross-practice client needs,” said Mr. Michael Poulos, McDermott’s Head of Strategy.
Uzoma and Emeka are founding members of “1844,” an association of African-American lawyers, founded in 2014 as a vehicle to address the challenges of industry representation and to promote collaboration, business development and mentorship.
The name ‘1844’ highlights the year the first African-American, Macon Bolling Allen was admitted to practice law in America. The work of 1844 positively impacts hundreds of diverse law firm summer associates through its annual Summer Associate Panel Discussion, and it similarly benefits middle and high school students through its collaboration with Legal Outreach.
Tony Upshaw, Miami-based Litigation partner and Global Chair of the Firm’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee, said: “In addition to superior technical knowledge in their respective practices, Emeka and Uzoma are pioneers in the fight to knock down unfair barriers for people of color in the legal industry.
“The core principles of 1844 align with our commitment to enhance diverse talent in law and leadership, which will be accelerated by these outstanding lawyers. We’re thrilled they have chosen McDermott to continue this important work.”
In his speech, Uzoma said they were incredibly excited to join the McDermott team, assuring that they would join forces to deliver best-in-class legal services to shared clients.
Nexus and Emeka were both previously elected as President of the Nigerian Lawyers Association at separate points in their careers.
Also, Emeka recently received a Congressional Recognition as one of “30 Black Stars” at the Face2Face Africa Conference and Awards. He is a debt lawyer focusing on project finance transactions in the power and infrastructure space, including conventional and renewable energy, acquisition financing transactions and US public-private partnerships. His work has covered complex financing projects in the US, South America, Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa.
He had worked for an extended period in the United Arab Emirates, where he advised on the development and financing of renewable energy projects in the MENA region. He also covers general bank finance transactions, mezzanine and investment grade financings and asset-based lending transactions.
On his part, Uzoma is a seasoned litigator and rising star trial lawyer representing high-profile companies in complex commercial litigation, product liability and financial services matters in both state and federal courts. His clients include Fortune 500 companies, financial institutions and pharmaceutical companies. His practice focus also includes the emerging area of Artificial Intelligence and its impact on existing product liability regimes.
He represented one of Africa’s most prominent business leaders in successfully defeating a trade secret suit seeking damages of at least $1 billion. In addition, he has successfully conducted internal investigations on behalf of financial institutions, including investigating allegations of cross trading on behalf of a New York fund of funds and allegations of officer embezzlement on behalf of a startup cosmetic company.
